Interpretation ID: 1985-01.8

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: 01/08/85

FROM: AUTHOR UNAVAILABLE; Frank Berndt; NHTSA

TO: Peter Kopanon, Director, Registry of Motor Vehicles, Boston, MA

TITLE: FMVSS INTERPRETATION

TEXT:

Mr. Peter Kopanon, Director Registry of Motor Vehicles 100 Nashus Street Boston, Massachusetts 02114

This is in reply to your telephone call of August 1, 1984, requesting our opinion as to the applicability of Highway Safety Program Standard No. 17, Pupil Transportation Safety, 23 CFR 1204.4, to Massachusetts.

As I understand it, your call was prompted by our letter of May 14, 1984, to Mr. Paul Pakos, in which we ruled that a vehicle with a capacity of 8 or fewer persons would be a "Type II School Vehicle" under the standard if it were used to transport students to and from school. Your question is whether Massachusetts is required by law to adhere to this aspect of the standard.

Standard 17 is among the standards issued by this agency under authority of the Highway Safety Act of 1966, as amended, 23 U.S.C. 401-408. The Act provides that the States are to administer their highway safety programs in accordance with the standards. However, it also gives us the discretion not to insist that a State comply with every standard. We have employed this discretion to administer the highway safety program on the basis of mutual cooperation rather than by rigid enforcement of the standards.

In the case of Standard 17, we have worked with Massachusetts and all other States to improve the overall quality of pupil transportation, in keeping with the intent of the Standard. The results of our mutual efforts can be seen in the marked decline in serious school bus accidents during the last ten years. We intend to continue to follow this cooperative policy.

Let me know if you have further questions.

Sincerely, Frank Berndt Chief Counsel