Ohio Governor’s recommendations after deadly school bus crash last summer.

After a deadly school bus crash last summer, a task force convened by Gov. Mike DeWine recommends more training, driver benefits and safety features but not a seat belt mandate. How and when safety upgrades are made would be up to individual school districts, the governor said at an event, releasing the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group’s final report. He said his office has begun discussions with the Legislature about establishing a grant fund to help school districts pay for vehicle upgrades or new safety-enhanced buses. He created the working group in August, after a school bus crash in Clark County Lawrenceville, killing one child and injuring 23 others. The working group issued 17 recommendations with sixteen related to bus driver recruitment and retention, training and education, school bus safety features, road and traffic safety, and emergency response. Ohio Public Safety Director Andy Wilson said the group stopped short of recommending that the state mandate that all school buses have seat belts, instead leaving the decision to individual school districts.