|
fingerprinting process when applying for subsequent permits or
|
submitting proof of successful completion of the annual |
refresher
course. Individuals who on the effective date of this |
Act possess a valid
school bus driver permit that has been |
previously issued by the appropriate
Regional School |
Superintendent are not subject to the fingerprinting
|
provisions of this Section as long as the permit remains valid |
and does not
lapse. The applicant shall be required to pay all |
related
application and fingerprinting fees as established by |
rule
including, but not limited to, the amounts established by |
the Department of
State Police and the Federal Bureau of |
Investigation to process
fingerprint based criminal background |
investigations. All fees paid for
fingerprint processing |
services under this Section shall be deposited into the
State |
Police Services Fund for the cost incurred in processing the |
fingerprint
based criminal background investigations. All |
other fees paid under this
Section shall be deposited into the |
Road
Fund for the purpose of defraying the costs of the |
Secretary of State in
administering this Section. All |
applicants must:
|
1. be 21 years of age or older;
|
2. possess a valid and properly classified driver's |
license
issued by the Secretary of State;
|
3. possess a valid driver's license, which has not been
|
revoked, suspended, or canceled for 3 years immediately |
prior to
the date of application, or have not had his or |
|
her commercial motor vehicle
driving privileges
|
disqualified within the 3 years immediately prior to the |
date of application;
|
4. successfully pass a written test, administered by |
the
Secretary of State, on school bus operation, school bus |
safety, and
special traffic laws relating to school buses |
and submit to a review
of the applicant's driving habits by |
the Secretary of State at the time the
written test is |
given;
|
5. demonstrate ability to exercise reasonable care in |
the operation of
school buses in accordance with rules |
promulgated by the Secretary of State;
|
6. demonstrate physical fitness to operate school |
buses by
submitting the results of a medical examination, |
including tests for drug
use for each applicant not subject |
to such testing pursuant to
federal law, conducted by a |
licensed physician, an advanced practice nurse
who has a |
written collaborative agreement with
a collaborating |
physician which authorizes him or her to perform medical
|
examinations, or a physician assistant who has been |
delegated the
performance of medical examinations by his or |
her supervising physician
within 90 days of the date
of |
application according to standards promulgated by the |
Secretary of State;
|
7. affirm under penalties of perjury that he or she has |
not made a
false statement or knowingly concealed a |
|
material fact
in any application for permit;
|
8. have completed an initial classroom course, |
including first aid
procedures, in school bus driver safety |
as promulgated by the Secretary of
State; and after |
satisfactory completion of said initial course an annual
|
refresher course; such courses and the agency or |
organization conducting such
courses shall be approved by |
the Secretary of State; failure to
complete the annual |
refresher course, shall result in
cancellation of the |
permit until such course is completed;
|
9. not have been convicted of 2 or more serious traffic |
offenses, as
defined by rule, within one year prior to the |
date of application that may
endanger the life or safety of |
any of the driver's passengers within the
duration of the |
permit period;
|
10. not have been convicted of reckless driving, |
driving while
intoxicated, or reckless homicide resulting |
from the operation of a motor
vehicle within 3 years of the |
date of application;
|
11. not have been convicted of committing or attempting
|
to commit any
one or more of the following offenses: (i) |
those offenses defined in
Sections 9-1, 9-1.2, 9-2, 9-2.1, |
9-3, 9-3.2, 9-3.3, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3.1,
10-4,
10-5, 10-6, |
10-7, 11-6,
11-9, 11-9.1, 11-14, 11-15, 11-15.1, 11-16, |
11-17, 11-18, 11-19, 11-19.1,
11-19.2,
11-20, 11-20.1, |
11-21, 11-22, 12-3.1, 12-4.1, 12-4.2, 12-4.3, 12-4.4,
|
|
12-4.5,
12-6, 12-6.2, 12-7.1, 12-7.3, 12-7.4, 12-11,
|
12-13, 12-14, 12-14.1, 12-15, 12-16, 12-16.2, 12-21.5, |
12-21.6, 12-33,
18-1,
18-2,
18-3, 18-4, 18-5,
20-1, 20-1.1, |
20-2, 24-1, 24-1.1, 24-1.2, 24-3.3, 31A-1, 31A-1.1, and
|
33A-2, and in subsection (a) and subsection (b), clause |
(1), of Section
12-4 of the Criminal Code of 1961; (ii) |
those offenses defined in the
Cannabis Control Act except |
those offenses defined in subsections (a) and
(b) of |
Section 4, and subsection (a) of Section 5 of the Cannabis |
Control
Act; (iii) those offenses defined in the Illinois |
Controlled Substances
Act; (iv) those offenses defined in |
the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act; |
(v) any offense committed or attempted in any other state |
or against
the laws of the United States, which if |
committed or attempted in this
State would be punishable as |
one or more of the foregoing offenses; (vi)
the offenses |
defined in Section 4.1 and 5.1 of the Wrongs to Children |
Act and (vii) those offenses defined in Section 6-16 of the |
Liquor Control Act of
1934;
|
12. not have been repeatedly involved as a driver in |
motor vehicle
collisions or been repeatedly convicted of |
offenses against
laws and ordinances regulating the |
movement of traffic, to a degree which
indicates lack of |
ability to exercise ordinary and reasonable care in the
|
safe operation of a motor vehicle or disrespect for the |
traffic laws and
the safety of other persons upon the |
|
highway;
|
13. not have, through the unlawful operation of a motor
|
vehicle, caused an accident resulting in the death of any |
person; and
|
14. not have, within the last 5 years, been adjudged to |
be
afflicted with or suffering from any mental disability |
or disease.
