School transportation for kindergarten through 12th grade is currently being looked at in both the Iowa House and Senate.

Republican Representative Chip Baltimore says the House is proposing a $10 million increase to transportation budget throughout the state, and more importantly for those school districts that need it the most.

“So that those school districts don’t have to take classroom funds, or funds out of the classroom and allocate them to transportation or busing.”

District 24 Senator Jerry Behn says Senate File 3002 proposes extending the allowable bus ride time for a students to go from 60 to 75-minutes, in order to save school districts money. The bill would also allow school districts to work with parents to decide what is appropriate for students in their district.

Greene County School District is the eighth largest geographic district in the state. Superintendent Tim Christensen tells Raccoon Valley Radio that they have nine regular bus routes and one in-town route in Jefferson. The most a student spends on a bus, one way, is at the maximum of 60-minutes that the law allows. Bus routes are 15-miles in any direction from Jefferson, with the most being 18-miles northwest. The district spent $884,024.57 on transportation for the 2016-17 school year.