LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Seven state lawmakers who represent different portions of Jefferson County filed a bill Friday aimed at holding students and parents responsible for bad behavior on Kentucky's public school buses.

House Bill 446 would require the Kentucky Department of Education to enact a policy governing how districts handle student behavior on school buses as well as the behavior of those students' parents.

"This is going to be separate from the handbook," said Rep. Emily Callaway, R-Louisville, one of the bill's sponsors. "While it mirrors what the handbook ... this is going to be a separate agreement that the guardian or parent enters into with the school regarding their child."

If there's an incident on a school bus, the policy would allow the driver of that bus to refuse transportation of that student on the day of the incident as well as file a report to the district and refuse future transportation until the district rules on the incident.

"The policy shall contain the standard of behavior expected from each student while being transported by or for the district and the consequences of failure to obey the standards," the bill says.

Each district would be responsible for assigning punishment for whatever happens on the buses. The only requirement is that the process itself is enacted.

Jefferson County Public Schools has spent more than five months adjusting to a new bus plan. Beginning last August, JCPS went from two to nine start times across the district, and consolidated bus routes to deal with driver shortages. What started with the district canceling six days of class to figure out how to better implement the plan has continued with student fights and multi-hour delays.

Callaway said bus drivers have had enough.

"Hearing their experiences, I have great empathy for that," she said Friday. "I think they have a big heart for these kids."

In September, an Eastern High School student and an adult were shot in Louisville's Russell neighborhood after police said a fight started on a JCPS bus and continued when they got off. 

A few days later, a fight broke out on a bus with Atherton High School students on board. Students were yelling at each other, one threw a punch, and one student was left with a bruise to the forehead.

Another fight on a Westport Middle School bus in October in St. Matthews led to family members showing up and fighting near the bus. Two men were ultimately charged with disorderly conduct, assault of a police officer, menacing and resisting arrest.

In November, a group of nearly 150 drivers took a stand by calling out trying to raise awareness about the bad behavior, long routes and unsafe working conditions. Bob Pendygraft, who drove a JCPS bus for about nine years before quitting in October due to student behavior and his own "well-being," said drivers continue to ask the district for help, including for more bus monitors. He said parents need to be held accountable, too. 

"These kids will tell you straight up: 'They're not going to do nothing to me. If they do, I'll just stay home for three days,'" he said. "Why not put it in the parents' hands? Take that kid off that bus for 20 days and say 'You know what, you gotta get them to school.'"

This bill also emphasizes riding a bus is a privilege, holding parents and guardians responsible for actions on or near buses, with some actions being a misdemeanor.

"Rarely are you gonna see me wanting to add new criminal codes or increase some of that," said Rep. Keturah Herron, D-Louisville, another of the bill's sponsors. "But I believe that we have to make sure that our young people and our parents are being held accountable."

Neither JCPS nor the bus drivers' union commented on the filed legislation Friday.

A different bill filed this week, Senate Bill 92, would allow people who do not have a Commercial Drivers License to drive children to and from school in "district-owned and district-leased passenger transportation vehicles."

Sponsored by Sens. David Yates, D-Louisville, and Robin Webb, D-Grayson, SB92 would "revitalize student transportation across Kentucky," the Legislative Research Commission said in a news release this week. It would require all vehicles be driven by district employees who are licensed drivers in Kentucky. It would call for extensive training implemented by the Kentucky Department of Education as well as federal background checks and traffic checks. If someone were to falsify anything related to those records, they'd be charged with a class D felony.

"Senate Bill 92 is an option that could be useful in assisting JCPS and other districts as we all continue to deal with a nationwide shortage of bus drivers," JCPS spokeswoman Carolyn Callahan said in a written statement.

The bill is still in the early stages. Callaway said she has worked closely with several district leaders and feels confident she has their support.

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