Michigan bill would increase illegal passing penalties

LANSING, Mich. — House Bill 6233, introduced in the state House earlier this month, would increase penalties for motorists who pass stopped school buses illegally, doubling fines and adding hefty prison sentences for violators who cause an injury or death in a school bus zone.

Currently, a conviction for illegally passing a stopped school bus puts three points on a driver's record and incurs fines of $250 or more. The school bus zone is defined as 20 feet from a bus that is stopped with its red lights flashing.

The bill's sponsor, Rep. Tom McMillin (R-Rochester Hills) was motivated to draft the legislation after a recent incident in which a woman received only a ticket and about $250 in fines after she hit two high school students when she drove around their bus last fall, the Detroit Free Press reports. The students suffered broken bones, but recovered.

To read the text of the bill, click here.