Small businesses that paid President Donald Trump’s tariffs have been largely left to fend for themselves as they navigate the administration’s refund system.

In Washington, the lawmakers calling for small businesses to be first in line to receive their share of the $166 billion paid in tariffs say that, for the most part, their hands are tied.

“I’m fighting for that to happen, but most of it’s going to end up playing out in court, but it really matters to our small businesses in particular,” said Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.

Baldwin said she met with the owners of a local textile company that laid off staff to afford tariffs on imported fabric — and now they wonder if they’ll get their money back.

In Wisconsin, importers paid $3.5 billion in tariffs from March to December 2025, according to the small business coalition We Pay The Tariffs. More than a dozen Wisconsin companies, including Milwaukee Tool and Kohl’s, have sued the Trump administration for tariff refunds.

U.S. Customs and Border Patrol is currently updating its duty payment processing system to issue refunds at scale. Officials must review more than 53 million entries filed by importers that include emergency tariff payments.

The development of the CBP system’s new functions to receive, process and refund these duties was mostly complete as of last week, according to court filings.

Once the process is set, it becomes a question of who has the resources and know-how to navigate CBP’s refund system. The Trump administration is requiring business owners to file their own claims.

CBP’s updated system will require importers to file a declaration detailing their payments of tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, according to an affidavit filed in trade court earlier this month.

“It’s incumbent on smaller importers to do what they need to do to get their money,” said Chris Duncan, a former CBP attorney who currently works as a tariffs and customs lawyer.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., the ranking member of the Small Business Committee, said that puts small businesses at a disadvantage.

“Small businesses do not have teams of legal and financial experts to submit their forms. Small businesses do not have the time to navigate this convoluted system,” Markey said in a call with business owners last week. “Small businesses need their refunds, and they need them now.”

Markey and 19 other Democratic senators sent a letter to CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott on Friday demanding the agency automatically refund IEEPA tariffs through its existing system rather than the updated one.

“There is no principled reason for the Trump administration to conduct the refund process this way,” reads the letter, reviewed by NOTUS. “CBP already has the payment records it needs to issue refunds.”

Markey — along with Democratic Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeanne Shaheen — also introduced a bill that would require CBP to issue full tariff refunds with interest and prioritize returning money to small businesses.

Without buy-in from Republicans, however, Democratic senators say it will be up to the local communities to pressure the federal government.

“What is going to be most helpful is to create enough pressure in communities, particularly small communities,” Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, said.

Rep. Mark Pocan, a Democrat who represents the Madison area, expressed concern about the “dysfunction” that could arise from companies trying to navigate the intricacies of the CBP’s refund system and answer to consumers who shouldered price increases.

“Bottom line is, we never should have done illegal tariffs to begin with. Congress should have stood up, as Democrats had asked for, for our constitutional authority around tariffs, and now we’re going to wind up creating all kinds of dysfunction for businesses and individuals,” Pocan said.

Following the Supreme Court’s 6-3 ruling striking down his emergency tariffs in February, Trump said he would continue his tariff agenda using alternative legal authorities and imposed a 15% global tariff, which Congress must vote to extend later this year.

Trump allies in Congress say the president’s tariffs, which are unpopular among voters, are short-term pain for the long-term gain of balancing the U.S.’s trade relationships and attracting foreign investment.

Nevertheless, when asked if tariff refunds should be passed on to consumers, Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, a Republican who represents suburban and rural areas west of Milwaukee, expressed openness to the idea.

“If it’s something that they could actually draw, like a clear line or a bright line. You know, we had a lot of companies where the tariffs had a direct effect on aluminum out of Canada or textiles out of Vietnam, or — you know, it was all part of the manufacturing process,” Fitzgerald said.

“So I’m not sure how that would shake out either, if it was one element of a larger manufacturing versus, like, a straight retailer who was selling some type of consumer goods.”

This story was produced and originally published by Wisconsin Watch and NOTUS, a publication from the nonprofit, nonpartisan Allbritton Journalism Institute.

Lawmakers are worried small businesses will get left behind in Trump’s tariff refund system is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

A northeast Wisconsin anti-poverty nonprofit plans to close later this year amid serious financial challenges and the loss of a government contract.

For more than 50 years, Newcap has operated in 10 counties. It serves low-income residents and is funded primarily through state and federal grants.

The agency served more than 25,000 people in 2022. Its programs range from employment and job training to educational support, financial coaching, health and food assistance, housing services, home repair and case management, according to an annual report.

