Entry-Level Driver Training ‘Under-the-Hood’ Waiver Extended to September 30, 2022

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has extended the Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) Under-the-Hood waiver until September 30, 2022.

According to FMCSA, the waiver extends the current relief for applicants seeking a CDL with S and P endorsements and the intrastate only (K) restriction. States may, but are not required to, waive the engine compartment component of the pre-trip vehicle inspection skills test for CDL applicants seeking the School bus (S) and Passenger (P) endorsement with the intrastate only (K) restriction. All other CDL skills testing requirements remain in place.

Maine BMV will continue to honor this waiver opportunity, when requested. Please direct questions to the BMV CDL Exams section at 207-624-9000, x 52122.

April 27 Webinar on U.S. EPA’s Clean School Bus Program: Zero-Emission and Clean School Bus Rebates

Authorized by the recently signed Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the U.S. EPA’s Clean School Bus Program provides $5 billion over the next five years to replace school buses with low- and zero-emission school buses. The first funding opportunity under this program will be the 2022 Clean School Bus Rebates where the U.S. EPA will offer $500 million for zero-emission and clean school bus rebates.

Join the U.S. EPA’s Clean School Bus Program: Zero-Emission and Clean School Bus Rebates webinar on Wednesday, April 27, 2022 at 1:00 PM to learn more about who is eligible, who is prioritized, which school buses are eligible for rebates, and what the federal selection process will be.

See below for additional resources on the U.S. EPA’s 2022 Clean School Bus Program:

For more information about the program, please contact cleanschoolbus@epa.gov .

March 23 EPA Webinar on the 2022 Clean School Bus Program

On Wednesday, March 23, at 1pm, the EPA will host the first informational webinar on the 2022 Clean School Bus Program.

The Clean School Bus Program will provide $5 billion over the next five years to replace existing school buses with low- and zero-emission school buses. Each year, approximately $500 million will be available exclusively for electric school buses and approximately $500 million will be available for electric buses and multiple types of cleaner alternative fuel school buses.

EPA anticipates that the 2022 Clean School Bus Program application period will open to the public in late April and close in July. We expect that this program may cover up to 100% of school bus and associated charging infrastructure costs for low income, disadvantaged, and rural school districts, while offering significant funding to all schools. Additional Clean School Bus funding opportunities are expected to follow later.

The state will be working closely with the EPA to offer technical assistance to schools wishing to apply for this funding. If you are interested in learning more about technical assistance, please reach out.

The link to the webinar and other events can be found at: https://www.epa.gov/cleanschoolbus/events-related-clean-school-bus-program#webinar.

All program information and updates can be found at www.epa.gov/cleanschoolbus.

Two Maine School Administrative Units Awarded Diesel Emissions Reduction Act (DERA) School Bus Rebate Awards From U.S. EPA

As part of a recent push by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to propose new, stronger standards to promote clean air and reduce pollution from heavy-duty vehicles and engines, approximately $10 million in DERA (Diesel Emissions Reduction Act) School Bus Rebates were awarded to local schools across the country, include two districts in Maine.

The funds will help with the replacement of old diesel school buses with new electric, diesel, gasoline, propane, or compressed natural gas (CNG) school buses meeting current emission standards.

Two Maine School Administrative Units were among the 444 rebates issued for school bus replacements:

State	Selectee Name	Region	Funding Offered/Accepted	# of Buses to be funded
ME	MSAD 28	1	$65,000	1
ME	RSU#16	1	$20,000	1

See the full U.S. EPA media release which includes a full listing of awardees. Learn more about DERA (Diesel Emissions Reduction Act) School Bus Rebates visit: https://www.epa.gov/dera/rebates.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Training Provider Registry Now Open to Public

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Training Provider Registry (TPR) list of registered training providers is now open to the public.

Here are the steps to access the list of registered training providers:

Go to the FMCSA Training Provider Registry website.
From the TPR landing page, scroll down to “Do you need to find a training provider?”
Click on “Download the list of registered training providers” – the list can be sorted by state.