|
(b) A school bus driver permit shall be valid for a period |
specified by
the Secretary of State as set forth by rule. It |
shall be renewable upon compliance with subsection (a) of this
|
Section.
|
(c) A school bus driver permit shall contain the holder's |
driver's
license number, legal name, residence address, zip |
code, social
security number and date
of birth, a brief |
description of the holder and a space for signature. The
|
Secretary of State may require a suitable photograph of the |
holder.
|
(d) The employer shall be responsible for conducting a |
pre-employment
interview with prospective school bus driver |
candidates, distributing school
bus driver applications and |
medical forms to be completed by the applicant, and
submitting |
the applicant's fingerprint cards to the Department of State |
Police
that are required for the criminal background |
investigations. The employer
shall certify in writing to the |
Secretary of State that all pre-employment
conditions have been |
successfully completed including the successful completion
of |
|
an Illinois specific criminal background investigation through |
the
Department of State Police and the submission of necessary
|
fingerprints to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for |
criminal
history information available through the Federal |
Bureau of
Investigation system. The applicant shall present the
|
certification to the Secretary of State at the time of |
submitting
the school bus driver permit application.
|
(e) Permits shall initially be provisional upon receiving
|
certification from the employer that all pre-employment |
conditions
have been successfully completed, and upon |
successful completion of
all training and examination |
requirements for the classification of
the vehicle to be |
operated, the Secretary of State shall
provisionally issue a |
School Bus Driver Permit. The permit shall
remain in a |
provisional status pending the completion of the
Federal Bureau |
of Investigation's criminal background investigation based
|
upon fingerprinting specimens submitted to the Federal Bureau |
of
Investigation by the Department of State Police. The Federal |
Bureau of
Investigation shall report the findings directly to |
the Secretary
of State. The Secretary of State shall remove the |
bus driver
permit from provisional status upon the applicant's |
successful
completion of the Federal Bureau of Investigation's |
criminal
background investigation.
|
(f) A school bus driver permit holder shall notify the
|
employer and the Secretary of State if he or she is convicted |
in
another state of an offense that would make him or her |
|
ineligible
for a permit under subsection (a) of this Section. |
The
written notification shall be made within 5 days of the |
entry of
the conviction. Failure of the permit holder to |
provide the
notification is punishable as a petty
offense for a |
first violation and a Class B misdemeanor for a
second or |
subsequent violation.
|
(g) Cancellation; suspension; notice and procedure.
|
(1) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school bus
|
driver permit of an applicant whose criminal background |
investigation
discloses that he or she is not in compliance |
with the provisions of subsection
(a) of this Section.
|
(2) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school
bus |
driver permit when he or she receives notice that the |
permit holder fails
to comply with any provision of this |
Section or any rule promulgated for the
administration of |
this Section.
|
(3) The Secretary of State shall cancel a school bus
|
driver permit if the permit holder's restricted commercial |
or
commercial driving privileges are withdrawn or |
otherwise
invalidated.
|
(4) The Secretary of State may not issue a school bus
|
driver permit for a period of 3 years to an applicant who |
fails to
obtain a negative result on a drug test as |
required in item 6 of
subsection (a) of this Section or |
under federal law.
|
(5) The Secretary of State shall forthwith suspend
a |
|
school bus driver permit for a period of 3 years upon |
receiving
notice that the holder has failed to obtain a |
negative result on a
drug test as required in item 6 of |
subsection (a) of this Section
or under federal law.
|
(6) The Secretary of State shall suspend a school bus |
driver permit for a period of 3 years upon receiving notice |
from the employer that the holder failed to perform the |
inspection procedure set forth in subsection (a) or (b) of |
Section 12-816 of this Code. |
The Secretary of State shall notify the State |
Superintendent
of Education and the permit holder's |
prospective or current
employer that the applicant has (1) has |
failed a criminal
background investigation or (2) is no
longer |
eligible for a school bus driver permit; and of the related
|
cancellation of the applicant's provisional school bus driver |
permit. The
cancellation shall remain in effect pending the |
outcome of a
hearing pursuant to Section 2-118 of this Code. |
The scope of the
hearing shall be limited to the issuance |
criteria contained in
subsection (a) of this Section. A |
petition requesting a
hearing shall be submitted to the |
Secretary of State and shall
contain the reason the individual |
feels he or she is entitled to a
school bus driver permit. The |
permit holder's
employer shall notify in writing to the |
Secretary of State
that the employer has certified the removal |
of the offending school
bus driver from service prior to the |
start of that school bus
driver's next workshift. An employing |
|
school board that fails to
remove the offending school bus |
driver from service is
subject to the penalties defined in |
Section 3-14.23 of the School Code. A
school bus
contractor who |
violates a provision of this Section is
subject to the |
penalties defined in Section 6-106.11.
