Student Transportation
FEFP Reporting
Presented By:
The Florida Association for Pupil Transportation
and the Florida Department of Education
Overview
• FAPT Ad Hoc Transportation Funding Group
• Basics of FEFP Transportation Formula
• FAPT’s “Best Practices for Reporting Student Transportation
Ridership for FEFP”
• Three Phases of the Process: Pre-survey, Survey Week, and Postsurvey
• Audit Documentation
• Consolidated Membership Categories
FAPT Ad Hoc Transportation Funding Group
• April 2012- FAPT Executive Committee put together the Ad Hoc Group
to review current student transportation funding processes,
procedures, and issues
• Initial objectives:
– Update the 2003 report for Legislature on Funding Transportation to
Florida’s Schools of Choice
– Consider recommending that charter school transportation be calculated
under the formula separately from the school district calculations
• Determined that updating the 2003 Funding Report was significant
project requiring considerable new data collection activities
• Work group narrowed and modified its short term goals
Committee Membership:
Transportation:
 Greg Akin, Volusia Chair
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Jim Beekman, Orange
Patsy Herndon, Indian River
Leslie Russell and Sheila Mcleod, Duval
Louise Piper, Okeechobee
Karen Strickland, Osceola
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Robert Waremburg, Clay
Pat Jones, Wakulla
John Franklin and Laura Hill, Hillsborough
Charlie Hood, DOE
Finance:
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Olga Swinson, Pasco
Judy Preston, Brevard
Gretchen Saunders and Katherine Jaudon, Hillsb
Mark Eggers, Chris Sanchez and Lee Davis, DOE
MIS/IT:
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Alison Sylvia, Volusia
Josh Reynolds, Suwannee
Gerry Reynolds, Martin
Kathie Riek, Hillsborough
 Janice Spence
All meetings were via webinar
FAPT Ad Hoc Transportation Funding Group
• Goal 1: Develop a best practice guide for school districts to
consider in establishing and documenting their own data
collection process to help ensure that the data collected will
be…
a) timely
b) accurate and
c) meet audit standards.
• Goal 2: Reduce the complexity of the current data collection
process and still meet the requirements of the formula
Florida Education Finance Program
Student Transportation Funding Formula
• The Student Transportation funding formula provides FEFP funds for
school district transportation based on each district's pro rata share of
state transported students.
• Authorized by Sections 1006.21, 1006.22, 1006.23, 1006.25, and 1011.68,
Florida Statutes.
– Additional funding for the transportation of certain students with
disabilities
– Adjustments are made for cost of living differences, percent of population
outside of urban centers, and Average Bus Occupancy (ABO), i.e., the
average number of eligible students transported per bus in daily service
(to encourage greater bus utilization).
Funding Formula
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Two components
 Base Transportation Allocation
Provides
funding for all fundable transported
students, including certain disabled students
 ESE
Transportation Allocation
Supplemental
funding (for weighted, transported
ESE students), with the balance prorated as the
base allocation component
Pre-Survey Preparation:
Implement steps and train staff:
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Initial roster by bus
Timelines from survey
Register all riders by route
All students properly coded
Update the Hazardous Walking Database
(DOE)
Communication with IT about the FEFP
process
Train School Bus Operators on the FEFP
process
Pre-Survey Preparation:
Train staff and implement steps:
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Verify that vehicle VIN numbers are correct in
your database
Include all charter schools in the process
Look at other riders (e.g., “courtesy”)
Coordinate with public transit and schools, if
applicable
Ensure that maps correctly identify attendance
zones and Hazardous Walking areas
Pre-Survey: Student Registration &
Assigning Membership Codes
Student Registration
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Ridership list by route (student listing)
Blank add or write-in sheets for students
who are not on the ridership list
Ridership list for students on public
transit, if applicable
Assigning Membership
Codes/ESE
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Automated Process: Run completed
program to determine ridership; table
broken down by category per student
(Hazardous, Ineligible, Teen Parent,
Weighted ESE, All Others)
Manual Process: (IT or self) determine
residence distance from school
Under 2 miles; records are reviewed to
determine eligibility and appropriate
membership category
Identify and properly code Hazardous
Walking students
Pre-survey: The Operator’s Report
Common Steps Used
By School Districts
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Operators are given district generated
forms with assigned students in
advance to document student riders
Instructions are given to explain the
process and reduce confusion
Blank forms are provided to list
students who do not appear on the
district generated list.
