With the state budget vote less than a week away, the Joint Finance Committee has recommended continuing to cover the costs of transporting students to and from school 100 percent.

The practice, which has been in place "longer than my lifetime" according to State Director Ron Love, was in danger of elimination after a recommendation was made by the governor's office to require school districts to pay 25 percent of the costs for school bus service. The Joint Finance Committee also recommended to continue allowances for parents of non-public-school pupils to transport them to school, but it did not restore funding to cover driver education courses at non-public schools.

"Around the country, there are few states that assume 100 percent of the costs of to and from transportation. Many districts pay for a large portion of their costs," said Love, adding that the governor's office was simply attempting "to spread the cost of transportation."

Some concessions were made to restore the funding, including reducing the number of new bus purchases from 44 to 34 and requiring districts to pay for “unique hazards” routes that consist of transporting students across dangerous highways or routes that have no sidewalks. The parent reimbursement, although intact, will be cut from $150.90 per child to $140. For now, the decisions are yet to be made final as the state legislature will vote on the budget next week.

"It’s still up to the legislature to decide, so we’ll see what happens," added Love.