N.J. Admin. Code § 6A:27-10.3

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 24, December 18, 2024

Section 6A:27-10.3 - Responsibilities of coordinated transportation services agencies

(a) A coordinated transportation services agency (CTSA) shall organize, schedule, and provide transportation services in a manner that achieves maximum efficiency for participating school districts. Services and method of payment shall be described in an agreement between the CTSA and the resident district board of education.

(b) A CTSA may contract for transportation services, use vehicles owned or leased by the agency, and/or utilize vehicles owned by district boards of education for the provision of coordinated services.

(c) The calculation of per student costs for transportation services provided by a CTSA shall not include administrative expenses above the cost of providing the actual transportation service. If the agency costs are equal to or less than the maximum per student expenditure permitted for nonpublic school transportation pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1a, excluding administrative fees, the agency shall provide transportation for the nonpublic school students.

1. The maximum per student expenditure permitted for nonpublic school transportation pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1a shall be determined by dividing the actual cost of the route to and from school by the number of students assigned to the route. The per student cost calculation does not include the administrative cost to administer the nonpublic school transportation program.

2. An administrative fee is the amount charged to a district board of education by a CTSA for costs incurred to administer the transportation program. The administrative fee shall not be included in determining the actual cost of the route to and from school. Administrative fees are excluded from the calculation of the maximum per student expenditure permitted for nonpublic school transportation pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1a.

(d) A CTSA may charge an administrative fee to participating school districts to cover the ordinary cost of doing business. Determining routes and availability of service should be considered part of the ordinary cost of doing business and included in the administrative fees charged to resident district boards of education. The agency shall not charge a per student application fee.

(e) A CTSA may notify parents or legal guardians of the provision of nonpublic school transportation in accordance with N.J.A.C. 6A:27-2.3(b). Notification to the parents or legal guardians by the CTSA shall be made part of the resolution and contractual agreement between the parties.

(f) If a CTSA cannot provide the requested transportation, the agency shall:

1. Document why it is unable to provide transportation; and

2. Maintain a listing of destinations for which it is unable to coordinate services to share this information with other school districts for possible coordination in the future.

(g) Prior to bidding for transportation services, the CTSA shall notify participating school districts whether transportation will be coordinated with other school districts on their routes.

(h) Resident district boards of education shall be billed for services in accordance with the contractual agreement with the agency. The billing shall include the participating school district's individual route costs based on adjusted monthly expenditures. The final cost billed to resident district boards of education shall be based on actual expenditures.

1. The CTSA shall provide to district boards of education on a Commissioner-prescribed form the information necessary for State reimbursement of the portion of any administrative fee that causes the per student cost to exceed the maximum expenditure permitted for nonpublic school transportation pursuant to N.J.S.A. 18A:39-1a.

N.J. Admin. Code § 6A:27-10.3

Amended by R.2002 d.303, effective 9/16/2002.
See: 34 N.J.R. 1887(a), 34 N.J.R. 3205(a).
Rewrote (c); in (h), added 1.
Amended by R.2005 d.259, effective 8/1/2005.
See: 37 N.J.R. 851(a), 37 N.J.R. 2865(b).
In (d) and (g), added "school" preceding "districts"; in the introductory paragraph of (h), added "school" preceding "district's".
Amended by R.2013 d.121, effective 10/7/2013.
See: 45 N.J.R. 606(a), 45 N.J.R. 2245(a).
In (a), inserted a comma following "schedule", substituted "that" for "which" and "Services" for "These services", and inserted "school"; in (c)1, substituted the second occurrence of "The" for "This"; in (e), substituted "Notification to the parents by the CTSA" for "This service"; in the introductory paragraph of (f), substituted "transportation" for "services"; in (f)2, deleted "in order" following "services"; and in (h)1, inserted "on a Commissioner-prescribed form", deleted ", on a form prescribed by the Commissioner," following "necessary", and substituted "that" for "which".

Amended by 53 N.J.R. 163(a), effective 2/1/2021