The Georgetown ISD board of trustees unanimously approved the purchase of 21 new school buses at an April 20 meeting.
The purchase helps the school district comply with Senate Bill 546, a law passed in 2025 that mandates all public school buses have three-point seat belts by September 2029.
The details
The purchase will replace 21 out of 23 school buses lacking three-point seat belts by this August. Clint Pruett, GISD executive director of support services, said the district currently has eight buses with lap belts, while 15 buses have no seat belts.
GISD approved the purchase, which comes from unspent 2021 bonds, for up to about $3.62 million. A representative from GISD said the purchase will cost around $3.5 million.
On March 30, GISD estimated the cost of replacing all 23 buses to be $4.3 million under the assumption that the purchases would be made across three years. By purchasing 21 buses now, the district expects to avoid an estimated $25,000 increase in the price of a new bus under emissions regulations set to take effect in 2027. GISD will save an estimated $500,000 by making the purchase now, Pruett said.
A closer look
Pruett said the two remaining buses that will not be replaced with the approved purchase have the lowest mileage out of the buses without three-point seat belts.
“They’re large special needs buses that make them particularly valuable to hold on to,” Pruett said. “Those would be good candidates for potential grant funds if those are made available.”
What they’re saying
“For us to be able to do this now and have something that will last easily hundreds of thousands of miles, it’s a benefit to the community,” GISD Superintendent Devin Padavil said.