« Ind. Courts - "David Camm case gets special judge for third triple-murder trial" | Main | Ind. Decisions - Court of Appeals issues 2 today (and 18 NFP) »

Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Ind. Law - More on: AG Zoeller legal opinion: School bus fees unconstitutional

Updating yesterday's ILB entry, Dan Carden has a story on the opinion today in the NWI Times. Some quotes:

The strained budgets of Indiana's schools got a little tighter Monday following a legal finding that schools are prohibited from charging a student transportation fee.

State Attorney General Greg Zoeller issued a formal opinion to the State Board of Accounts confirming that schools cannot require students to pay a fee to ride the school bus.

"A public school corporation is not authorized to assess and collect a bus rider fee from a student in order for that student to receive transportation to and from the student's school to receive a public education. Such a fee is unconstitutional," Zoeller said in his nine-page opinion.

The State Board of Accounts has repeatedly claimed school bus fees are unconstitutional and has chided several region schools in biannual audits for charging the fee. The attorney general's opinion is not binding law but tends to stand as the ruling practice until a court weighs in on the issue. * * *

The Indiana Constitution requires the General Assembly to establish a uniform system of common schools "wherein tuition shall be without charge." The Indiana Supreme Court has interpreted the "without charge" phrase to mean that schools cannot charge extra for any school program, project, service or curricula mandated or permitted by the General Assembly.

Zoeller said it is clear the General Assembly considers student transportation to be related to education, given the number of laws requiring and regulating student transportation. As such, Zoeller asserts, students cannot be required to pay an extra fee for their ride to school.

Fees, including transportation fees, can be charged for extracurricular activities because students choose to participate. However, a fee charged on all students is the same as tuition and is unconstitutional without specific General Assembly authorization, Zoeller said.

ILB comments: The Supreme Court's 2006 decision in Nagy v. Evansville-Vanderburgh School Corp is referenced often in the AG's opinion. That case involved "mandatory student services fees,' leaving unanswered the question of textbook fees. In short, some might say this is a cloudy area.

While looking back at past entries, I ran across this one from August 18, 2008, quoting an editorial from the South Bend Tribune, critical of Nagy.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on July 13, 2010 10:28 AM
Posted to Indiana Law