Section 68 Out-of-District Transportation Database 1

Said chapter 71B is hereby further amended by inserting after section 5A the following section:-
Section 5A 1/2. (a)(1) The department shall establish and maintain an electronic centralized database of: (i) procurement and contract documents for all out-of-district transportation pursuant to subsection (b) of section 5A; and (ii) a list of licensed special education out-of-district school transportation providers under contract with districts pursuant to section 5A. The database shall be searchable and accessible to all districts. The database shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) copies of each procurement document and signed contract provided pursuant to paragraph (2); and (ii) transportation vendor information, including, but not limited to, compliance history, the areas where service is provided, ownership structure and contract history with any district.
(2) Each district shall submit a copy of each procurement document and signed contract to the department not later than 30 days after the contract is signed. Not later than 30 days after receipt, the department shall add each document to the database established in paragraph (1).
(b)(1) The department shall establish and annually update guidelines for districts on best practices for school transportation procurement, including, but not limited to, out-of-district transportation. The guidelines shall include, but shall not be limited to: (i) information on laws and regulations impacting transportation requirements; (ii) best practices for managing costs; (iii) transportation planning and operations; and (iv) managing reimbursement requests. In establishing and updating the guidelines, the department shall consult with the districts with the highest utilization rates and highest costs of out-of-district transportation.
(2) The guidelines established in paragraph (1) shall be available to all districts on the department's website; provided, however, that the department shall annually identify and provide the guidelines and additional assistance, as determined by the department, to: (i) the 20 districts with the highest out-of-district transportation costs; and (ii) any district where transportation is contributing to underperformance and inequity.