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HB 25-1230

Changes Violation Driver Overtaking School Bus

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Jennifer Bacon and 27 co-sponsors

Allows school districts to use AVIS on buses to catch drivers who illegally overtake stopped buses; violators face up to $300 civil penalties with safeguards.

Governor Signed
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Bill Summary · HB 25-1230

Summary — HB 25-1230: Changes Violation Driver Overtaking School Bus

Status: Governor signed (effective May 24, 2025) • Introduced: Feb 11, 2025

Purpose

Authorize use of automated vehicle identification systems (AVIS) on school buses to detect drivers who illegally overtake stopped school buses with activated visual signal lights, establish related civil penalties and procedural safeguards, and clarify the definition of “highway with separate roadways.”

Key provisions

  • AVIS authorization
    • With approval of a school district’s board of education, the state, county, city & county, municipality, or the school district may install and use AVIS equipment on that district’s school buses to detect overtaking violations (Colo. Rev. Stat. § 42-4-110.5 (4.6)).
  • Civil penalty
    • A detected overtaking violation may result in a civil penalty up to $300 (inclusive of surcharges and fees). Notices of violation must be sent to the registered owner of the vehicle.
  • Evidence and presumption
    • AVIS-produced photographs must capture the vehicle and license plate.
    • If the AVIS image includes an electronic indicator showing the school bus’s visual signal lights were actuated, there is a rebuttable presumption that the lights were actuated and operational and that the bus was stopped to load/unload children.
  • Restrictions on revenue and vendor contracts
    • Money from fines may not be used to pay an AVIS vendor/manufacturer.
    • Vendor compensation cannot be based exclusively on the number of citations issued or revenue generated by AVIS.
    • Contracts may not include quotas for violations captured, notices issued, or revenue generated as a condition of continued use.
  • School-district-specific safeguards
    • A school district that independently installs AVIS must enter an MOU with one or more law enforcement agencies; the MOU may address cost sharing, vendor payment responsibilities, enforcement duties, and reimbursement.
  • Highway definition change
    • “Highway with separate roadways” is expressly defined to include roadways divided by physical barriers (and excludes separation only by a painted median). This narrows when drivers on an adjacent roadway are exempt from stopping.

Who is affected

  • Motorists (face civil penalties if caught overtaking stopped school buses)
  • School districts and local governments (may choose to install AVIS; incur purchase, maintenance, coordination, and enforcement workload)
  • Law enforcement (roles in enforcement and MOUs)
  • AVIS vendors (restricted contracting and payment structures)

Fiscal and procedural impacts

  • Effective date: May 24, 2025; applies to violations occurring on or after that date.
  • Fiscal note: minimal, absorbable state workload to update materials; no projected state revenue or expenditure change. Local governments and school districts that elect to install AVIS may see increased costs and workload; no required state appropriation.
  • Criminal justice note: the bill changes a factual basis for a class 2 misdemeanor (definition of separate roadways). Legislative analysis assumes no substantial change in conviction rates.

For full statutory text and legislative history, consult the Colorado Session Laws or the bill file (HB 25-1230).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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