The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Utah SB 291 expands student bus eligibility on hazardous walking routes and allocates $500,000
Last action · March 6, 2026: Senate/ filedSponsor: Emily Buss
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Proposed
This bill amends a student's eligibility for state-supported transportation.
School districts receiving specific state funds must provide bus service for students navigating dangerous walking conditions and respond to parent route petitions within 30 days.
- State-supported student transportation in Utah is governed by statutory formulas overseen by the State Board of Education, incorporating distance thresholds and localized funding allowances. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
students
Students walking on hazardous routes in qualifying counties become eligible for state-supported school transportation.
school districts
School districts receiving specific state funds must provide transportation for eligible students on hazardous routes and respond to parent petitions within 30 days.
parents
Parents gain the right to petition the school district's school board to designate a specific route to a school as a hazardous route.
State Board of Education
The board is tasked with distributing transportation money, reviewing allowances, and designating specific funds for hazardous routes.
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 makes a walking route qualify as a hazardous route under this bill?
Are school districts required to provide bus service for hazardous routes automatically?
How long does a school district have to respond to a parent's petition regarding a hazardous route?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · in Senate committee.
Procedural history
17 actions- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ filed
- Mar 6, 2026SenateSenate/ strike enacting clause
- Mar 3, 2026SenateSenate/ comm rpt/ sent to Rules
- Mar 2, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Recommends Returned to Rules
- Feb 25, 2026ReleasedLFA/ fiscal note publicly available for SB0291S01
- Feb 25, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for SB0291S01
Show 11 earlier actions
- Feb 23, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for SB0291S01
- Feb 23, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for SB0291S01
- Feb 18, 2026SenateSenate Comm - Motion to Recommend Failed
- Feb 17, 2026SenateCommitteeSenate/ to standing committee
- Feb 16, 2026Version SponsorLFA/ fiscal note sent to sponsor for SB0291
- Feb 12, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate/ 1st reading (Introduced)
- Feb 12, 2026SenateSenate/ received bill from Legislative Research
- Feb 12, 2026Legislative Fiscal AgencyLFA/ bill sent to agencies for fiscal input for SB0291
- Feb 12, 2026Legislative Fiscal AnalystLFA/ bill assigned to staff for fiscal analysis for SB0291
- Feb 12, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselNumbered Bill Publicly Distributed
- Feb 12, 2026Legislative Research and General CounselBill Numbered but not Distributed
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.
Targeted Appropriation for Unsafe Routes
The legislation directly ties a $500,000 one-time appropriation from the Income Tax Fund to mitigating unsafe student walking routes for fiscal year 2027.
Connected Entities
Sources
le.utah.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance20Lowered because this bill did not pass (its text scored 65)
- Controversy15Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz30Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools