[Busmgrs] State School Fund Approved Transportation Costs and Reimbursement Funds

[WILTFONG Michael]

DA:     April 11, 2012

TO:     Superintendents, Business Managers and Transportation Directors


RE:     State School Fund Approved Transportation Costs and Reimbursement Funds


This memo is to clarify two issues that have come to the attention of the Department of Education.

OAR 581-023-0040
Approved Transportation Costs for Payment from the State School Fund states,
"(3) Approved transportation costs shall include those district expenditures associated with:
(a) Home-to-school transportation of elementary school pupils who live at least one mile from school;
(b) Home-to-school transportation of secondary school pupils who live at least one and one-half miles from school;

(6) In the above computation, the following definitions apply:
(a) Pupil Transportation Salaries. Salaries and wages paid school bus drivers, assistants to driver, and that portion of salaries paid mechanics and other bus maintenance employees, supervisors of transportation, secretarial and clerical assistants, and persons assigned transportation oversight and coordination responsibilities attributable to the transportation program and documented through position descriptions and payroll records.  No school district General Administration salaries may be included in this area;"

Salaries for school staff assigned to bus monitoring before and after school, parking lot monitors and crossing guards are not considered approved transportation costs.

ORS 327.033 Approved transportation costs states,
"(2) In determining approved transportation costs, the State Board of Education:
(a) Shall include depreciation of original cost to the school district of district-owned buses, not in excess of 10 percent per year;
(3) School districts shall account separately for those funds received from the State School Fund attributable to the costs included under subsection (2) of this section, and expenditure of those funds shall be limited to the acquisition of new buses or transportation equipment." [1991 c.780 §7a; 2007 c.855 §3]

Funds received from the SSF for bus garage, bus or capital bus improvement depreciation should be accounted for separately in a Special Revenue Fund 2XX with Source code 3222.  These revenue sources cannot be used in the General Fund for other purposes.

If you have any questions, please contact Steven Huillet at 503 947-5873 or Michael Wiltfong at 503 947-5914 - thank you.




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