State Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman issued the following statement this week in response to the South Carolina General Assembly's override of the Governor's veto regarding school bus funding.
"The safety of South Carolina’s students has and will always be a top priority for me. I want to thank the General Assembly on behalf students, parents, and teachers across across our state for taking a step in the right direction with today's vote. By overriding this veto, we will be able take 210 old and dangerous school buses off the road and provide safer and more efficient transportation for our students.
However, the job is not done. We still have over 1000 buses that are in excess of 20 years old on the road each day. I remain committed to working alongside the Governor and General Assembly to ensure that every child has safe and reliable transportation to and from school each day."
IMPORTANT NUMBERS
$20,500,000 - Amount of school bus funding vetoed by the Governor and overridden by the General Assembly today
210 - The approximate number of new buses that the vetoed funds will purchase
3701 - Number of buses that are 15 years or older statewide (route and spare)
5600 - Number of buses in the state school bus fleet
349 - The number of 1995 and 1996 buses that will remain in operation after 210 new buses are purchased (currently 559)
788 - The number of buses older than 1995 that are currently in use
$83,000 - The approximate cost of a new school bus
