Washington, D.C. —- U.S. Rep. Bob Etheridge (D-Lillington), the only N.C. member of the Homeland Security Committee, today expressed concern to the Department of Homeland Security about a lack of progress on a measure to improve safety for students traveling to school by bus.
“As the only former state schools chief serving in Congress, I know first hand how important it is to ensure that our children’s travel to and from school is safe and secure,” said Etheridge.
“I am very concerned that after six months, it appears that the Department of Homeland Security has not begun to take action on my measure to improve the safety of millions of children. DHS must detail how it expects to conduct a thorough assessment of our nation’s school bus safety in the six months remaining until its report is due to Congress.”
Etheridge sent a letter on January 17, 2008 to Edmund “Kip” Hawley, the Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security for the Transportation Security Administration, asking how the department plans to conduct a threat assessment of school transportation that is due to Congress in slightly more than six months. The threat assessment was included at Etheridge’s request in H.R. 1, which implemented most of the recommendations of the 9/11 Commission and was signed into law August 3, 2007.
The Etheridge provision requires that DHS perform a comprehensive threat assessment for school transportation and make recommendations to Congress by August 3, 2008. However, in a meeting on January 14, 2008, DHS staff members indicated that the department had not developed substantive plans and methodology for how it will conduct the assessment. In the letter, Etheridge asked Hawley to respond with specific information on how and when the assessment will be conducted.
The Etheridge school bus provision was originally suggested by Derek Graham of the N.C. Department of Public Instruction. Graham is also the President of the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services. Graham informed Etheridge in late 2007 that they he was concerned of the pace of the threat assessment.