Prop A would keep students and bus drivers safe on the road without raising the current tax rate

Proposition A, on the November 4, 2025, ballot, would help the Mehlville School District maintain a routine school bus replacement schedule without raising the current tax rate. This would keep maintenance costs low while ensuring students and bus drivers are safe on the road.

The Mehlville School District currently has 102 buses. Those buses are how more than 6,800 of our students (approximately 68%) get to school and back home each day.

Image: The Mehlville School District Transportation Department maintains 102 buses that are used to transport approximately 68% of the district's students.

The industry standard for bus replacement is 12 to 14 years. However, the district’s transportation staff are able to stretch that lifespan to 16 years by taking great care of the fleet, performing preventative maintenance on all 102 buses every two months.

 “Every year, our buses are inspected by the Missouri Highway Patrol,” said Dan Gilman, Director of Transportation. “We’ve scored 90% or higher on our inspections for the past 27 years and have routinely scored 96% or higher.”

To maintain a routine bus replacement schedule, the district replaces 5 to 7 buses each school year at a cost of $140,000 to $150,000 per bus. This year, the district is spending $700,000 to replace 5 buses.

After the 16-year mark, buses start to have more mechanical problems, leading to costly repairs, Gilman said. Bus breakdowns can also cause students to be late to school, missing important instructional time or cause them to be late getting home at the end of the day.

School districts across the country have been facing bus driver shortages for the past 5 years, but an updated fleet serves as a recruitment tool to ensure the district has enough drivers to cover all of its routes.

“Having an updated fleet allows us to emphasize when recruiting drivers that our buses have the latest safety features, like security cameras, to keep both drivers and students safe.”

Prop A would focus on student and bus driver safety,  keeping bus repair costs low without increasing the current tax rate. It would allow the district to establish a 16-year bus replacement schedule by guaranteeing dedicated funds to replace 5 to 7 buses each year.

Learn more about Prop A

The Mehlville School District Board of Education voted unanimously Aug. 21, 2025, to place a levy on the November 4, 2025, ballot that would not increase the current tax rate. Called Proposition A, the levy would fund the upkeep of school roofs, buses, parking lots, technology and safety systems, and HVAC – preserving and protecting district facilities for generations of students.

Proposition A would generate an estimated $1.4 million annually for recurring maintenance needs and requires voter approval in the November 4, 2025, election. 

Visit the Prop A section of our website to learn more about Prop A, including answers to frequently asked questions.