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Thursday, November 10, 2011
Ind. Gov't. - "AG Zoeller concludes it is unconstitutional for a school corporation to require fees for school bus transportation even if the school system outsources bus service to another entity"
Following on this Nov. 4th ILB entry headed "Mom sues Franklin Township schools over bus fees: Mom's suit says charge violates state constitution," today Attorney General Zoeller has issued an official opinion, prepared at the request of legislators Senator Patricia Miller and Representative Mike Speedy. Here is the press release.
Here is the 7-page, Nov. 10, 2011 opinion.
And here is the the earlier referenced opinion, from July 12, 2010, answering "no" to the State Board of Accounts question of whether a school corporation could assess a fee for a student's transportation to receive a public education.
Today's opinion concludes:
The transportation arrangement that generated your opinion requests does not comply with state law as the school is attempting to do indirectly what it is prohibited from doing directly. While nothing prohibits an ESC from providing transportation for a member school corporation, the ESC is not permitted to charge transportation fees that the school corporation itself cannot charge. Thus an ESC may not contract with parents of students and charge them fees for transportation services.The same conclusion would apply if the school corporation entered into a third-party agreement with a private provider: It would still be electing to provide an essential program or service to its constituents and could not assess a fee for such programs or services, absent specific statutory authority to do so. It would be attempting to do indirectly what it is prohibited from doing directly.
Parents can only enter into a Parents' Supplemental Transportation Contract with a third party under Ind. Code § 20-27-6-3 when the school corporation has elected not to provide transportation. That is not the case in this situation that prompted your opinion requests. The school corporation is still electing to provide bus transportation to its students, albeit through its ESC, which is an extension of the school corporation itself. As such, it would still be prohibited from assessing a bus rider fee for transportation to and from its schools in order for its students to receive the public education contemplated by Art. 8, § 1. ESCs, as agents of school corporations, are prohibited by Indiana's Constitution and statutes from charging fees for student transportation.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on November 10, 2011 12:49 PM
Posted to Indiana Government