SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE

STATEMENT TO

SENATE, No. 2757

with committee amendments

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

DATED:  FEBRUARY 6, 2017

     The Senate Education Committee favorably reports Senate Bill No. 2757 with committee amendments.

     As amended, this bill would establish a minimum ratio of school bus aides to special needs students on a school bus.   Under the bill, a board of education or a contracted service provider that provides pupil transportation services must ensure that a school bus has on board at least one school bus aide for every 15 students with special needs.  The aide-to-student ratio must be maintained at all times when a school bus is transporting students with special needs or a combination of students with special needs and general education students.

     The committee amended the bill to stipulate that the term “student with special needs” as used in the bill does not include a student who is classified as eligible for special education programs and services solely on the basis of a “specific learning disability,” as that term is defined in the federal “Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.”