(1) The general assembly finds that: (a) The COVID-19 pandemic severely exacerbated an existing public school transportation workforce shortage, limiting the number of buses available to transport students to and from school in Colorado. Bus driver shortages are caused by several factors, including federal regulations around health requirements, lack of competitive wages, and odd working hours. (b) To adjust to the public school transportation shortage, school districts and public schools are consolidating routes or altering eligibility criteria, resulting in fewer stops and longer routes. Students of color, students from under-resourced communities, and students with a disability are disproportionately impacted by the transportation shortage and struggle to access school districts of their choice and career pathway programs because of their limited access to transportation. (c) There is a growing need for transportation to offsite career pathway programs and other career-connected learning opportunities as these programs continue to expand. Due to transportation challenges, students lack equitable access to these programs, even though the state has recognized the importance of these programs. (d) To increase educational equity, school districts and public schools must provide students of color, students from under-resourced communities, and students with a disability with access to the same educational and enrichment opportunities that are available to students who have more resources; (e) Current post-pandemic conditions require new and innovative ideas to support school districts and public schools in employing sufficient transportation staff, procuring and utilizing equipment more efficiently, and supplementing the current transportation model with a variety of alternative transportation options; (f) The department of education collects data concerning school transportation for the purpose of calculating reimbursements to school districts, including the number of route miles scheduled on a specific pupil count day in October and the number of days during the school year that transportation was provided to public school students; (g) Additional data such as actual utilization rates, eligibility standards, service gaps, and use of alternative transportation models are not collected at the state level, although districts track such data on their own; (h) Given the severe bus driver shortage and the lack of transportation to school that many public school students are experiencing, the state has a vested interest in better understanding public school transportation data; and (i) Collecting and disseminating such transportation data would allow policymakers to facilitate improvements to public elementary and secondary school transportation, better serve students, and alleviate burdens on school districts. (2) Therefore, the general assembly declares that it is in the best interests of the state to direct the commissioner of education to convene the Colorado school transportation modernization task force to study the issues facing school transportation systems and use the study's findings to develop and recommend policies, laws, and rules to improve public school transportation across the state in order to better meet student needs and alleviate burdens on school districts.
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