State Board Of Ed Weighs Cutting Bus Service Requirement

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (CBS) -- Local school districts could find themselves further strapped for dollars if the state Board of Education goes ahead and changes the rules on busing students.

As WBBM Newsradio's Bernie Tafoya reports, over the past couple of years, state spending on student transportation has been slashed dramatically, according to the Illinois Association of School Boards. The budget has been cut 42 percent since 2010, the association said.

LISTEN: WBBM Newsradio's Bernie Tafoya reports

Now, the Illinois Board of Education is weighing whether to eliminate the requirement that schools provide buses to students at all.

School systems would then have the option of ending busing altogether, charging for it, or pulling the money from some other areas.

Speaking to the Rockford Journal-Register</a<, Rockford School District chief financial officer Cedric Lewis says eliminating busing would create a domino effect, with students not going to school and then dropping out, and schools losing state money due to low attendance.

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