---
title: "ORS 327.033 (approved transportation costs; definitions) and ORS 327.043 (when district required to provide transportation) — 2025 edition"
source_url: "https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors327.html"
retrieved: 2026-10-12
document_type: "Oregon Revised Statutes (official HTML, chapter 327)"
sha256: 00050b3b485002e991b2f8e6b14cf103f0fce90d7924a8ab700280b35fd6a74d
original: originals/ors-327-033-327-043.html
extraction_method: "Raw HTML via curl; tags stripped (cp1252 decode); excerpt = sections 327.033 through 327.043 only"
---

# ORS 327.033 (approved transportation costs; definitions) and ORS 327.043 (when district required to provide transportation) — 2025 edition

Unofficial text extraction for research. May contain extraction errors; consult the original at https://www.oregonlegislature.gov/bills_laws/ors/ors327.html.

```text
327.033
Approved transportation costs; expenditure limitations; rules. (1) As used in this section:

 (a) “Active
transportation” means the arrival to, or departure from, a school by students
who:

 (A) Reside less
than three miles from school; and

 (B) Use
human-powered forms of travel, including walking or bicycling.

 (b)(A) “Active
transportation costs” means costs incurred by a school district for
facilitating the use of active transportation, including costs incurred for:

 (i) A pedestrian
or bicycle group;

 (ii) A crossing
guard; or

 (iii) Staff time
required for coordinating active transportation options.

 (B) “Active
transportation costs” does not include costs incurred by a school district for:

 (i)
Subcontracting the school district’s transportation services to a private
transportation provider; or

 (ii) The time of
an individual who is not an employee of the school district.

 (c)(A) “Alternative
transportation” means the arrival to, or departure from, a school by students
using active transportation or public transportation.

 (B) “Alternative
transportation” does not include transportation that is subcontracted by a
school district to a private transportation provider.

 (d) “Alternative
transportation costs” includes:

 (A) Active
transportation costs; and

 (B) Costs
incurred by a school district for public transportation, including costs
incurred for staff time required for coordinating public transportation
options.

 (e) “Environmental
Mitigation Trust Agreement” has the meaning given that term in ORS 468A.795.

 (f) “Public
transportation” means forms of transportation that are provided by a public
entity, charge set fares, run on fixed routes and are available to the public.

 (g) “Retrofit”
has the meaning given that term in ORS 468A.795.

 (h) “Suitable and
sufficient” means transportation that is appropriate for a particular student
or group of students based on:

 (A) The age of
the student;

 (B) The physical
or mental capabilities of the student;

 (C) The distance
the student is to be transported; and

 (D) The safety of
the student to be transported.

 (2)(a) The State
Board of Education shall adopt rules to determine the amounts to reimburse a
school district for costs incurred by the school district in transporting
students described in ORS 327.006 (2)(a).

 (b) The rules
adopted under this subsection must allow for the reimbursement of alternative
transportation costs that are approved transportation costs in an amount that
does not exceed five percent of the school district’s transportation grant
under ORS 327.013. Alternative transportation costs are considered approved
transportation costs if:

 (A) The use of
alternative transportation is included as part of a supplemental plan approved
by the State Board of Education, as provided by ORS 327.043; or

 (B) The use of
alternative transportation is included as part of a waiver approved by the
State Board of Education, as provided by ORS 327.043.

 (c)
Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of this subsection and subject to paragraph (d)
of this subsection, alternative transportation costs related to public
transportation are approved transportation costs only if the school district
submits sufficient documentation to establish that:

 (A) No other
transportation options, including active transportation options, are suitable
and sufficient;

 (B) The school
district engaged in efforts to recruit, and was subsequently unable to hire,
sufficient workforce to ensure:

 (i) Reliable
service by a school bus; and

 (ii) Timely
transport of students to and from school; and

 (C) The school
district conducted a good faith effort to hire, train and retain drivers of
school buses in a manner that included competitive wages and hiring practices
consistent with applicable collective bargaining agreements.

 (d) If, during
the 2022-2023 school year, costs incurred by a school district for transit
passes were considered approved transportation costs, the costs incurred by the
school district after January 1, 2024, for transit passes shall continue to be
considered approved transportation costs.

 (3) Approved
transportation costs shall be estimated for the year of distribution.

 (4) In
determining approved transportation costs related to school buses, the State
Board of Education:

 (a) Shall include
depreciation of original cost to the school district of district-owned buses,
not in excess of 10 percent per year;

 (b) Shall include
the costs to repower, retrofit or replace school buses powered by diesel
engines for the purpose of reducing or eliminating diesel engine emissions,
except that the board may not include the costs paid with moneys received from
the state by a school district from the Clean Diesel Engine Fund under ORS
468A.801 (2)(a) to repower, retrofit or replace school buses powered by diesel
engines for the purpose of reducing or eliminating diesel engine emissions; and

 (c) Shall include
costs to school buses powered by diesel engines as allowed in the Environmental
Mitigation Trust Agreement, except that the board may not include costs paid
from the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement in the calculation of the transportation
grant computed as provided in ORS 327.013.

 (5) School
districts shall account separately for those funds received from the State
School Fund attributable to the costs included under subsection (4) of this
section, and expenditure of those funds shall be limited as follows:

 (a) The
expenditure of funds attributable to costs under subsection (4)(a) of this
section shall be limited to the acquisition of new buses.

