Richard Carranza Chancellor New York City Department of Education Tweed Courthouse 52 Chambers Street New York, NY 10007 September 17, 2018 Re: School Bus Failures Chancellor Carranza, I am writing to express my profound concern over the Department of Education’s ongoing failure to fix its broken bus system – a failure that not only results in needless delays for thousands of school children and their families every day, but may in some cases also jeopardize student safety by failing to vet drivers in accordance with the DOE’s own background guidelines. A 2017 audit by my office, as well as recent media reports, make clear the DOE’s bus system is in need of a close review without delay. As Comptroller, as well as a father of two school-aged children, I urge you to consider a full revamping of the system, and I respectfully demand answers to the questions outlined below. The appalling delays experienced by families like 5-year-old Lystra Liu – whose spent five hours on a bus last week only to be left at the wrong stop at 7 p.m., as reported today in press reports -as well as new questions about the DOE’s background checks on drivers are hardly new or unforeseeable. As a 2017 audit by my office made clear, DOE has failed to promptly follow-up to ensure that the status and eligibility of drivers and attendants are properly updated on a consistent basis. In particular, we found deficiencies at the time in the Office of Pupil Transportation’s Investigation Unit processing of suspension notifications we reviewed. In some cases, OPT failed to either (1) change the drivers’ status in OPT’s Driver and Attendant System from “active” to “suspended,” or (2) print and file copies of the DMV abstracts showing that DMV had cleared the three drivers’ suspensions. In other cases, our audit found the assigned OPT investigators took and documented the necessary action, but did so late—between three and seven business days after DOE received the DMV suspension notifications—rather than immediately as required. And it appeared that a suspended attendant was able to work for a full six months when DOE’s own internal suspension decision was not implemented because of poor internal coordination. Given this background, it is more than a little disturbing to read in additional press reports the concerns and frustrations expressed by Eric Reynolds, an investigator for the Office of Pupil Transportation who chose to go public with clear and ongoing breakdowns in the DOE’s vetting processes. According to Reynolds, the background checks performed on drivers by the private bus companies is all but non-existent, and the DOE’s own system of vetting is too lax to catch those with clear violations on their records, including criminal convictions on their records. As a result, Reynolds was able to detail a system that allowed a number of drivers to serve as DOEapproved drivers, despite a range of infractions against them – including one driver who spent two years in prison for burglary, another who installed a hidden camera to catch a young woman showering, as well as others with a range of violent or drug-related charges against them. In light of the serious issues that have been raised, I request that you provide my office with answers to the following questions related to DOE’s system for vetting drivers:      Was DOE aware of the school bus drivers’ criminal convictions outlined in today’s news report? If so, why were they permitted to drive buses for DOE school bus contractors? If DOE was aware of the convictions, what actions did DOE take to ensure that the bus companies did not allow drivers with disqualifying convictions to drive NYC children? Did any of the drivers operate New York City school buses with suspended or revoked drivers’ licenses or without the required certification from NYS DMV? Following the Comptroller's audit, what actions did DOE take to improve the weaknesses identified in DOE's processed for ensuring that unsafe drivers are not allowed to drive? More broadly, as regards to the general training of school bus drivers, please provide answers to the following questions:      Are there performance standards in the contracts for timeliness, both in picking up children and in dropping them off? What training do drivers receive on their routes in dealing with young children? What training is required of each driver before getting behind the wheel of a school bus, and how does DOE verify that every driver has received such training. What protocols exist for communication between drivers and schools in the event of delays, and how is that information communicated to parents? Has DOE ever considered putting GPS tracking devices on all buses and allowing parents to track the movement of their children’s buses in real time, as the City of Boston already does? Thank you for your swift attention to these questions. I am sure you share my concern that every child in New York City deserves to be transported to and from school in a manner that is safe and efficient, by drivers who are fully trained to do the job. Sincerely, Scott M. Stringer