Drivers are legally required to stop for yellow school buses with flashing red lights and an extended stop-arm. Yet, numerous drivers do not follow this law.
To address this issue, the Brake for Kids Act was introduced. This federal initiative is designed to raise awareness about the dangers of illegally passing school buses and to reduce the number of violations through a coordinated national campaign.
What is The Brake for Kids Act?
On March 25, 2025, the Brake for Kids Act was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. It has been designed to keep children safe around school buses. It requests that the U.S. Department of Transportation conduct a nationwide awareness campaign to remind drivers of the dangers and illegality of passing a stopped school bus with flashing red lights and an extended stop arm.
This bill has not yet passed the House, nor has it been considered in the Senate. So it is still in the early stages of the legislative process.
What Does the Act Require?
Here’s a simple breakdown of what the act implies:
- National Safety Campaign: The Department of Transportation will create a nationwide campaign to educate drivers about the dangers of passing a stopped school bus. This will include messages on TV, radio, social media, and other channels.
- Goals of the Campaign: The campaign aims to raise awareness, remind drivers of the law, and reduce the number of illegal passings of school buses.
- Funding and Implementation: The Act uses the Department of Transportation’s existing resources for safety campaigns. It doesn’t create new fines or require a brand-new federal program. It’s focused on spreading the message effectively.
Why is There a Need for The Brake for Kids Act?
Data from recent surveys reveal that illegal driver passing is a widespread and persistent issue:
- In the 2022‑2023 school year, the National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services estimated there were 43.5 million illegal passings of stopped school buses in the U.S.
- In the 2024‑2025 school year, data from 114,239 drivers across 36 states reported 67,258 vehicles illegally passing on a single day.
- From 2012 to 2021, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 206 school‑age children died in school‐transportation‐related crashes; 78 of those were pedestrians.
How is the Act Relevant for Student Transportation Professionals?
The Brake for Kids Act has real implications for anyone involved in student transportation. Here’s why it matters:
- Student Safety is Top Priority: Protecting children is the number one goal for transportation staff. The Act reinforces the importance of following stop-arm laws and promotes awareness among drivers, which directly supports safer loading and unloading for students.
- Support for Training and Education: The national campaign would provide materials and resources that transportation professionals can integrate into driver training programs, parent communications, and community outreach. This makes it easier to educate everyone in your district about school bus safety.
- Enhancing Community Trust: When parents and communities would see active efforts to reduce violations and improve safety, it will strengthen confidence in the transportation system and the professionals who run it.
- Alignment with Existing Safety Programs: The Act doesn’t add new operational mandates; it complements what districts are already doing to keep children safe. It’s an extra layer of support for professionals already committed to student safety.
Key Takeaways
The introduction of the Brake for Kids Act is a critical step toward making school transportation safer for millions of children across the country. By educating drivers, supporting student transportation professionals, and complementing local safety measures, the Act would have the potential to reduce dangerous illegal passings and prevent accidents.
Student safety is at the core of our mission, and our tools support districts in ensuring every child gets to and from school safely. Contact us now to learn how BusPlanner contributes to student safety.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the current status of the Brake for Kids bill?
Currently, the bill is in the introductory stage of the legislative process. The House version (H.R. 2348) has been referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Subcommittee on Highways and Transit, while the Senate version (S. 2812) is under consideration by the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. As of now, it has not yet advanced to a floor vote or been enacted into law.
Where will the funds come from for the Brake for Kids campaign?
The Brake for Kids Act does not create a new funding stream but instead utilizes existing federal resources. It directs the U.S. Department of Transportation to fund the national public safety campaign through amounts already made available under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and other existing public safety messaging allocations.