Recommended Best Practices
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Operators are given district generated
forms with assigned students in advance
so operators may identify and confirm
which students board and depart from
each assigned stop
Instructions are given to explain the
process and reduce confusion
Additional blank forms should be
available to provide names of riders that
are not included on the district-generated
lists
Ridership is documented by using a
simple indicator such as a check mark,
“bubble sheet” or bar code
Count sheets are inspected by
department staff before being presented
for digital or manual counting process
Pre-survey: The Operator’s Report
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Operators receive a student
roster/count sheet that includes:
o Student Name
o ID Number
o Grade
o School Name
o Bus Identifier (bus or route
number)
o Line for Operator signature
and date
o Specific date(s) student rode
column(s)
Sample forms available
Student Data Collection:
Operator Responsibility
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Must be signed and dated by the bus operator, and maintained as a source
document by the school district.
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For each eligible student, the district or charter school must verify the
specific bus (or other vehicle) and the days during the survey week (or
preceding six days) when student rode, or at least the first day.
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Operators must check each student, for each school, and not “Christmas
Tree” all riders.
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Operators MUST understand that by placing their signature on the report,
they are attesting to the fact that the child was present on the bus on the day
that is indicated that he/she rode the bus to and/or from school, and that
improperly certifying that a student rode the bus would result in an audit
finding that could require a reduction (adjustment) in future funding by the
state.
Survey Week (11-day window)
Procedures for Actual Student Count; drivers
should:
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Place a check mark in the appropriate
column if the student rode
Cross out students that no longer ride the
bus
Turn in district-generated roster and blank
sheets with written names as one complete
package
Post-survey Review and Reporting
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Student information should be
scanned or entered manually into
computer system
Post-survey: Files to Local IT/MIS
Correcting Errors
Sending Files to Local IT/MIS
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Ridership data is transmitted to IT/MIS
differently (depending on district)
Membership categories are verified
Districts with routing software work with
their IT/MIS staff to update ridership
tables
Districts have processes to send files to
IT/IS/MIS departments for error checking
and corrections
Error reports are produced as database
records are checked against ridership
records for withdrawals, enrollments,
attendance, student schedules,
duplicates, etc.
These methods vary by district
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Either manual or electronic matches are
made against various records
(demographic, ESE, schedules and
attendance, hazardous codes, etc.) and
inconsistencies are noted
Correct and verify unclear or inaccurate
source data
Staff make corrections in coding if errors
are related to attendance or eligibility
category
New reports are run
Error reports are produced as database
records are checked against ridership
records
These methods vary by district
Post-survey: Prep for State Reporting
Ridership Data Files
Ensure ridership data files submitted from district transportation to
district IT have:
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One record per student, unique by FL ID Number (Student Number
Identifier, Florida)
Matching demographic record for each transportation record (for
students transported to another district to receive instruction,
submit a Student Transportation format only)
Matching ESE student record for each ESE transportation record
Each student’s school attendance records match dates counted on
bus during the 11-day survey window
Post-survey: Prep for State Reporting
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Prepare to transmit completed reports to FDOE database
Must match student information generated for database
Internal district transportation ridership records may
contain:
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District Number
Survey Period Code, Year, and Number of Days in Term
Each Student’s: Last Name, First Name, District ID #, School,
Grade, Residence Address, Distance to School from
Residence, City, State, Zip
Membership Category letter designation:
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Any student declared under Membership Category
letter G for Hazardous Walking should have the District
assigned Hazardous Code for his/her area attached to
his/her name in the completed file.
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Any ESE student claimed for weighted funding should
have the District-assigned ESE exceptionality(s)/code(s)
attached to his/her name in the completed file.
