HELENA – Montana’s top schools administrator was cited for illegally passing a school bus while it was stopped to pick up students in a residential subdivision last week, even though a video of the incident reportedly “does not show the license plate of the vehicle involved,” her office said Friday.
Helena Police Lt. Jayson Zander said Superintendent of Public Instruction Elsie Arntzen was cited Thursday after speaking with an officer.
According to the police report, an East Helena bus driver said a vehicle driven by Arntzen passed his bus while it was stopped to pick up children just after 7:30 a.m. on May 19 in the Mountain View Meadows subdivision.
The bus driver recognized Arntzen and recorded the license plate number on the red pickup truck.
“Superintendent Arntzen does not recall the alleged incident,” Brian O’Leary, spokesman for the Office of Public Instruction, said in a statement Thursday. “She does acknowledge she drives a red pickup and lives in the area.”
On Friday, Arntzen’s office sent out a statement saying she would be cited, and thanking the bus driver for his vigilance.
Arntzen testified in favor of a bill passed by the 2021 Legislature to improve bus safety, including doubling the fine for illegally passing a school bus to a maximum of $1,000.