Housing advocates say Newcap’s closure could lead to northeast Wisconsin losing more than $2.7 million in federal funding and leave more than 100 households at risk of losing housing.

In a statement, Newcap interim Executive Director Deb Barlament said the organization has faced “significant financial challenges” in recent months and has implemented staffing reductions and other cost-saving measures in response.

“At this time, the organization anticipates closing its doors sometime this year,” Barlament stated. “A more specific timeline will be determined as we work through existing grant obligations and funder requirements.”

Barlament’s statement says the organization hopes to “responsibly wind down operations” and is “actively collaborating with other organizations and funders to help ensure that services continue to be available to the communities we serve.”

It comes after a 2025 financial audit by accounting firm Baker Tilly found the organization had a more than $2 million deficit in 2024. The audit raised “substantial doubt about the Organization’s ability to continue operating,” citing recurring deficits, negative cash flow and reduced liquidity.

The state is conducting “enhanced financial monitoring” of the nonprofit, which includes comprehensive financial and program reviews, as well as reviews of financial documentation.

In a statement, the Wisconsin Department of Administration said the state has been working with Newcap to address its use and repayment of Weatherization Assistance Program funds for the 2025-26 program year. The program provides home weatherization assistance to low-income individuals.

The audit shows that in 2024 Newcap spent about $5.1 million for weatherization programs.

“Approximately 28% and 26% of the Organization’s grants revenue and grants receivable, respectively, were generated by weatherization and emergency furnace programs funded by the Wisconsin Department of Administration,” the audit states.

On March 13, the DOA informed Newcap that it “could not in good faith” renew the nonprofit’s weatherization contract for the next program year “given the current financial situation at Newcap and outstanding funds the agency must repay,” according to the statement.

The statement does not specify why the agency needs to repay the funds, or the specific dollar amount of that repayment.

“Working with our federal partners to administer grant programs requires DOA to assess potential risks of grantees,” the statement read. “Though Newcap has recently taken steps to address overhead costs and operating cash flow, Newcap’s financial viability remains uncertain.”

The Department of Administration says it is working with Wiscap, a statewide network of anti-poverty nonprofits, and other agencies to ensure services continue to be provided in northeast Wisconsin.

Wiscap did not respond to requests for comment about what happens when a Community Action Program, or CAP, agency — like Newcap — closes.

Millions in funding at risk if federal contracts can’t be transferred

Carrie Poser is executive director of the Wisconsin Balance of State Continuum of Care, a nonprofit that coordinates housing and supportive services for individuals and families experiencing homelessness across 69 of Wisconsin’s 72 counties.

She said Newcap administers four U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants, which provide support services to 134 households across its 10-county service area, with 84 of those in Brown County.

Poser said local service groups want to take over those federal housing grants. But she said HUD officials in Milwaukee and Washington, D.C., have told her they are not processing grant transfers.

That puts the 134 households currently using those programs at risk of losing their housing and becoming homeless, she said.

“We have humans that, for no fault of their own, look at returning to homelessness that we can prevent,” she said. “It’s not because we don’t have agencies. It’s not because we don’t have the ability to do the work.”

If those grants aren’t transferred, she said more than $2.7 million — including more than $1.6 million in federal funding to Brown County — could be permanently lost from the 10 counties Newcap serves.

“It will be harder for those communities to ever get new money in this way again,” Poser said. “It’s just harder to get a grant once you’ve lost one by HUD.”

She said Wisconsin Balance of State Continuum of Care plans to move forward with filing paperwork with the federal government necessary to transfer the grants, but she isn’t sure if the effort will be successful.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development did not respond to questions about the potential loss of federal funding to northeast Wisconsin.

Laurie Styron is executive director of CharityWatch, a Chicago-based independent charity watchdog. She said Newcap serves a large geographic area, so its closure is likely to put more strain on other area nonprofits and agencies that provide similar services.

“Help that someone in need may have received from Newcap could become fragmented and require people who are already struggling to seek out services from different agencies, rather than just one,” she said. “The remaining providers in the area could see longer wait lists and reduced quality of care.”

Newcap is also closing three year-round homeless shelters, two in Green Bay and one in Shawano, by March 31, Barlament said via email.

Tara Prahl is chair of the Brown County Homeless and Housing Coalition and director of social services for the nonprofit Ecumenical Partnership for Housing. She said Newcap’s closure, including the loss of two homeless shelters in Green Bay, could have “a significant impact to our community,” especially if the government funding Newcap was receiving doesn’t remain in the area.