School administrative units can determine if their TPR registration is complete by reviewing the list of registered training providers and when a confirmation message is received from FMCSA.

As FMCSA is the authority for Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) and TPR, please direct questions about TPR registration to FMCSA by using the “contact” button that is located in the upper right of the TPR landing page or review the frequently asked questions (FAQs) link at the top of the landing page.

As a reminder, the compliance date for ELDT regulations is February 7, 2022.

For more information, reach out to Maine Department of Education Transportation/Facilities Administrator Pat Hinckley at Pat.Hinckley@maine.gov.

Input Sought Related to Bus Routing Software Needs

The Maine Department of Education (Maine DOE) is in the process of drafting an RFP to seek proposals to provide interested SAUs with comprehensive school bus routing and transportation management systems, including system implementation, software licensing, hosting, maintenance, support, and training.

Maine DOE is seeking SAU input on features and functionality that are needed in this system to make it most usable and productive for SAUs. Thank you for providing us with input, through this brief survey. Responses requested by January 30, 2022.

For questions regarding this survey, please contact Charlotte Ellis charlotte.ellis@maine.gov

U.S. DOE Announces Joint Temporary Action with U.S. DOT to Help Address School Bus Driver Labor Shortage

The U.S. Department of Transportation in coordination with the U.S. Department of Education has announced that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is giving states the option of waiving the portion of the commercial driver’s license (CDL) skills test that requires applicants to identify the “under the hood” engine components. All other components of the written and road test will remain.

This announcement aims to alleviate some of the labor shortage challenges schools are facing and is one of many resources the U.S. Department of Education continues to provide to safely keep schools open for full-time, in-person learning.

“This Administration is listening to the needs of school communities and remains committed to making sure schools are open safely for in-person learning full time,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona. “We’ve heard from educators and parents that labor shortages, particularly of bus drivers, are a roadblock to keeping kids in schools. Today’s announcement will give states the flexibility they need to help increase the pool of drivers, who are a key part of the school community, and get kids to school safely each day where students learn best. And American Rescue Plan funds can be used to hire these critical staff, including offering increased compensation or other incentives to recruit and retain staff.”

“This federal waiver will help states that are short on bus drivers,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “By allowing states to focus on the testing requirements that are critical to safety, we will get additional, qualified drivers behind the wheel to get kids to school safely.”

Drivers receiving a CDL under this temporary waiver are permitted to operate intrastate school buses only; they are not authorized to operate trucks, motorcoaches, or any other type of commercial motor vehicle requiring a CDL.

The FMCSA waiver, which became effective Jan. 3, 2022, expires March 31, 2022. Read the full release from the U.S. Department of Education here.

Prepare to Become a School Bus Driver in Maine:

Contact your local school district, Career and Technical Sites/Center, Adult Education Programs, or all to ask when the next School Bus Driver class begins. Some local classes are free.
Study Section 10, School Buses, of the Maine Commercial Driver License Manual: https://www.maine.gov/sos/bmv/licenses/cdlmanual.pdf
Call Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles about commercial driver license (CDL) requirements, application, exam schedules, or extent of the Federal waiver. The direct contact for Maine BMV’s CDL Examination Section is 207-624-9000 ext, 52122. Between January 3, 2022 and March 31, 2022, the Federal waiver impacts a portion, not all, of the overall pre-trip inspection exam requirement.

Beginning February 7, 2022, Maine residents can search the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Training Provider Registry to find local CDL school bus trainers in Maine and your community.

Information Regarding Federal Requirements for Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT)

The following information from Maine’s Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) may be useful information for Maine school transportation teams, Career and Technical Education Sites/Centers, and Adult Education Programs.

The Federal Requirement for Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) applicants to complete Entry Level Driver Training (ELDT) before taking a road or skills exam takes effect on February 7, 2022.

The good news is drivers who have successfully completed a written exam and hold a CDL permit before February 7, 2022 are exempted from having to complete ELDT prior to a skills or road test.