Post-survey: Prep for State Reporting
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Each record contains (continued):
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Vehicle Category
Route number, Bus number- pulled from bus file submitted to
IS/IT Department (file is submitted prior to FEFP survey
period)
AM Route ID, Run ID, Stop ID, AM time at Stop
PM Route ID, Run ID, Stop ID, PM time at Stop
Final check by district IT to correct errors in
transportation ridership file
Post-survey: Reporting to FDOE
District IT transmits Final Report to FDOE, containing:
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District Number, Current Instruction/Service
Student Number Identifier, Florida
Survey Period Code
Fiscal Year
Year-Round/Extended School Year FTE Indicator
Days In Term (For FTE Purposes)
Transportation Membership Category
Vehicle Category
Bus Number
Bus Route Number
Transaction Code
District Number, Current Enrollment
Hazardous Walking
Student Number Identifier, Local
Post-survey: FDOE Processing
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FDOE receives electronic file and runs error report
files
Student Transportation Validation Reports (error
reports) are made available to districts for corrections
Process repeated as needed, within the survey
timelines
Districts can access reports of information submitted,
including vehicle type and membership categories
District returns memo to FDOE attesting to accuracy of
information (Attachment A from Student Transportation
General Instructions)
All survey reporting timelines are specified in the
Student Transportation General Instructions
District maintains all records required for auditing,
including driver worksheets.
Records and Documentation
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Locally maintained records must document the following
three basic areas:
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Student eligibility to receive state FEFP regular or weighted
transportation funds (based on criteria such as distance from
school, programs attended, and disabilities status and services, if
applicable); and,
Student ridership and school attendance during approved
transportation survey periods (to verify that transportation service
was actually received); and,
Transportation in approved conveyance (i.e., in an approved mode
of transportation or vehicle type)
Audit Documentation:
Ensure retention of records to document student’s
home address at the time of the scheduled survey
• Prevent duplication of students and counting of any
individual student on more than one bus or mode
during survey week
• For each student document the eligibility category.
Edits may be implemented to cross-check against school
record.
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NEW: Membership Category L: Individuals With Disabilities Education Act Prekindergarten through Grade 12, Weighted
Includes current (soon to be former) membership categories:
A: Individuals With Disabilities Education Act - K-12, Weighted
C: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Prekindergarten, Weighted
I: Center to Center or Non-center Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,
Weighted
Membership Category F: Teenage Parents and Infants, Unweighted
No change; same as current membership category:
F: Teenage Parents and Infants, Unweighted
Membership Category G: Hazardous Walking, Elementary, Unweighted
No change; same as current membership category:
G: Hazardous Walking, Elementary, Unweighted
NEW Membership Category M: All Other FEFP Transportation Funding-Eligible
Students, Unweighted
Includes current (soon to be former) membership categories:
B: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act - K-12, Unweighted
E: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Prekindergarten, Unweighted
H: All Other Students Living Two Miles or More, Unweighted
J: Center to Center or Non-center Individuals with Disabilities Education Act,
Unweighted
K: Center to Center Career and Technical Education and Dual Enrollment
Students, Unweighted
Membership Category N: Non-FEFP-Fundable Prekindergarten through
Grade 12 Students
Only the description in the title is changed, per above. Otherwise,
same as current membership category:
N: Non-FEFP Fundable PK-12 Students Living Less Than Two Miles and
all Non-eligible PreK Students
• FAPT Website: www.FAPTFlorida.org, Funding Working Group link
 Consolidated Membership Categories summary
 FAPT Transportation Reporting Best Practices
 Sample Forms and Procedures (from school districts)
 This Webinar
• FDOE School Transportation: www.fldoe.org/transportation, 850-245-9795, or
schtrans@fldoe.org
 Quality Links: Florida School District Transportation Profiles
• FDOE Funding and Reporting: www.fldoe.org/fefp
 Student Transportation General Instructions
• FDOE Education Information and Accountability Services, www.fldoe.org/eias
Questions?