“All of our homeless service providers are at capacity,” she said. “This is only going to hit a little bit harder for those that are already feeling this.”

Prahl also said Newcap’s closure makes it more important for the Brown County community to take steps to address homelessness and its housing shortage.

In Shawano, Newcap provided one of only two homeless shelters in the community. Shawano Area Matthew 25, or Sam25, provided the other.

Kendra Brusewitz, executive director of Sam25, said her shelter is only open from mid-October to mid-May as an overnight emergency shelter. She also said Sam25 has often partnered with Newcap.

“They help service the homeless families in our community year-round, so if we were full we could connect with them and get (people) services over there, or vice versa,” Brusewitz said. “Not having that partnership is a concern.”

CEO placed on leave no longer employed by Newcap

Newcap’s announced closure also comes after the organization placed its former CEO Cheryl Detrick on administrative leave in February. 

A Newcap official confirmed via email that Detrick is no longer employed by the organization. Of the 15 CAP agencies in Wisconsin with executive salaries listed in tax filings, Detrick had the highest compensation at $239,641 in 2024.

Detrick was placed on leave amid reports from WLUK-TV alleging the organization misused taxpayer dollars.

Two Democratic Green Bay-area state lawmakers issued statements last month calling for an investigation into the organization’s use of taxpayer funds.

In Barlament’s statement, she said Newcap is aware of “questions regarding accountability for what has occurred” at the nonprofit. She said the organization is “committed to doing everything we can to address the situation and move forward responsibly.”

U.S. Reps. Tony Wied, R-De Pere, and Bryan Steil, R-Janesville, sent a letter on March 12 to the secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development calling for a federal investigation into Newcap.

“Money that should have gone towards helping Wisconsinites find safe and stable housing may have instead padded executive salaries and funded staff outings,” the federal lawmakers wrote. 

Poser said she’s contacted Wied and Steil’s offices for help getting HUD funding transferred from Newcap to different nonprofits but has not received a response. 

She said she’s reached out to the rest of Wisconsin’s congressional delegation for assistance in persuading HUD to allow for the transfers.

“We absolutely need a nonpartisan show of support around this issue,” she said. “Folks in need are in need regardless of what political party they belong to.”

This story was originally published by WPR.

Nonprofit closure could cost northeast Wisconsin $2.7M, put 134 households at risk is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

Changes from the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” are forcing states to expand work requirements for those who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, benefits. 

The law did not rewrite the core work requirements for SNAP, formerly known as food stamps. Instead, it changed who must meet them. In Wisconsin, the changes could put around 36,000 people at risk of losing their food assistance benefits. 

Policy consultant David Rubel said federal law allows a third option that could make assistance more accessible for those who are at risk of losing benefits.

Work requirements

The age range for adults required to meet work requirements will increase from 18-54 to 18-64. Parents of children age 14 and older will now also need to meet work requirements.

Federal law allows three primary ways for some adults without dependents to continue receiving FoodShare. 

The primary way is employment. People must work at least 20 hours a week or 80 hours a month to keep benefits. 

Another way is training or workforce programs. People can participate in state-approved job training programs for 20 hours a week and keep benefits. 

The third option, Rubel said, can require significantly fewer hours. 

Workfare allows people to work or volunteer in a state-approved program for a number of hours based on the value of that person’s SNAP benefits. 

According to federal law, the number of hours required is calculated by dividing a person’s monthly SNAP benefits by the state minimum wage. So, if someone in Wisconsin, where the minimum wage is $7.25, receives $180 in food stamps, they’d have to work or volunteer only about 25 hours monthly to continue receiving benefits. 

Rubel said SNAP recipients may not realize that option exists.

“If someone thinks they must volunteer 80 hours a month, they may assume they can’t comply,” he said. “But six hours a week is very different.”

Why you should know

While not directly promoted on the Wisconsin Department of Health Services website, Elizabeth Goodsitt, a DHS spokesperson, said workfare is available in Wisconsin under the FoodShare Employment and Training (FSET) program.

According to Goodsitt, once a FoodShare member chooses to participate in FSET, a case manager will discuss the situation and background to see if workfare is a good approach for that person. 

“Sites that accept FSET participants for workfare are set up by the FSET vendor and structured to offer members the chance to build their work experience, record and references,” she wrote in an email. “If a member does workfare, their case manager works with them to calculate the number of hours that will meet their work requirement, specifically, based on the amount of FoodShare they receive each month.” 

