Montana Code 20-10-104. Penalty for violating law or rules
20-10-104. Penalty for violating law or rules. (1) Every district, its trustees and employees, and every person under a transportation contract with a district is subject to the policies prescribed by the board of public education and the rules prescribed by the superintendent of public instruction. When a district knowingly violates a transportation law or board of public education transportation policy, the district shall forfeit any reimbursement otherwise payable under 20-10-145 and 20-10-146 for any bus miles actually traveled during that fiscal year in violation of the law or policies.
Terms Used In Montana Code 20-10-104
- Board of public education: means the board created by Article X, section 9, subsection (3), of the Montana constitution and 2-15-1507. See Montana Code 20-1-101
- Bus route: means a route approved by the board of trustees of a school district and by the county transportation committee. See Montana Code 20-10-101
- Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
- County superintendent: means the county government official who is the school officer of the county. See Montana Code 20-1-101
- district: means the territory, regardless of county boundaries, organized under the provisions of this title to provide public educational services under the jurisdiction of the trustees prescribed by this title. See Montana Code 20-6-101
- Fiscal year: The fiscal year is the accounting period for the government. For the federal government, this begins on October 1 and ends on September 30. The fiscal year is designated by the calendar year in which it ends; for example, fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005 and ends on September 30, 2006.
- Knowingly: means only a knowledge that the facts exist which bring the act or omission within the provisions of this code. See Montana Code 1-1-204
- Person: includes a corporation or other entity as well as a natural person. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the territories. See Montana Code 1-1-201
- Superintendent of public instruction: means that state government official designated as a member of the executive branch by the Montana constitution. See Montana Code 20-1-101
- Transportation: means :
(a)a district's conveyance of a pupil by a school bus between the pupil's legal residence or an officially designated bus stop and the school designated by the trustees for the pupil's attendance; or
(b)individual transportation. See Montana Code 20-10-101
- Trustees: means the governing board of a district. See Montana Code 20-1-101
(2)A district knowingly violates a transportation law or board of public education policy when it operates a bus route in a manner that does not comply with state law or board policy related to student safety. As provided in 20-10-141(1), a district that operates a bus route not approved by its county transportation committee may not receive transportation reimbursement on that route, but if the route is operated in compliance with transportation law, the operation of the routes is not a violation that will result in the forfeiture of all transportation aid to the district.
(3)The county superintendent shall suspend all reimbursements payable to the district under 20-10-145 and 20-10-146 for all miles being traveled, including both miles being traveled in compliance with the transportation laws or policies and miles being traveled in violation of the transportation laws or policies, until the district corrects the violation. When the district corrects the violation, the county superintendent shall pay all reimbursements otherwise payable under 20-10-145 and 20-10-146, including amounts suspended during the violation, but the amount forfeited under subsection (1) may not be paid to the district.
(4)When a person operating a bus under contract with a district knowingly fails to comply with the transportation law or the board of public education transportation policies, the district may not pay the person for any bus miles traveled during the contract year in violation of law or policies. Upon discovering a violation, the trustees of the district shall give written notice to the person that unless the violation is corrected within 10 days of the giving of notice, the contract will be canceled. The trustees of a district shall order the operation of a bus operated under contract suspended when the bus is being operated in violation of transportation law or policies and the trustees find that the violation jeopardizes the safety of pupils.