2008 Senate Bill 1252 (Revise school bus driver background checks; make charter school change )

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Introduced by Sen. John Gleason (D) on April 15, 2008, to allow a school district to share the criminal background check required for substitute bus drivers with another school district if the bus driver gives permission.
- Referred to the Senate Education Committee on April 15, 2008.
  - Reported in the Senate on June 12, 2008, with the recommendation that the bill pass.
- Referred to the Senate Education Committee on June 28, 2008.
- Amendment offered in the Senate on September 24, 2008, to repeal a provision that was included in Senate Bill 730, which itself repealed a provision that allows charter schools to transfer their property to another school. The effect of the amendment would be to allow charter schools in Detroit to expand. The amendment passed in the Senate by voice vote on September 24, 2008.
- Amendment offered by Sen. Gretchen Whitmer (D) on September 24, 2008, to strip out the previous amendment, which had been recommended by the "committee of the whole," and which would allow charter schools in Detroit to expand. The amendment failed in the Senate (18 to 20) on September 24, 2008. [Vote Details and Comments]
Passed in the Senate (20 to 18) on September 24, 2008, to leave in place a provision in the charter school law that expires at the end of 2008 which allows charter schools to transfer their property to another school. The effect would be to allow charter schools in Detroit to expand. Also, to allow a school district to share the criminal background check required for substitute bus drivers with another school district if the bus driver gives permission. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the House on September 24, 2008.
- Referred to the House Education Committee on September 24, 2008.
  - Amendment offered by Rep. Tim Melton (D) on December 19, 2008, to allow a provision in the charter school law to expire which allows charter schools to transfer their property to another school. The effect of not allowing the provision to expire would have been to allow certain expansions of charter schools in Detroit. The amendment passed in the House by voice vote on December 19, 2008.
Passed in the House (89 to 0) on December 19, 2008, to allow a school district to share the criminal background check required for substitute bus drivers with another school district if the bus driver gives permission. [Vote Details and Comments]
Received in the Senate on December 19, 2008, to concur with the House-passed version of the bill, which allows a provision in the charter school law to expire that would have allowed certain expansions of charter schools in Detroit. Passed in the Senate (30 to 0) on December 19, 2008. [Vote Details and Comments]

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1) "journal statement" [by Admin003 on September 25, 2008]
Senator Gleason, under his constitutional right of protest (Art. 4, Sec. 18), protested against the passage of Senate Bill No. 1252 and moved that the statement he made during the discussion of the bill be printed as his reasons for voting “no.”
The motion prevailed.
Senator Gleason’s statement is as follows:
Fellow Senators, I rise in opposition to my own legislation. I believe that again we are doing an injustice to the process. We establish committees for the singular purpose of debating openly and fairly legislation that will come before this body. Allowing substitute bus drivers to be more readily available is quite different than talking about a charter school on the westside of the state of Michigan, and it is similarly disjointed from the efforts of Detroit Public Schools.
Now, I know my school districts and yours as well have a shortage of substitute bus drivers, and it is timely to get their criminal background and histories checked into the hands of those who will hire them for maybe a single day. So this legislation means an awful lot to me, but it means an awful lot to the school districts who need these substitute teachers as well. But when we do things wrong, we sometimes have consequences that we don’t realize. I think in recent years we have seen that come to fruition more than any of us would have liked. But we have an opportunity today to say, look it, we will utilize the committee process to openly debate these tremendous issues.
We voted in a bipartisan fashion a year ago when Doug Ross presented us with an opportunity to site a charter school down in Detroit—in the heart of Detroit actually. We worked together in a bipartisan fashion to allow another choice for Detroit students. But today we are expediting this process again. So as much as I know the substitute bus drivers are needed, I know that we are doing an injustice to this institution.
So I would ask all those who believe the institution is greater than any piece of legislation or any amendment to join me in voting down this legislation, and put the legislation that has been amended, the request that has been asked for this morning, let’s put them in the committee where they belong.
We should not disrespect those who ask to serve on particular committees; those who asked to be in leadership or chair these particular committees. So let’s respect the institution. I have tried to be fair, personally, today by saying we should not amend this with a Democratic or Republican proposal in both fashions. Last year, we worked together to support a Republican Representative who had trouble with his school districts in the Perry and Morrice districts. We worked together in a bipartisan fashion to find a resolution so that those schools would not close without losing their teachers. That is the course that we should be taking today.
Let’s respect them, the chairmen and chairwomen of our committees, and let’s respect those who make up the committee by putting these vitally important issues in that process.
I would like to ask for a “no” vote on my legislation.
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