Wisconsin is one of four states, including Texas, Vermont and South Dakota, that signed a pledge committing to work opportunities for people at risk of losing SNAP benefits. 

Because enforcement has just resumed in many places, states are beginning to notify recipients through recertification letters. Recertification letters are routine notices SNAP participants receive every six months to confirm their eligibility.

But in many states, the public messaging around SNAP work requirements focuses primarily on the 80-hour employment threshold. 

“If people only hear about the 80 hours, they may assume they have no choice,” Rubel said. “People should have all the information so they can make an informed decision.”

SNAP work requirements have changed. Here is a look at options to keep benefits, including volunteering is a post from Wisconsin Watch, a non-profit investigative news site covering Wisconsin since 2009. Please consider making a contribution to support our journalism.

How do you think about the future when you have no clear path to citizenship in the country you call home? Hear from a young undocumented woman who has lived in the U.S. since she was a child.

The post Life without a clear path to citizenship: An undocumented student’s story appeared first on WPR.

Washington County is dropping a proposal that would have renamed a local highway in honor of the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The post Washington County drops plans for Charlie J. Kirk Way appeared first on WPR.

Is it illegal to wager on a Wisconsin election you also vote in? The chair of the state's elections commission says you bet it is.

The post ‘You cannot bet on an election in Wisconsin!’ warns WEC chair appeared first on WPR.

The kangaroo was in his outdoor enclosure Wednesday morning when he was spooked by an unfamiliar dog and escaped.

The post Search for missing kangaroo in central Wisconsin captures online attention appeared first on WPR.

The protests this weekend will be the third major action from the national “No Kings” protest movement against the Trump administration.

The post Around 100 ‘No Kings’ protests planned across Wisconsin Saturday  appeared first on WPR.

As state lawmakers across the U.S. engage in a kind of redistricting arms race, Wisconsin Democratic Gov. Tony Evers says he wants a disarmament in his swing state.

The post As other states rush to gerrymander, Evers wants to ban it in Wisconsin appeared first on WPR.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Growth Energy, the nation’s largest biofuel trade association, applauded President Donald Trump, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Brooke Rollins for helping to deliver the largest renewable volume obligations (RVOs) in the nation’s history. Growth Energy also welcomed news that EPA would account for a number of small refinery exemptions (SREs) by reallocating 70% of those volumes.

“With this rulemaking, EPA and the administration are reinforcing their unwavering support for American-made biofuels and sending a strong signal about the continued role biofuels like ethanol will play in delivering American energy dominance and greater prosperity to the heartland,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “We commend President Trump, EPA Administrator Zeldin, and USDA Secretary Rollins for working together to finalize this historic, growth-oriented proposal, which opens the market for more than 15 billion gallons of conventional biofuel in 2026 and 2027.

“USDA also deserves our industry’s thanks for its advocacy on behalf of American farmers—the agency worked tirelessly to ensure that the final RVOs reflected the President’s agenda for unleashing American energy and restoring prosperity to rural America. With so many farm families struggling to make ends meet, we must take every opportunity to build reliable, domestic markets for American agriculture.

“Furthermore, we applaud EPA for making the decision to reallocate 70% of all gallons lost to 2023-2025 SREs. This provides clarity and predictability across the liquid fuel supply chain, while guaranteeing that the new markets promised to American farmers and biofuel producers as part of the RVOs are not destroyed by costly exemptions.

“We are grateful to President Trump and his administration for its steadfast support for homegrown biofuels, and for setting a new high watermark for American ethanol. We look forward to continuing our work with EPA and Congressional champions as we continue to find ways to strengthen domestic energy security and open new market opportunities for U.S. farmers and rural communities.”

BACKGROUND

Under the RFS, EPA sets the number of gallons of renewable fuels (such as biofuels) that must be blended into the nation’s total fuel supply each year. Those renewable volume obligations (RVOs) apply to fuel producers (petroleum refiners) and importers, otherwise known as “obligated parties.”  Each obligated party is required to blend a certain percentage of renewable fuels into the transportation fuel they produce or import to meet the nationwide RVO. The law also allows EPA to grant exemptions from RFS blending requirements to certain refiners (SREs) in rare circumstances when a refiner demonstrates “disproportionate economic hardship” in its efforts to comply with the RFS.

