New law allows cameras on school buses to catch illegally passing drivers

FRANKFORT, Ky. (ABC 36 News Now) — A new school bus safety measure will soon become law after Governor Beshear signed House Bill 7 yesterday.

The legislation allows school districts to place cameras on school buses while they are stopped to help catch drivers who pass them.

State Rep. David Hale, the bill’s sponsor, has pushed for the measure for years.

“There have been a lot of near misses — we’ve all seen the videos,” Hale said.

Hale got the idea after learning his wife witnessed a near-miss where a child was almost hit by a car in front of their home.

“There was some oncoming traffic that came and was not going to stop and the young boy was actually in the process of crossing in front of the bus,” Hale said.

House Bill 7 allows, but does not require, districts to use camera monitoring systems on school buses while the stop arm is deployed in an effort to help enforce civil penalties against cars recorded passing the bus while it is stopped. The measure also allows school districts to contract with private vendors to install, operate and maintain the systems.

“It’s not a continual recording. It’s just a recording while the bus is stopped and the arm is put out,” Hale said.

Violations caught on camera could result in a civil penalty of $300 for the first offense and $500 for each offense that follows within a three-year period. Drivers who feel they were wrongly cited can contest the violation in court.

Capt. Lewis Crump of the Georgetown Police expects drivers to stop every single time.

“We’re not asking drivers to do anything new. We’re just expecting them to do that every single time and that’s to stop. When that stop sign comes out there are children that are getting out of that school bus. Those children are our future and it is important to us that those children make it to and from school safely so they can get their education and they can be good functioning adults in society,” Crump said.