Bill Text: MS SC612 | 2011 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Designate February 2011 as "School Bus Safety Awareness Month" in Mississippi.
Sponsorship: Slight Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-2)
Status: (Passed) 2011-03-04 - Enrolled Bill Signed [SC612 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2011-SC612-Enrolled.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2011 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Senator(s) McDaniel, Butler (38th), Fillingane, Jackson (11th), Jackson (32nd), Montgomery, Stone
Senate Concurrent Resolution 612
(As Adopted by Senate and House)
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION DESIGNATING FEBRUARY 2011 AS "SCHOOL BUS SAFETY AWARENESS MONTH" IN MISSISSIPPI.
WHEREAS, with a new school semester just getting underway, it is crucial that we work to promote school bus safety. Each day, thousands of children in Mississippi rely on buses to get to and from school. While our bus drivers do what they can to ensure the safety of their precious cargo, it is up to every Mississippian to keep the roads safe; and
WHEREAS, February consistently ranks as a month with a high rate of school bus related collisions, which is why this month is chosen to remind everyone to pay attention to the road and to obey traffic and bus signals. By focusing while driving and being extra cautious around schools and school buses, we are taking important steps to ensure the safety of our young ones; and
WHEREAS, every year, approximately 440,000 public school buses travel more than four billion miles and daily transport 24 million children to and from schools and school-related activities. School buses account for an estimated 10 billion student trips each year; and
WHEREAS, last year, 45 states had not a single child killed as a school bus occupant, an incredible safety record. In the past 10 years, an average of just six children each year died as school bus passengers. When comparing the number of fatalities of children ages 5 through 18 during "normal school transportation hours," school buses are 87 times safer than passenger cars, light trucks and vans; and
WHEREAS, the school bus driver is the most important element in the safe transportation of students. To ensure the safety of students transported on school buses, bus drivers must meet certain minimum qualifications set forth by the State Board of Education. The school bus driver is the child's first acquaintance with education and is responsible for school bus safety and management of disruptive student bus behavior; and
WHEREAS, thanks to the diligence of Mississippi's drivers and school bus drivers, school bus passenger fatalities in our state are minimal, and we call upon all Mississippians to bring awareness to the need for safe transportation of our school children on an annual basis:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES CONCURRING THEREIN, That we do hereby designate February 2011 as "SCHOOL BUS SAFETY AWARENESS MONTH" in Mississippi and call upon all school districts, school bus drivers, parents and the citizens of this state to cooperate in safety initiatives.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That this resolution be forwarded to the State Board of Education for appropriate distribution to school districts and made available to the Capitol Press Corps.