On June 13, 2025, EPA proposed RVOs for 2026-2027, proposing that refiners must blend at least 15 billion gallons of conventional biofuels (i.e., ethanol) into the nation’s fuel blend for each plan year. The RVO proposal—also called the Set 2—also included requirements to blend more than one billion gallons of cellulosic biofuel, more than seven billion gallons of biomass-based diesel, and more than nine billion gallons of advanced biofuel for each plan year. Altogether, EPA’s proposal would require the blending of more than 24 billion gallons of renewable fuel each year, making it the largest RVO proposal in the program’s history.

On August 22, 2025, EPA released its decisions on 175 pending SRE petitions, covering compliance years 2016-2024. In all, EPA granted a total of 140 petitions: 63 full exemptions and 77 partial (50%) exemptions.

At the time, EPA also announced that it would release a supplemental proposal to its proposed Set 2 RVO to reallocate exempt SRE gallons from 2023-2025 compliance years to the 2026 and 2027 compliance years covered by Set 2. Although it had not yet issued decisions on 2025 SRE petitions, EPA estimated upwards of 2.1 billion 2023-2025 RINs were potentially subject to reallocation. Under this approach, refiners would be required to make up for lost gallons from those years, ensuring that SREs don’t compromise renewable fuel demand.

EPA released the supplemental proposal on SRE reallocation on September 16, 2025. It indicated that the agency is considering accounting for “volumes representing complete (100 percent) reallocation and 50 percent reallocation for SREs granted in full or in part for 2023 and 2024, as well as those projected to be granted for 2025, as part of the ongoing RFS rulemaking.” Growth Energy provided substantive comment in response to EPA’s proposal.

In November 2025, EPA also issued decisions on 16 SRE petitions for the 2021 through 2024 RVO compliance years. EPA granted 2 full exemptions and 14 partial (50%) exemptions and denied 2 petitions. The November 2025 exemptions totaled 740 million RINs, 510 million of which were for the 2023 and 2024 RVO compliance years.

The post Growth Energy Celebrates Historic RVOs and SRE Reallocation appeared first on Growth Energy.

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Growth Energy, the nation’s largest biofuel trade association, will welcome a contingent of farmers and biofuel producers to Washington, D.C. this week to attend the White House’s National Ag Week celebration on March 27.  

“Agriculture is the bedrock of our economy, and Growth Energy is proud to celebrate the farmers who keep America growing,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “Ag Week is also an important opportunity to remind lawmakers that America’s farmers are ready to fuel more savings at the pump with low-cost, American-made biofuels. To put our crop surplus to work, Congress must act swiftly to deliver on President Trump’s call for year-round access to E15.” 

“The President understands that farmers want reliable markets—not handouts,” said Mark Schmidt, chairman of the board at Glacial Lakes Energy. “With year-round E15, we can tap into surging demand for lower-cost fuel, create rural jobs, and boost America’s energy security.” 

“Iowa leads the nation in biofuel production,” said Mark Wigans, CORN LP president and a fourth-generation Iowa farmer. “But for too long, outdated regulations on E15 have created needless uncertainty—affecting planting decisions, local investment and ultimately the value of every bushel we grow. It’s time for Congress deliver action for American farmers and motorists.”  

After reaching an impasse in January, House leaders agreed to establish an E15 Rural Domestic Energy Council, tasked with striking a deal no later than February 15 and sending legislation to the House floor no later than February 25, 2026. While lawmakers report progress, no legislation has been introduced. According to Growth Energy, the entire supply chain—including farmers, biofuel producers, retailers, and the vast majority of refiners—has united behind a fix, but the legislation is being held hostage by a tiny handful of mid-sized refiners who are demanding unrelated handouts from the EPA.

The post Growth Energy Hosts Farmers in DC for National Ag Week appeared first on Growth Energy.

CONCORD, N.C. — Stress may be higher than ever for school transportation professionals, but it does not have to dictate performance or personal well-being. That was the central theme during an STN EXPO East conference opening general session, with a keynote that urged attendees to “care less without being careless” in both their professional and personal lives.

Bret E. Brooks, the chief operating officer and senior consultant with Gray Ram Tactical LLC, has worked in pupil transportation security training since 2007, drawing upon a 23-year career in law enforcement as well as 26 years and counting in the U.S. Army National Guard. His forthcoming book, “How to Care Less About Being Careless,” explores the new pressures many people deal with in addition to already demanding jobs.

Technology, 24/7 connectivity, staffing shortages, safety expectations and family responsibilities all collide, he said Friday at the Embassy Suites Charlotte-Concord.

“We are experiencing more stress today than at any point in the past,” he added. “But it is possible to care the right amount.”

