We must protect kids on school buses — before it’s too late

It's a shame when it takes a tragedy to move us in a direction we should already have taken.

The Sept. 8 Minco school bus crash could have been worse. No one died, but two members of the local softball team and a coach were hospitalized in critical condition. Several of the 18 people on the bus were ejected in the crash, a dramatic demonstration of the fact that no one except the driver was wearing a seat belt. Seat belts have been required in cars since 1968, but not in school buses.

A new law to require seat belts in school buses holding 10 or more passengers was introduced in the state Legislature this year, but it died without even a committee hearing. The sponsor of House Bill 1244, Rep. Judd Strom, R-Copan, said he proposed the legislation at the request of a handful of school