ALLENTOWN, Pa. — BusPatrol America, the private company that operates Allentown’s school bus stop-arm camera program, has withdrawn its petition to block the public release of its contract with the Allentown School District and records pertaining to operation of the school bus stop-arm program.
The move effectively ends months of legal wrangling over access to records related to the district’s school bus camera enforcement program.
The withdrawal, confirmed in an Oct. 24 letter from BusPatrol’s attorney, means the district must now turn over the full, unredacted contract and related financial summaries that had been withheld during the legal dispute.
BusPatrol ends court fight
BusPatrol had filed a petition for review earlier this year in Lehigh County Court, challenging a July 15 final determination from Pennsylvania’s Office of Open Records.
The OOR ruling sided with LehighValleyNews.com ordering the release of the records under the state’s Right-to-Know Law, concluding there was no evidence showing the information was protected under Pennsylvania’s Stop-Arm Law or the state’s Right-to-Know Law exemptions for trade secrets and proprietary information.
In its appeal, BusPatrol had argued just that.
However, in the Oct. 24 letter addressed to Allentown School District Open Records Officer Ronald Simonson, attorney Bryan F. Lewis notified the district that the company "has elected to withdraw its petition for review … and will not pursue further relief from the Office of Open Records’ final determination.”
The letter directed the district to “proceed to produce to the requester the records previously withheld or redacted pending the petition proceedings, including an unredacted copy of the agreement between BusPatrol and the Allentown City School District, and the ‘School District Payment Summaries’ for the years 2023, 2024, and 2025.”
The formal withdrawal was filed with Lehigh County’s clerk of judicial records hours later, lifting any stay that had been in place during the court review and clearing the way for public release.
"Pennsylvania courts have been clear that government cannot outsource its public access duties to third party contractors."Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel for PNA
"That language [in the letter] is concerning because the Right to Know Law is clear that the agency must comply with the law, not its contractors," said Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel for the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association.
"Moreover, Pennsylvania courts have been clear that government cannot outsource its public access duties to third party contractors.
"Ultimately, the agency must comply with the law based on its own good faith application of the law and not solely based on the position of its contractors. The government is required to operate in a transparent manner and consistent with law, and it can be sanctioned for failing to do so."
Transparency win, changes to law proposed
The decision marks a significant transparency victory for the public, ending a months-long battle over access to details of the program that enforces stop-arm violations using cameras mounted on Allentown school buses.
"It is a victory for [LehighValleyNews.com] and the community you serve," Melewsky said. "Hopefully, BusPatrol and agencies that contract with them will continue to recognize the importance of transparency and the requirements of the law."
BusPatrol, which operates similar programs in the Lehigh Valley and across the country, has faced scrutiny in several districts — specifically, over the lack of transparency on how the program operates and how revenue is shared between the company, schools and police departments tasked with reviewing violations.
With the petition withdrawn, Allentown School District is now expected to provide the full contract and payment summaries to LehighValleyNews.com, potentially revealing new details about how much the district has earned — or paid — under the agreement.
"The outcome of this case will provide other school districts and government agencies with clear guidance on their responsibilities under the law and a road map for disclosure that makes future legal challenges unnecessary," Melewsky said.
A representative for BusPatrol has yet to respond to LehighValleyNews.com following the ruling, as well as an attempt at legislative reform of Pennsylvania’s automated school bus stop-arm camera enforcement program.
State Sen. Lisa Boscola, D-Lehigh/Northampton, is the prime sponsor of Senate Bill 1046 — a response following an analysis by LehighValleyNews.com that found not a single appeals hearing was held for the thousands of school bus stop citations issued in the Lehigh Valley from January to May.
Boscola's amended legislation establishes a tiered penalty structure for violators, addresses egregious first-time violations and establishes an appeals timeline to ensure cases are heard in a reasonable timeframe.
In addition, participation by school entities, system administrators, and the primary police departments in the enforcement program under the amended law would be conditioned on completing a training program approved by the department.
State Sen. Nick Miller, D-Lehigh/Northampton, co-sponsored the legislation, which was referred to the House Transportation Committee on Oct. 21.