Brooks distinguished sharply between being careless and caring less. The latter, he explained, means not giving sufficient attention to critical tasks such as planning for traffic or driving safely, which can result in missed flights, preventable crashes or lax safety practices. Caring less, by contrast, is a deliberate effort to let go of excessive anxiety and over-attachment to minor outcomes so that leaders can think clearly, remain open-minded and solve problems creatively.

He termed this phenomenon the “law of reverse effect,” in which trying too hard produces negative results. He pointed to student-athletes, like his own daughter, who false-started in her first race the day before because she was too obsessively focused on not false-starting. Similarly, motorists who constantly change lanes in heavy traffic find they only continue to fall behind by over-correcting.

A turning point in his own understanding of stress came during a deployment to the U.S. southern border with the National Guard. Brooks was unexpectedly placed in charge of the Joint Visitors Bureau, responsible for planning every VIP visit along 2,000 miles of border, including trips by vice presidents, generals, governors and members of Congress. He described working 20-hour days, seven days a week for six weeks, losing weight, sleeping little and watching his internal “carometer” ping into the red.

Eventually, his commander pulled him aside and told him to care less, but don’t be careless. Brooks said that simple phrase forced him to reconsider whether a mayor waiting 10 minutes for a vehicle or a general missing a helicopter tour was worth sacrificing his health and effectiveness. That mindset later shaped his training work with school districts and conference audiences nationwide.

Throughout Friday morning’s session, Brooks reminded attendees that many of their current stressors did not exist 25 years ago. Streaming subscriptions, smart devices and constant Internet access now occupy mental space that once did not exist, he noted, yet much of that stress is optional and can be reduced. To make the point concrete, he asked attendees to privately write down their top three stressors and, later, their top three life priorities. He then challenged them to compare the two lists.

When stressors and priorities do not match, he said, leaders may be pouring energy into issues that do not support their long-term goals, either at work or at home.

Brooks encouraged participants to look at their lives from a “30,000-foot view,” like the perspective from an airplane window, and to distinguish between “meat” and “gristle” on their plate, citing the famous “Old 96er” scene in the 1988 John Candy movie “The Great Outdoors,” where the late actor John Candy’s character thinks he has finished a 96-ounce steak at a restaurant only to find out he also needs to finish the gristle.

The meat on our collective plates, Brooks said, represents truly essential tasks and responsibilities. The gristle is made up of duties and expectations that can be delegated, rescheduled or removed entirely.

He shared a story about insisting his son clear his plate during a celebratory family dinner to illustrate how easy it is to lose sight of the bigger picture. The point of the outing, he acknowledged in hindsight, was not caloric intake but celebrating his son’s achievement. But focusing on the uneaten food, he left the restaurant with a sick stomach and an unhappy family.

Citing leadership and time-management thinkers Stephen R. Covey and Simon Sinek, Brooks urged transportation professionals to clarify their “why” for being in pupil transportation, to explicitly name their top priorities, and then to schedule those priorities before filling the calendar with routine tasks. He echoed Covey’s guidance that what people do reveals their real priorities more than what they say, stating, “Action expresses priorities.” A leader may claim that spending time with family or focusing on recruitment and retention is a top priority, he observed, but if those items never appear on the daily agenda, they are not true priorities in practice.

Brooks recommended that attendees adopt the “WIN” framework by asking, “What’s important now?” whenever priorities collide. He acknowledged the tension between professional obligations and family events by recounting his own decision to miss his daughter’s regular season track meet to open STN EXPO East. The conference, he said, takes place on a single day and offers a unique opportunity to share information with peers nationwide, while his daughter will have multiple meets later in the season. In other circumstances, such as a state championship or once-in-a-lifetime family event, the equation would change and tip heavily toward making his home life the priority. The WIN question, he said, helps leaders sequence their commitments without abandoning their deeply held values.

The keynote further explored Covey’s urgent-important matrix. Brooks warned against living in the “urgent and important” quadrant, where every day feels like a wrong-way driver bearing down on a school bus. Constant crisis mode, he said, will inevitably push the carometer into dangerous territory.

Instead, he urged participants to move as much of their work as possible into the “important but not urgent” quadrant. In practical terms for school transportation, that means planning back-to-school, in-service training months ahead, forecasting routing, staffing and fleet needs well before school starts, and addressing long-term safety and recruitment strategies before they become emergencies. By contrast, he described much of what appears on television or in sensational news coverage as either “not important and urgent” or “not important and not urgent,” both of which can waste time and attention.

