School Bus Safety Belts

New Texas law requires them, but where will the money come from?

Back in 2006, a Beaumont, Texas, high school bus overturned, killing two students. Then in 2015 a bus from Houston plunged off an overpass to the street below. Two students died in that accident as well.

Investigators believed safety belts would have prevented those deaths. But few school buses in Texas are fitted with such restraints for passengers.

In 2007, following the Beaumont deaths, the state Legislature passed a bill to help school districts fit their buses with safety belts. A couple of years later, the state offered $10 million to fund the belts. But not many districts took advantage of the opportunity and the money was spent on other things. Without any state funding left, the whole idea sort of fell by the wayside.

But the 2015 accident galvanized the Legislature once again. This month, Texas joins a handful of other states in requiring three-point shoulder-to-lap belts on school buses. The law applies to new buses purchased after 2018.

Older buses do not have to be refitted. And school districts that can’t afford the cost—the belts add an estimated $8,000 to $10,000 to the price per bus—can opt-out after holding a public meeting and taking a vote.

Many school districts say the cost will be prohibitive. Larger districts can buy 10 or more new buses a year and there is no additional state funding.

Lawmakers say school districts will just have to budget better and prioritize safety.

Safety belts on school buses make sense. But we understand the districts’ financial concerns.

There should be some sort of compromise. Yes, the school districts could shift funding to help pay for the new buses. But the state could do the same. It’s one thing to claim children’s safety is a top concern and it’s easy to pass laws mandating a new safeguard. But there must be some follow-through. It’s time for money to meet mouth. If both sides are as serious as they say about student safety, that is.