 (b) The
expenditure of funds attributable to costs under subsection (4)(b) and (c) of
this section shall be limited to the costs to repower, retrofit or replace
school buses powered by diesel engines for the purpose of reducing or
eliminating diesel engine emissions.

 (6) The
transportation grant computed as provided in ORS 327.013 when combined with
costs paid from the Environmental Mitigation Trust Agreement to replace school
buses powered by diesel engines may not exceed the purchase price of the buses
for which the funds described in this subsection were received. [1991 c.780 §7a;
2007 c.855 §3; 2009 c.458 §1; 2017 c.742 §13; 2023 c.524 §1]

 327.035 [Amended by 1953 c.108 §3; 1957
c.612 §10; 1959 c.388 §5; 1963 c.142 §2; 1965 c.100 §17; 1965 c.323 §1; 1971
c.107 §1; repealed by 1991 c.780 §30]

 327.038 [1957 s.s. c.2 §3; repealed by
1959 c.388 §15]

 327.040 [Repealed by 1957 c.612 §18]

 327.042 [1957 c.708 §§2,3; 1959 c.388 §6;
1963 c.570 §1d; 1965 c.100 §18; 1969 c.625 §2; 1971 c.21 §1; 1971 c.107 §2;
1973 c.750 §4; 1977 c.840 §2; repealed by 1991 c.780 §30]

 327.043 When
district required to provide transportation; supplemental plans and waivers. (1) As used in this section, “alternative
transportation,” “public transportation” and “suitable and sufficient” have the
meanings given those terms in ORS 327.033.

 (2) A school
district is required to provide transportation for elementary school students
who reside more than one mile from school and for secondary school students who
reside more than 1.5 miles from school. A school district is also required to
provide transportation for any student identified in a supplemental plan
approved by the State Board of Education.

 (3)(a)
Notwithstanding subsection (2) of this section, the State Board of Education
may waive the requirement to provide transportation to elementary and secondary
students under paragraph (b) of this subsection.

 (b) The State
Board of Education may waive the requirement to provide transportation:

 (A) For some or
all of the elementary school students who reside more than one mile from school
only if the school district that seeks the waiver provides suitable and
sufficient alternative transportation to the elementary school students for
whom the school district seeks the waiver. A school district that seeks a
waiver under this subparagraph must present to the board a plan for providing
suitable and sufficient alternative transportation to the elementary school
students. Public transportation is not considered suitable and sufficient for
elementary school students.

 (B) For secondary
school students who reside more than 1.5 miles from school only if the school
district provides or identifies suitable and sufficient alternative
transportation for transporting secondary school students. A school district
that seeks a waiver under this subparagraph must present to the board a plan
for providing or identifying suitable and sufficient alternative transportation
for transporting secondary school students.

 (4) When
submitting to the State Board of Education a supplemental plan or a waiver
request that includes alternative transportation and that seeks reimbursement
for costs incurred in providing alternative transportation, a school district
must include:

 (a) A comparison
of:

 (A) The school
district’s projected approved transportation costs to serve students without
alternative transportation; and

 (B) The school
district’s projected approved transportation costs if alternative
transportation is approved.

 (b) For a
supplemental plan or a waiver that proposes to use alternative transportation
for one or more routes not previously included in a supplemental plan or a
waiver, an explanation of why the school district has determined that the use
of alternative transportation for the route is necessary.

 (c) For a waiver
request that proposes to use public transportation for secondary school
students, an explanation of how:

 (A) The use of
public transportation qualifies for approved transportation costs under ORS
327.033 (2)(c);

 (B) Any financial
support provided by a local transit district according to ORS 184.758 will be
used prior to the school district incurring additional expenses; and

 (C) The school
district conducted a good faith effort to hire, train and retain drivers of
school buses in a manner that included competitive wages and hiring practices
consistent with applicable collective bargaining agreements.

 (5) The State
Board of Education may approve a supplemental plan or a waiver request to use
alternative transportation and to provide reimbursement for costs incurred in
providing alternative transportation only when:

 (a) The projected
approved transportation costs under subsection (4)(a)(B) of this section are
the same as or less than the projected transportation costs under subsection
(4)(a)(A) of this section; or

 (b) The applying
school district adequately demonstrates that any expenses incurred in excess of
subsection (4)(a)(A) of this section that are attributable to alternative
transportation will be paid with funds other than the transportation grant from
the State School Fund.

 (6)
Notwithstanding subsection (4) of this section, a school district may request a
waiver that includes alternative transportation without providing the
additional information required under subsection (4) of this section if the
school district does not seek reimbursement for costs incurred in providing the
alternative transportation.

 (7) When the
State Board of Education approves a supplemental plan or waiver request to use
alternative transportation and provides reimbursement for costs incurred in
providing alternative transportation, the approved supplemental plan or waiver
shall be effective for two years from the date of approval.

 (8)
Notwithstanding subsections (4), (5) and (7) of this section, a school district
that, prior to January 1, 2024, had been receiving reimbursement for costs
incurred in providing transit passes under a supplemental plan or a waiver
shall continue to receive reimbursement under the terms and conditions the
school district was receiving reimbursement prior to January 1, 2024, unless
the State Board of Education and the school district agree otherwise.

 (9) Nothing in
this section prevents a school district from providing alternative
transportation in addition to otherwise required transportation when no
reimbursement is sought for costs incurred in providing the alternative
transportation. [1991 c.780 §7; 2023 c.524 §2]
```