Brooks also addressed conflict management, encouraging a “win-win” mindset with parents, staff, administrators and outside partners. Using simple examples such as a customer buying a Big Mac at McDonald’s, he demonstrated how both sides can walk away with value when solutions are constructed thoughtfully.

He cautioned against turning disagreements into “mutually assured destruction,” where both parties end up worse off, and noted that adversarial approaches in marital or workplace arguments often land in a lose-lose outcome rather than the win-lose or lose-win people imagine.

Related: Arizona Mom Trades Stressful Job for Career as School Bus Driver
Related: Healthy Reaction to Stress Requires Mindfulness, Expert Tells NASDPTS Webinar
Related: STN EXPO East to Feature Timely Discussion on Managing Stress

Regarding work-life balance, Brooks rejected the idea that people should strive for equal hours on each side of a scale. Instead, he said, the real challenge for school transportation professionals is to weigh events appropriately. A routine workday is roughly equivalent to a routine family day. A major training event or the first day of school, with new routes and new drivers, may outweigh a standard evening at home. On the other hand, a child’s state championship, a wedding, a birth or a funeral should outweigh almost any ordinary work commitment. The goal, he said, is not a perfectly level scale but to ensure it tips in the right direction at the right time and for the right reasons.

Brooks closed by underscoring Covey’s seventh habit of “sharpening the saw.” He shared a story from his family’s farm in Missouri, where he spent a full day cutting trees in an overgrown field without taking breaks. His brother, who arrived later, paused often to hydrate and sharpen his chainsaw, and ultimately felled more trees.

The incident, Brooks said, taught him that grinding nonstop without rest or renewal eventually leads to diminished returns. For transportation leaders, sharpening the saw means attending conferences like STN EXPO East, taking real vacations without working through them, scheduling regular getaways with a spouse or family, and respecting both their own downtime and that of their staff. Calling employees during vacation for non-critical issues, he added, undermines their ability to reset and return ready to perform.

“Life is not an eating contest where you have to finish everything on your plate,” Brooks told the audience. “You can push some things off. You can care less about the right things and still never be careless where it counts, especially when it comes to student safety.”

Article written with the assistance of AI.

The post ‘Care Less Without Being Careless’ Urges Security Expert to Student Transporters appeared first on School Transportation News.

A Clarksville-Montgomery County School System school bus traveling on a field trip crashed on the final day of Spring Break, resulting in at least two student fatalities.

STN received initial information about the Tennessee crash Friday, but details were limited at this report. Law enforcement officers are on scene in Carroll County, where the crash took place around noon Eastern Time.

“First and foremost, our hearts are with the families impacted by this devastating loss,” the Tennessee Highway Patrol released in a statement.

Twenty-four students and five adults were on board the school bus at the time. Individuals were transported to the hospital, some via life-flight, while others were taken by ambulance. Two students were pronounced dead at the scene.

The Tennessee Highway Patrol stated via a press conference that in a preliminary crash investigation, the school bus collided with a Tennessee Department of Transportation dump truck and a passenger vehicle.

Lap/shoulder seatbelts are believed to not have been installed on the school bus. Additional information on the nature of the crash remained unknown at this time.

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Related: Tennessee School Bus Bursts Into Flames Moments After Children Evacuated

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CONCORD, N.C. — School transportation leaders across the country are bracing for continued financial strain as flat federal funding, shifting state policies and rising operational costs converge to create what an industry expert described as a “fiscal cliff.”

During the first day of the STN EXPO East conference, Tim Ammon, owner of Ammon Consulting Group and a longtime industry insider, warned that school districts are entering a period where funding uncertainty and reductions are colliding with increasing expenses, which will impact transportation departments.

“Flatline funding associated with increasing cost is, in effect, a cut,” Ammon said, noting that federal education appropriations remaining steady year-over-year fail to keep pace with inflation and rising service demands.

While federal funding accounts for roughly 10 percent to 15 percent of school district budgets, the remainder comes from state and local sources — both of which are facing growing funding uncertainty. Meanwhile, transportation makes up around 10 percent or less of the overall district budget. Declining income tax revenues at the state level and widespread property tax reform efforts are expected to reduce or constrain funding streams that districts rely on.

COVIDE-era Funding Runs Out

At the same time, pandemic-era relief like federal Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds are expiring, removing a critical financial cushion many districts used for staffing and operations. Ammon emphasized that the combined effect is forcing school systems to reconsider how they deliver services.

“What we will be thinking about … is how do we have to manage services to reflect a set of cost increases that are outstripping the available funding that we’re getting?” he asked.

