The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Ohio Senate Bill 62 establishes civil penalties for illegal school bus passing and creates school bus safety grant fund
Last action · January 29, 2025: Referred to JudiciarySponsor: Theresa Gavarone
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What This Bill Would Do
Ohio Senate Bill 62 establishes a civil penalty system allowing law enforcement to issue $300 tickets to registered vehicle owners caught on camera illegally passing stopped school buses when the driver's identity cannot be determined. The legislation also creates the School Bus Safety Fund to finance grants for school bus safety equipment, designates August as 'School Bus Safety Awareness Month,' and sets requirements for school bus camera systems.
Vehicle owners face a $300 civil penalty for captured illegal school bus passes, while school districts gain access to grant funding derived from these fines to purchase external cameras, stop arms, and other safety equipment.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Registered vehicle owners
Registered vehicle owners may be held liable for a $300 civil penalty if their vehicle is recorded illegally passing a school bus and the driver cannot be identified.
School districts
School districts are eligible to receive grant funding from civil penalty proceeds to purchase and install safety features on school buses.
Motorists
Drivers must stop at least ten feet from stopped school buses displaying visual signals and face fines, license suspensions, or civil penalties for violations.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
What happens if my car is caught passing a school bus on camera, but I was not driving?
How are the civil penalties collected from school bus violations distributed?
What can school districts use the grant money for?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- Jan 29, 2025SenateCommitteeReferred to Judiciary
- Jan 28, 2025SenateIntroducedIntroduced
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Shift to Automated Civil Enforcement for School Bus Passing
The legislation introduces a mechanism to bypass the requirement of identifying the individual driver by shifting civil liability and a $300 fine directly to the registered owner via automated camera evidence.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.legislature.ohio.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy45Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz40Current news / social attention level
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