NYS budget clarifies school bus camera law in response to ruling
Some school buses in Nassau and Suffolk counties have been equipped with cameras to catch drivers who illegally pass. Credit: Debbie Egan-Chin
ALBANY — A little-noticed provision of the new state budget clarifies a law against passing a stopped school bus after a court sided with drivers who argued that photographic evidence didn’t prove the vehicle they passed was a school bus or that it was picking up or dropping off children.
The issue was forced by a Nassau County driver who challenged a ticket he received in Suffolk County resulting from a 2019 law that allows cameras on school buses to reduce the danger to kids. The law allows the video of violations to be used in prosecuting offenders.
However, the driver argued a video allegedly showing him passing a school bus wasn’t sufficient proof that a school bus was actually passed or, if it was a bus, that it was receiving or discharging passengers.
In November, a state appellate court agreed.
WHAT TO KNOW
A provision of the state budget clarifies a law against passing a stopped school bus after a court sided with drivers who argued that photographic evidence didn’t prove the vehicle they passed was a school bus or that it was picking up or dropping off children.
- A state appellate court ruled that the video showing a driver passing the camera wasn’t enough proof under the wording of the law.
- The budget measure adds to the law a “presumption” that a stopped school bus is taking on or dropping off passengers and creates a way to document that a vehicle providing images in a traffic case is indeed a school bus.
The court ruled prosecutors failed to document the bus was “properly marked and equipped with flashing signal lamps” and had “school bus” printed on the outside of the bus, as required by the law. The court said the video showing the driver passing the camera wasn’t enough proof under the wording of the law to prove the vehicle was a school bus.
“The video recording was insufficient to establish that the bus was a school bus within the meaning of the statute,” the court ruled. The decision also said prosecutors failed to prove that just because the bus was stopped, there was no proof “the bus had stopped for the purpose of receiving or discharging any passengers.”
The new provision in the state budget deal adopted April 20 amends the law to address those issues.
The budget measure adds to the 2019 law a “presumption” that a stopped school bus is taking on or dropping off passengers or is behind a bus that is adding or discharging passengers. The new provision also creates a way for local governments to document that a vehicle that provided images used in a traffic case is indeed a school bus, with all the required markings and flashing lights.
“The first and foremost and the most obvious consideration is the protection of our precious kids on school buses,” said Assemb. Charles Lavine (D-Glen Cove), who fought for the state budget provision. “These photo mechanisms are designed to accomplish just that.”
He found the appellate court decision that prompted the budget deal a bit perplexing.
“I only wish I could defend every judicial decision,” said Lavine, who is also a lawyer. “But I cannot and in this case I will not.”
A conviction for passing a stopped school bus carries a fine of $250 for a first violation. The fine rises to $275 for a second violation and $300 for a third or subsequent violations within 18 months.
Under the 2019 state law, local governments can choose to equip school buses with cameras that activate with “stop arms” telling drivers to halt. The first program in the state was in Suffolk County, where county officials said the measure, enacted under former County Executive Steve Bellone, reduced violations by half over four years. The contract with BusPatrol America, of Lorton, Virginia, brought in close to $25 million for the county in 2022, the first full year of service.
More than 102,596 school bus camera tickets were issued in Suffolk in 2023. After the appellate ruling, the Suffolk County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency suspended hearings for contested school bus camera tickets, leaving thousands of drivers in limbo as they wait for their day in court.
In Nassau, the county said it is up to the towns to chose to install the cameras. Hempstead’s program has been operating for more than a year.
The National Transportation Safety Board said that, despite laws in every state, drivers continue to pass stopped school buses “and put children at risk.” The NTSB recommends all states allow cameras on buses and allow tickets to be issued based on the photo or video.
School buses are passed illegally an estimated 43.5 million a times a year in North America, according to Kate Spree, spokeswoman for BusPatrol America, which lobbies in New York State on transportation safety issues.
“The stop-arm camera programs are telling the story of how serious the illegal passing issue is when considering the large number of passings documented on stop-arm cameras each day of operation,” said David Christopher, executive director of the New York Association for Pupil Transportation, a lobbying and school bus safety advocate.
Michael Gormley has worked for Newsday since 2013, covering state government, politics and issues. He has covered Albany since 2001.
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