Nearly two and a half months after passing the General Assembly, Gov. Pat Quinn signed into effect legislation that suspends school bus permits for commercial drivers who refuse to submit to a drug or alcohol test when suspected by their employer of being under the influence.
Public Act 097-0466 goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2012. It unanimously passed both the Illinois House and Senate in late May.
The new law allows school bus companies with a “reasonable suspicion” that a driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs to require an alcohol or drug test before the driver is allowed to resume operation of a school bus. If the driver refuses the test, or refuses to essentially take an oath of “zero tolerance” for using alcohol or drugs, the office of Secretary of State Jesse White is charged with suspending the school bus permit on the CDL for a period of three years.
“It is unconscionable that anyone would ever endanger the lives of school children by consuming alcohol or drugs prior to driving their school bus route,” said White in May 31 statement.
Illinois law already requires drivers to submit to fingerprinting and extensive state and federal background checks before they can obtain a school bus permit.
