Public schools ask for evaluation of busing during Ohio budget process

“The complexity of pupil transportation in Ohio requires a comprehensive review and strategic planning approach,” said Katie Johnson, executive director of OASBO, in testimony at the Ohio Statehouse. “We believe it is essential to establish a Pupil Transportation Working Group to evaluate Ohio’s transportation funding structure and make recommendations for systemic improvements.”

In Ohio, public schools mostly pay for school busing, but the state contributes some money based on a formula.

Public schools say in recent years, more students going to private and charter schools has increased the amount of money a district has to spend to make sure students get to school safely and on time, because the school district needs to run more routes to get all the kids to school. Some districts are also more spread out than previously, so the miles driven to get students to school has increased.

On top of that, the price of diesel fuel and the cost of buses has gone up.

The governor’s budget provided an increase for school transportation of 6% in the first school year, the 2025-2026 school year, and an 8.1% additional increase in funding during 2026-2027, according to projections from the Legislative Service Commission, a nonpartisan office for Ohio lawmakers.

The current formula uses average cost per mile and cost per rider and provides districts with the greater amount, said Lacey Snoke, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.

“Students who attend community schools or nonpublic schools are weighted, so these students generate additional funding through the formula,” Snoke said.

Jennifer Hogue, director of legislative services at OSBA, said public schools are asking for an increase in the weight for charter and private school students.

“ODEW collects information on the costs of transporting these students and data shows that the costs exceed the current weights that are provided,” Hogue said.

The budget also includes $30 million for a school bus safety grant program to fund safety enhancements to Ohio’s school bus fleet and $4 million for more robust driver training, Snoke noted. These are proposals that came out of Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s School Bus Safety Plan, which he tasked with finding solutions to safer school buses in 2023.