53-8-211. Safety inspection of school buses and other vehicles.
| (1) |
For purposes of this section and Section 53-8-211.5, “education entity” means:
Terms Used In Utah Code 53-8-211- Division: means the Utah Highway Patrol Division created in Section 53-8-103. See Utah Code 53-8-102
- Highway Patrol: means the Highway Patrol troopers employed under Section 53-8-104. See Utah Code 53-8-102
- Process: means a writ or summons issued in the course of a judicial proceeding. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes a state, district, or territory of the United States. See Utah Code 68-3-12.5
- Vehicle: means every device in, upon, or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a highway, excepting devices used exclusively upon stationary rails or tracks. See Utah Code 53-1-102
| (a) |
a school district; |
| (c) |
a private school; and |
| (d) |
the Utah Schools for the Deaf and the Blind. |
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| (2) |
| (a) |
A school bus operated by an education entity in this state is required to pass a safety inspection annually. |
| (b) |
| (ii) |
The rules under Subsection (2)(b)(i) shall include provisions for:
| (A) |
maintaining school bus drivers’ hours of service records; |
| (B) |
requiring school bus drivers to maintain vehicle condition reports; |
| (C) |
maintaining school bus maintenance and repair records; and |
| (D) |
validating that defects discovered during the inspection process have been corrected prior to returning a school bus to service. |
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| (iii) |
| (A) |
The division shall audit school bus safety operations of each education entity performing inspections under Subsection (2)(b)(i) to ensure compliance with the rules made under Subsection (2)(b)(i). |
| (B) |
The audit may include both a formal examination of the education entity’s inspection records and a random physical inspection of buses that have been safety inspected by the education entity. |
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| (iv) |
An education entity must have a comprehensive school bus maintenance plan approved by the division in order to participate in the safety inspection program. |
| (v) |
An education entity may not operate any vehicle found to have mechanical or other defects that would endanger the safety of passengers and the public until the defects have been corrected. |
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| (3) |
In addition to a safety inspection required under Subsection (2)(b), the Highway Patrol shall:
| (a) |
perform random safety inspections:
| (i) |
annually on a minimum of 20% of the school buses operated by an education entity; and |
| (ii) |
on 100% of school buses operated by an education entity when inspections conducted pursuant to Subsection (3)(a)(i) result in an out-of-service failure rate as determined by the division; |
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| (b) |
verify that defects discovered during an inspection under Subsection (3)(a) have been corrected; and |
| (c) |
make publicly available the results of inspections performed under Subsection (3)(a). |
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| (4) |
Motor vehicles operated by an education entity, and not used for the transportation of students, are subject to Section 53-8-205. |
Amended by Chapter 71, 2020 General Session
