What You Need To Know About Minnesota’s New School Bus Law

Every school day in Minnesota, children step off school buses and, sadly, into one of the most dangerous moments of their day: the seconds between the bus door and the safety of the sidewalk. Thankfully, most drivers do the right thing and stop, but far too many don't.

The numbers are sobering. Each year, bus drivers across the state participate in a one-day stop-arm survey, during which they record how many drivers violate the stop-arm rule. In 2025, the 3,472 bus drivers who participated observed 514 violations in a single day. And as the Minnesota Department of Public Safety points out, that's only the drivers who were caught or seen.

A University of Minnesota study found that as recently as 2023, an estimated 96 to 99 percent of violations went unreported, and only 0.4 to 1.6 percent of estimated violators actually received citations.

In 2025, law enforcement still managed to write more than 2,000 stop-arm violation citations statewide, and that number only scratches the surface of how often it actually happens.

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Minnesota has now decided that enough is enough, and the law has been updated to remove the confusion that was allowing some drivers to justify their dangerous decisions.

What The New Minnesota School Bus Law Says

In March 2026, Minnesota law changed to require drivers to stop at least 20 feet away from a school bus whenever the red lights are flashing, regardless of whether the stop arm is fully extended. That last part is the critical change.

Under the old law, some drivers waited until the stop arm was completely extended before stopping, or used the absence of a fully extended arm as a reason not to stop at all. That gray area is now gone. When a school bus's red lights begin flashing, drivers must stop — no exceptions — at least 20 feet away.

This applies whether approaching from behind the bus, and it applies to oncoming traffic on undivided roads as well.

As Kathryn Forbord, president of the Minnesota School Bus Operators Association, said at an April news conference: "Any confusion in the law opens the doorway for drivers to make last-minute decisions that could potentially risk the lives of students simply trying to get to school." The update eliminates that doorway.

What Happens If You Break The Law

The penalties for violating Minnesota's school bus stop law are serious, although I think the state could stand to make them even more stringent.

A driver who fails to stop as required is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not less than $500. That is the baseline, and it goes up quickly from there. A misdemeanor charge can carry penalties of up to 90 days in jail and fines of up to $1,000.

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If a driver passes the bus on the right-hand, passenger-door side, or passes while a child is outside the bus, the charge escalates to a gross misdemeanor, which can carry penalties of up to 360 days in jail and fines up to $3,000. A conviction can also result in suspension or revocation of your driver's license.

And don't count on getting away with it undetected. Stop-arm camera grants have now equipped about 8,000 Minnesota school buses with cameras, with initial results showing 2,063 citations issued to drivers in 2025 alone.

The Simple Rule Going Forward

In a nutshell, lights flashing on a school bus mean stop, a full stop, at least 20 feet back, every time, no matter what the stop arm is doing. It's now the law, and the penalties for ignoring it are real.

For more information on the updated law, visit the Minnesota Department of Public Safety's school bus safety page.