|
All valid school bus driver permits issued under this |
Section
prior to January 1, 1995, shall remain effective until |
their
expiration date unless otherwise invalidated.
|
(Source: P.A. 93-895, eff. 1-1-05; 94-556, eff. 9-11-05.)
|
(625 ILCS 5/12-813.1)
|
Sec. 12-813.1. School bus driver communication devices. |
Operation of a school bus while using a cellular radio
|
telecommunication device.
|
(a) In this Section:
|
"School bus driver" means a person operating a school bus |
who has a valid
school bus driver permit as required under |
Sections 6-104 and 6-106.1 of this
Code.
|
"Cellular radio telecommunication device" means a device |
capable of sending
or receiving telephone communications |
without an access line for service and
which requires the |
operator to dial numbers manually. It does not, however,
|
include citizens band radios or citizens band radio hybrids.
|
"Possession of a school bus" means the period of time from |
which a bus driver takes possession until the school bus driver |
returns possession of the school bus, whether or not the school |
|
bus driver is operating the school bus. |
"Using a cellular radio telecommunication device" means |
talking or listening
to or dialing a cellular radio |
telecommunication device.
|
To "operate" means to have the vehicle in motion while it |
contains one or
more passengers.
|
(b) A school bus driver may not operate a school bus while |
using a cellular
radio telecommunication device.
|
(c) Subsection (b) of this This Section does not apply:
|
(1) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication |
device for the
purpose of communicating with any of the |
following regarding an emergency
situation:
|
(A) an emergency response operator;
|
(B) a hospital;
|
(C) a
physician's office or health clinic;
|
(D) an ambulance service;
|
(E) a fire
department, fire district, or fire |
company; or
|
(F) a police department.
|
(2) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication |
device to call for
assistance in the event that there is a |
mechanical breakdown or other
mechanical problem that |
impairs the safe operation of the bus.
|
(3) To the use of a cellular radio telecommunication |
device that has a
digital two-way radio service capability |
owned and operated by the school
district, when that device |
|
is being used as a
digital two-way radio.
|
(4) When the school bus is parked.
|
(d) A school bus driver who violates subsection (b) of this |
Section is guilty of a petty
offense punishable by a fine of |
not less than $100 and not more than $250.
|
(e) A school bus must contain an operating two-way
radio |
while the school bus driver is in possession of a school bus. |
The two-way radio in this subsection must be turned on and |
adjusted in a manner that would alert the school bus driver of |
an incoming communication request. |
(Source: P.A. 92-730, eff. 1-1-03.)
|
(625 ILCS 5/12-816) |
Sec. 12-816. Pre and post-trip Post-trip inspection policy |
for school buses. |
(a) In order to provide for the welfare and safety of |
children who are transported on school buses throughout the |
State of Illinois, each school district shall have in place, by |
January 1, 2008, a policy to ensure that the school bus driver |
is the last person leaving the bus and that no passenger is |
left behind or remains on the vehicle at the end of a route, a |
work shift, or the work day. This policy and procedure shall, |
at a minimum, require the school bus driver (i) to test the |
two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning properly before |
the bus is operated and (ii) before leaving the bus at the end |
of each route, work shift, or work day, to walk to the rear of |
|
the bus and check the bus for children or other passengers in |
the bus. |
(b) If a school district has a contract with a private |
sector school bus company for the transportation of the |
district's students, the school district shall require in the |
contract with the private sector company that the company have |
a post-trip inspection policy in place.
This policy and |
procedure shall, at a minimum, require the school bus driver |
(i) to test the two-way radio and ensure that it is functioning |
properly before the bus is operated and (ii) , before leaving |
the bus at the end of each route, work shift, or work day, to |
walk to the rear of the bus and check the bus for children or |
other passengers in the bus in and under each seat for sleeping |
children. |
(c) Before this inspection, the school bus driver shall |
activate the interior lights of the bus to assist the driver in |
seeing in and under the seats during a visual sweep of the bus. |
(d) This policy may include, at the discretion of the |
school district, the installation of a mechanical or electronic |
post-trip inspection reminder system which requires the school |
bus driver to walk to the rear of the bus to deactivate the |
system before the driver leaves the bus. The system shall |
require that when the driver turns off the vehicle's ignition |
system, the vehicle's interior lights must illuminate to assist |
the driver in seeing in and under the seats during a visual |
sweep of the bus.
|