Gov. Josh Green has extended emergency provisions, ua mafai ai e le Matagaluega o Aoga a le Setete o Hawai'i ona fa'aauau pea le fa'atalanoaina o le le lava o ave pasi a'oga ua fa'alavelaveina ai le tautua a tamaiti a'oga. O aiaiga nei ua mafai ai e le Matagaluega ona faatino isi auala tau femalagaiga ma toe faaleleia auala o pasi na taofia i le lua masina talu ai, ma mautinoa ai le saogalemu o fanau aoga i le aoga.

“Education of our keiki is an absolute priority,” Governor Green said. “Getting our keiki to their classrooms has always been a state responsibility and remains so, despite challenges brought about by wildfires, other natural disaster, or in this case, a workforce shortage. We enacted the Emergency Proclamation to ensure our children have no barriers to receiving their education.”

Talu mai le amataga o le tausaga aoga i le amataga o Aukuso, o le Matagaluega ua toe fa'afouina ala pasi e 100 i Oʻahu, Maui ma Hawaiʻi. Ua toe fa'aleleia auaunaga mo le 88% o tamaiti a'oga ua a'afia—3,263 mai le 3,720. O loʻo faʻaauau pea taumafaiga malosi e toe faʻaleleia isi auala e 38.

“We are deeply thankful to Governor Green for extending the fa'aaliga fa'afuase'i, which has been crucial in mitigating the school bus driver shortage. Thanks to this flexibility, we’ve been able to deploy multiple solutions to restore routes. We also extend our gratitude to the affected schools and parents for their ongoing patience and understanding as we continue to work toward full resolution,” Deputy Superintendent Randy Moore said.

O le fa'aaliga fa'afuase'i allows for the temporary use of tour buses to transport regular education students, a solution that has enabled school bus contractor Ground Transport Inc. to subcontract with such providers as Polynesian Adventure Tours. This collaboration has been instrumental in filling transportation gaps.

O le proclamation also provides critical flexibility with procurement rules, allowing the Department to contract directly with additional providers like Roberts Hawai‘i to supply buses and drivers in shortage areas.

It further permits Ground Transport to place drivers on school buses before they have fully completed their licensing process. Although full licensure —commercial driver’s licenses with a “P” endorsement to drive passengers and an additional “S” endorsement to drive school buses — is still required for permanent positions, these provisions help speed up the availability of drivers in the short term.

O le fa'aaliga fa'afuase'i, which has played a vital role in maintaining student transportation services, has been extended through Nov. 30, 2024.