Not a scathing audit, but a caution issued by the State Auditor that school districts must become more vigilant about who gets behind the wheel of a school bus.
State Auditor Susan Montee has issued a follow-up audit to determine whether school districts are complying with state regulations regarding school bus drivers.
"The overall findings of the audit were that most districts comply most of the time with most of the requirements," Montee tells reporters during a news conference at the Capitol.
Enough districts don’t comply to concern Montee. Her auditors found that 10% of the state’s school districts aren’t requiring drivers to undergo random drug tests. Eight hours of training is required before someone drives a school bus. Twenty percent aren’t in compliance.
Auditors screened school bus drivers and discovered 82 on the central registry. There must be a substantiated report of child abuse or neglect to land on the registry.
Since 2005, school bus drivers have been required to undergo fingerprint criminal record checks. Montee supported legislation that failed this past session that would have subjected drivers to the family care safety registry. Still, she says school districts can do some things on their own. Montee adds the Education Department should push more school districts to keep a better eye on their bus drivers.
