DFD-S Policy - Use of School District Owned Motor Vehicles

Provisions For Student and Public Use of School District Vehicles

School District No. 9, Sublette County, Wyoming shall permit its transportation vehicles to be used for transporting student groups or groups of school district patrons throughout the calendar year, if such usage is in accordance with the mission of the school district and in accordance with the fallowing pro visions and rules of usage.

1. At all times, the needs of school district students shall be given preference over non-student usage.

2. In view of the district's need for unencumbered insurance coverage, all usage of school district vehicles shall be within the guidelines of appropriate state and federal law, as relating to school bus usage and operation. The individual or group leasing a school bus for non-school use shall always recognize the rules for school bus operation. The rules cannot be amended or altered by the driver of the vehicle or by the riders on the bus.

3. All drivers of the yellow busses or the over the road activity busses shall be assigned by the school district and shall be selected from the listing of individuals who have met in total all school district and State of Wyoming requirements. Under no circumstances will an individual not possessing full and current school bus driver licensure, for the size of vehicle being used, be permitted to drive or otherwise operate a school district yellow bus or activity bus.

4. Individuals not possessing appropriate school bus driver licensure may be permitted to drive or otherwise operate district owned vehicles other than the yellow busses or the over the road activity busses in transporting individuals in a non-school sponsored activity. However, the school district shall require the sponsor of the organization seeking to lease or otherwise use a school district owned vehicle at the time of scheduling usage of a school di strict owned not of the size of the over the road activity busses or a yellow school bus, to suggest the driver or the drivers of the vehicle sought to be used. The school district shall have the right of requiring proof of proper vehicle operating licensing and may refuse to accept the suggested driver to operate a school district owned vehicle.

5. To ensure adequate time to properly arrange scheduling of district owned vehicles, individuals seeking to utilize school district owned vehicles are encouraged to submit in writing a request to use a school district owned vehicle no less than thirty days prior to the date of requested usage.

6. All requests for us age of school district owned vehicles under provisions of Policy DFD-S are to be submitted in writing to the Director of Transportation.

7. The school district in the development of the schedule for determining usage of school district owned vehicles does not view the leasing or using of school district owned vehicles as an avenue of profit making but instead is intending to recover proper and appropriate costs of vehicle operation. It is not the intent to provide reduced rate services to specific groups or specific activities irregardless of how legitimate the activity may be.

8. All billing and all receipts for payment of claims incurred for using a school district owned vehicle shall be processed by the business office.

9. It shall be understood by all individuals scheduling usage of school district owned vehicles that damage to the vehicle beyond that of what could be defined as reasonable wear and tear is to be assumed in total by the group using the vehicle.

10. While the school district shall maintain appropriate liability and comprehensive insurance coverage on ell school district owned motor vehicles, the district shall not and will not assume liability for loss of personal items or for damage or injury not appropriate for the school district to assume. It is not the intentions of the school district to seek recovery of costs of damage caused to a school district owned transportation vehicle by passengers outlined in Line Item 9.

11. In the calculation of the costs to be charged to the group utilizing school district owned transportation vehicles, the following factors shall be incorporated into the billing process. The factors are as follows:

a. The employee cost per hour for time on duty. This cost shall represent a driver per hour cost equal to that being paid to the employees of the school district who operate motor vehicles in regular performance of their assigned duties.

b. Costs the driver incurs for such things as meal costs, lodging costs, or other appropriate costs of the employee in the performance of his or her duties.

c. A cost per mile for the size of vehicle being used as defined in this policy and as calculated by the odometer reading of the vehicle at the time of leaving the bus storage building being subtracted from the odometer reading of the vehicle at the time it is returned to the bus storage building at the conclusion of the trip. No additional charges for vehicle operation shall be levied against the group using the vehicle for expenses such as fuel, oil, repairs, or any other normal expense of vehicle operation.

d. In the event the group using the vehicle assume the meal costs, lodging costs, etc., of the driver as outlined in Item B, no charges shall be levied by the school district for these expenses.

e. While the following table suggests the anticipated cost per mile for using school district owned vehicles, the board of trustees shall reserve in total the unrestricted right to adjust the proposed cost per mile to properly reflect costs of vehicle operation for components of operating a motor vehicle such as fuel, oil, tires, etc. Therefore, the per mile operation cost may be changed by the board of trustees by action in open meeting without requiring formal amendment of this policy.

Vehicles having a capacity less than 14 passengers

a. Station wagons, sedans, small vans type of busses 35 cents per mile driven

Vehicles having o capacity of more than 14 passengers but less than 36 passengers

a. Dodge van and larger yellow vans 40 cents per mile driven

Yellow busses having a capacity of more than 36 passengers 50 cents per mile driven

The two activity busses $1.25 per mile driven

SCHOOL SPONSORED SUMMER UTILIZATION OF DISTRICT OWNED VEH ICLES

The board of trustees recognizes the advantages of students participating in properly managed and well organized summer activities and further recognizes the factor of safety in having students travel in school district vehicles driven by a properly trained and licensed driver. Therefore, the following provisions shall be applicable to summer use of school district owned vehicles as applicable to student organization usage.

a. Student groups or organizations applicable to this provision shall be an organization or group of students participating in an activity sponsored in total by the school district during the regular school term and using school employed sponsors. All groups applicable to this provision shall be totally under the supervision and management of the school district and shall represent students enrolled in this school district the immediate prior school term or anticipated to be enrolled in this school district in the next immediate school term.

b. Groups of students meeting the above definition may be eligible to use school district owned vehicles at a cost equal to the actual fuel cost and the actual cost to the school district for the driver for in-state travel given prior approval by the building principal or principals of the building to which the students are assigned. No individual may be permitted to operate a school district owned vehicle transporting students who does not possess current and complete licensure for the size of vehicle being driven.

c. Summer travel involving school district owned vehicles proposing to leave the state of Wyoming shall be dealt with on an individual basis by the board of trustees.

d. All school district employees contemplating using a school district owned vehicle for summer group travel not possessing a current license to operate a school bus shall notify their principal of their interest in a timely enough manner to permit a license monitoring to be made with the Wyoming Highway Department to ensure insurance company provisions of safe driving records prior to departure are completed and on file in the central office.

e. Vehicles to be utilized shall be assigned by the bus mechanic in consultation with the individual desiring to utilize district owned vehicles as a means of causing least interference with the summer vehicle maintenance schedule.

Adoption October 15, 1985

Amended June 15, 1989

Amended August 16, 1 990