CONEJO VALLEY : School District Considers Bus Fee
A proposal to charge $450 annually per student for home-to-school bus transportation in the Conejo Valley drew no public opposition at the school board’s first discussion of the plan.
School board members are expected to decide April 23 whether to implement the fees beginning this fall.
Conejo Valley is the first Ventura County school district to propose charging a home-to-school bus fee since the California Supreme Court ruled on March 16 that such bus fees are legal.
Most board members indicated that the fee, which would save $437,000 a year, is necessary to help offset a $2.8-million budget deficit that the district is facing for the 1992-93 school year. The district now spends about $300 per student annually to bus more than 1,400 of its 17,500 students to school.
The $450 proposed fee is based on fewer students expected to ride buses, about 10% receiving free passes or discounts and a 16% price increase in the district’s bus contract.
Students who meet state criteria for the free lunch program would be eligible for a free bus pass. Those who are eligible for reduced meal tickets would qualify for a 75% bus ticket discount.
“We’ve reached a point where we can no longer afford to bus students for free,” said board member Dorothy Beaubien. “I would hope the money that is saved is used in the classrooms.”
Board member Mildred Lynch expressed opposition to the proposed fee, saying she doesn’t want the district to get into the transportation business.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