Transportation departments often operating on tight margins are particularly vulnerable. Rising fuel costs are also adding new volatility, with some districts already reporting budget concerns tied to the War on Iran’s impact on oil prices.

Compounding the issue are demographic trends. Declining student enrollment in many regions is reducing funding tied to the number of students while not necessarily lowering transportation costs. In fact, data Ammon presented showed that in districts with declining enrollment, 83 percent still experienced rising transportation expenses.

“Your job doesn’t get easier because there are fewer kids. It gets harder,” Ammon said, pointing to longer routes, dispersed populations and unchanged service requirements.

Policy changes are also reshaping the funding landscape. The expansion of school choice programs and private school vouchers means funding increasingly follows students out of traditional public school systems. This reduces district revenue while leaving many transportation obligations intact.

Additionally, mandated services such as special education transportation and McKinney-Vento services for homeless students continue to grow, further straining limited budgets.

Ammon described the current environment as a convergence of multiple pressures: Funding reductions, policy shifts and operational changes. Together, these factors are making long-term planning more difficult and increasing the likelihood of significant service adjustments.

Districts may soon face tough decisions, including reducing routes, consolidating stops, adjusting bell times or even eliminating buses. In more severe cases, school closures and major system redesigns could follow.

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Related: Industry Veteran to Address Student Transportation Funding Uncertainty at STN EXPO East

“I hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but it’s coming,” Ammon said. “Somebody [will be] coming down the hall and saying … ‘I need you to cut 10 buses next year because we’re going to get less funding.’”

Explore Alternative Funding

To prepare, transportation leaders are encouraged to better understand their funding sources, track enrollment trends and collaborate more closely with district planners. He also suggested exploring alternative service models and reevaluating traditional routing strategies to improve efficiency.

Ultimately, the message is clear: School transportation is entering a period of structural change. Those who proactively adapt to evolving financial realities may be better positioned to maintain service levels, while others risk being forced into reactive, and potentially disruptive, decisions.

As Ammon noted, the challenges are not isolated to specific regions or district sizes but represent a broader, systemic issue facing public education nationwide.

Article written with the assistance of AI.

The post Funding Uncertainty, Rising Costs Intensify Pressure on School Transportation Operations appeared first on School Transportation News.

Friday at STN EXPO East began with the National School Bus Inspection Training Program, an intensive, full‑day course designed to train technicians on how to conduct regular vehicle inspections, above and beyond state or federal Department of Transportation guidance.

Security expert Bret Brooks presented two sessions, one on realignment and refocusing of priorities for managing stress and work-life balance, and the other on recognizing early signs of violent behavior. Other session topics Friday included navigating funding cuts and budget issues, and multi-modal transportation.

Transportation directors gathered in the late afternoon for a leadership discussion to kick off the two-day Transportation Director Summit (TD Summit). Led by Tony Corpin, STN president and publisher, the transportation director participants gathered with vendor partners to discuss current challenges and share solutions.

The TD Summit continues Saturday. The event requires prior selection based on completion of a survey and a review of job qualifications and experience.

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Photos by Vince Rios Creative and STN staff. 

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A Georgia school bus driver is being hailed as a hero after stopping her route to alert and safely evacuate a family from a house fire, reported FOX 5 Atlanta.

Marlene Davis, a Morgan County school bus driver, was on her morning route March 20 when she noticed smoke and flames coming from a home, according to the news report.

“I saw the big flame coming from inside the house,” Davis told local news reporters. “I just had to stop the bus and go to the door.”

Davis, who had one student on the school bus at the time, pulled over and rang the doorbell until someone answered, the report said.

A man inside, who had been asleep, answered the door and was unaware that the home was surrounded by flames. Davis helped him and others inside to evacuate safely. Everyone inside the house did not suffer any injuries, and the fire was later contained.

Davis said she later realized how serious the situation was after receiving a message from her supervisor indicating the residents had been asleep.

“It was the only thing that I could have done, and it was the right thing to do,” she said. “And I couldn’t just leave them.”

Later that day, the homeowner where the evacuated family lived flagged Davis down by flashing his vehicle headlights to give her a card and express his gratitude for her actions. Family members and loved ones also expressed gratitude for the driver’s quick thinking, which may have prevented serious injury or worse.

Officials have not released additional details about the cause of the fire. The investigation is ongoing.

Article written with the assistance of AI.

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The post Evacuated Family Grateful Georgia School Bus Driver Sees House Fire appeared first on School Transportation News.