On Monday, January 20, 2025, Donald J. Trump took his official oath of office, thus becoming the 47th President of the United States. As we have heard previously, Trump became the second U.S. president elected to non-consecutive terms, with the first being President Grover Cleveland in 1888.
On Inauguration Day, Trump signed 26 executive orders, which is the most ever by an incoming president. An executive order is an order issued unilaterally by the president who carries the force of law. Presidents typically use executive orders to follow through on their campaign promises or policy goals that may face opposition or significant delays in Congress.
This flurry of activity has spawned many questions about the constitutionality of some of his actions. Some have questioned the sheer number of executive orders, but this criticism fails to mention that President Harry S. Truman inked 906 EOs during his time in the White House, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt was even more prolific – signing a staggering 2,023 executive orders from his time in office (1933-45).
The executive orders Trump issued addressed a variety of subjects including temporarily pausing the ban on TikTok, as well as withdrawing from the World Health Organization (WHO). Another notable executive order Trump signed ends birthright citizenship, which would seem more prone to close scrutiny since it affects a constitutional area.
Concurrently, Trump continues to fill cabinet positions – utilizing the strength of a Republican majority in the U.S. Senate. On January 15, 2025, the Senate confirmed Trump nominee Sean Duffy to be the next secretary of transportation in the Department of Transportation (DOT). Duffy is a former Congressman from my home state of Wisconsin, and his confirmation was done by a 77-22 vote. Also, former New York House Member Lee Zeldin was approved as Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator by a 56-42 vote, along mostly party lines. Zeldin was able to flip a trio of Democratic senators, including Fetterman (PA), Gallego (AZ), and Kelly (AZ), and he will preside over a plethora of environmental initiatives, including the Clean School Bus Program (CSBP). One initial area of concern is the freezing of existing approved funds under the CSBP. We have heard of situations where the portal that draws down grant funds has been locked.
As NSTA continues to monitor developments in Washington, D.C., the organization will develop its strategies and formal positions on a number of key policy initiatives through our monthly government relations committee meetings. At these virtual meetings, we discuss federal and state legislative initiatives, as well as federal rule proposals affecting student transportation.
Broadly, we are tracking several measures that address illegal school bus passings, and the status of the Under the Hood testing requirement exemption and its future. There are also several proposals that remain in a state of flux at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) addressing their Safety Fitness Determination (SFD) rules, as well as their Safety Measurement System (SMS) that was published in September 2024.
The SMS is designed to incorporate the safety-based regulations related to motor carrier operations. The SMS assesses compliance and prioritizes carriers for interventions based on their on-road performance and investigation results. On-road performance includes data collected from roadside inspections and crash reports; investigation results include violations discovered within the previous 12 months.
Lastly, NSTA will host its annual legislative trip to Washington, D.C. this month. The 2025 Capitol Hill Bus-In has been confirmed for March 26-27, 2025, at the Kimpton-George in Washington. Registration and room block information is available on our website at www.YellowBuses.org.
If you would like to find out more about NSTA activities and priorities, drop me a line at president@yellowbuses.org. I am always interested in receiving input from those supporting student transportation from around the country. And remember, with NSTA, you never travel alone.