Maine BMV wants to help!

BMV schedules written exams two weeks in advance, to ensure enough time to provide applicants written scheduling notification via the mail.

To increase the likelihood of scheduling a CDL or endorsement written exam before February 7, submit your completed application with payment to BMV no later than Jan 10, 2022

For questions, call Maine BMV’s CDL Examination Section at (207) 624-9000 ext. 52122

For more info on ELDT, go to: https://tpr.fmcsa.dot.gov/

School Bus Purchase Program Applications Open Nov. 1st to 25th

The Maine Department of Education (DOE) is accepting applications to receive subsidy for new school buses purchased through the Maine School Bus Purchase Program. The application period is November 1 through November 25, 2021.

The Maine DOE will be able to approve about $9 million in school bus allocations that combines new bus requests and the prior year bus term commitment. Round one applications will be accepted for school buses proposed to be purchased during fiscal year 2022-2023.

This program provides subsidy to school administrative units (SAUs) in order to offset partial costs of new school buses that are used to transport students to and from home and school and school events. This program is a resource to help SAUs purchase new school buses, retire end of life school buses, and respond to emergency and special bus needs.

With the exception of Section 3.1, eligible vehicles must meet Code of Maine Regulations Chapter 85 minimum qualifications.

The School Bus Purchase Program instructions and information are available on the Maine DOE’s NEO dashboard. To fill out an application, SAU staffs must log in to NEO.

If you have questions about the Maine School Bus Purchase Program, please contact Pat Hinckley, Transportation and Facilities Administrator at pat.hinckley@maine.gov.

If you need help logging into NEO, contact Maine DOE Helpdesk at medms.helpdesk@maine.gov or 207-624-6896.

Maine Schools Join Others Around the Nation to Recognize 2021 National School Bus Safety Week October 18-22

3 color drawings of school buses showing safety measures for drivers 2021 National School Bus Safety Week Theme Be Safe – Know The Danger Zone is derived from the Poster Contest the year before. The 2020 winning poster artwork, depicted above, was drawn by Huyen Pham, a Northbrook Middle School student from Atlanta, Georgia.

Nationally, each year from September to November, public service announcements are aired to help protect 26 million students that ride on nearly 500,000 school buses over 4 billion miles in an average year. Broadcast and digital media and social networking industries disseminate public service announcements that are produced to safeguard children, encourage the driving public to engage in safer driving behavior near school buses where students board and disembark from school buses, and recognize school bus operators and professionals.

Statewide, nearly 130 thousand students ride on about 3,000 school buses over 30 million miles of rural and urban roads in an average year. School Bus Safety Week offers the people of Maine an opportunity to recognize and thank transportation and public safety professionals, who have the invaluable task of keeping their precious cargo, our students, safe.

School buses are protected by law. Laws protect students who are getting off and on a school bus by making it illegal for drivers to pass a school bus while dropping off or picking up passengers, regardless of the direction of approach. Maine school bus safety laws support good driving behavior. These laws include:

Passing a stopped school bus with its red lights flashing is a criminal violation punishable by a $250 minimum fine for the first offense and a mandatory 30-day license suspension for the second offense occurring within three years of the first offense.
A vehicle may not proceed until the school bus resumes motion or until signaled by the bus operator that it is okay to proceed.
2021 model year and newer school buses are required to have a crossing arm on the front bumper.
A school bus operator who observes someone illegally passing a stopped school bus can report violations to a law enforcement officer.
School buses are required to stop at railroad crossings.
Unless otherwise posted, the school zone speed limit is 15 miles per hour during school opening or closing hours, as well as recess.

Additional school bus safety resources are available online:

For information about school transportation programs and policy contact Transportation and Facilities Administrator Pat Hinckley at pat.hinckley@maine.gov.

If you have an interest in joining this critically important profession, please reach out to your area schools to learn more, and please thank and support these heroes on the road!