The California Highway Patrol is reviewing complaints that Hemet Unified School District has allowed school bus drivers to work beyond state limits on duty hours, raising concerns that fatigue could put students and drivers at risk.
Whistleblowers in the district’s transportation department submitted complaints to the CHP’s Motor Carrier Safety Unit on March 28 and April 18. The complaints allege the district has repeatedly violated California rules governing how long school bus drivers may work, resulting in fatigued drivers transporting children.
The April 18 complaint described the allegations as evidence of a broader operational problem rather than isolated mistakes. Both complaints cite information the reporting employees said came from the district’s digital timekeeping system.
The March 28 complaint alleged hundreds of violations involving more than 40 drivers between July 2025 and March 2026. According to the complaint, employees identified 247 primary violations, including 227 instances in which drivers worked between 80 and 85 hours during an eight-day period, exceeding the state’s 80-hour cap. The complaint also alleged 19 cases in which drivers worked more than 90 hours over eight days and 20 instances in which drivers were on duty longer than 16 hours in a single day.
The April 18 complaint alleged that, from January through April, at least 16 drivers exceeded the 16-hour daily limit. It also documented more than 100 instances from Jan. 5 to April 17 in which drivers worked more than 80 hours during a rolling eight-day period, including nine employees who allegedly exceeded 90 hours.
The April complaint warned that driver fatigue is a major factor in commercial vehicle crashes and said California’s pupil transportation rules are intended to prevent serious injuries and deaths. The complaint said that if the district’s own records are accurate, Hemet Unified could be operating in a way that is unlawful and unsafe.
The complaint said its purpose was not to determine guilt, but to bring the concerns to light, encourage accountability and help prevent a serious incident tied to fatigue or dispatching practices.
CHP Sgt. Omar Morales, with the agency’s Border Division, said Thursday that the investigation began in mid-April and is being conducted jointly by motor carrier safety units from the Border and Inland divisions. Morales said he could not discuss details of the inquiry but expected it to be completed within a couple of months.
One reporting employee, who requested anonymity, said more than a half-dozen workers decided to contact the CHP and the media after their concerns allegedly were not addressed by the district’s transportation manager and a district administrator.
The employee said the rules are considered critical in commercial driving and cited California Vehicle Code Section 21702 and Title 13 of the California Code of Regulations Section 1212.
Together, those rules limit school bus drivers to 10 hours of driving in a day, prohibit them from staying on duty more than 16 hours after reporting to work and bar them from driving after reaching 80 on-duty hours in any consecutive eight-day period.
District spokesperson Brenda Aguirre-Hassan said the claim that employees reported the concerns internally to a transportation manager and district administrator has not been substantiated.
“The District has not received any formal reports or complaints directly related to these allegations,” Aguirre-Hassan said in an email.
She said Hemet Unified is reviewing personnel matters connected to the CHP investigation.
Aguirre-Hassan said the district has strong safety procedures that comply with laws and regulations for student transportation. She said staff members receive ongoing training focused on regulatory compliance and safe operations.
To confirm driver hours, Aguirre-Hassan said the district uses both digital timekeeping and manual logs, as required by law. She said those records are reviewed internally by the transportation department and are available to the CHP during scheduled and unscheduled terminal inspections.
The district is also looking at upgrades to its auditing software that would provide real-time warnings when drivers approach hours-of-service limits, Aguirre-Hassan said.
She said that before the CHP investigation, Hemet Unified had consistently received “satisfactory” ratings — the highest possible rating — during CHP inspections.
Aguirre-Hassan said student safety remains the district’s top priority and that Hemet Unified is committed to transparency, accountability and continued improvement in its transportation operations.
Hemet Unified became a regional transportation provider in 2014 under former Transportation Manager Michael Fogerty. With one of Southern California’s largest school bus fleets, the district began providing transportation services to about 20 nearby school districts and agencies, producing millions of dollars in outside revenue.
District leaders have said those interagency contracts help cover operating costs, pay for fleet improvements and make the transportation department financially self-sustaining.
Hemet Unified did not provide a complete list of districts and agencies it serves. The April 18 complaint, however, states that the district provides transportation for the Perris Union High School District, Perris Elementary, Nuview Union Elementary, Romoland, San Jacinto Unified and Val Verde Unified school districts, among others.
The complaint alleges that the workload generates millions of dollars and that some employees believe the district is prioritizing contract volume and revenue over safety by violating hours-of-service rules.
Aguirre-Hassan said Hemet Unified currently employs 239 professional school drivers.
The April 18 complaint also alleges that the transportation department has seen significant leadership turnover in recent years, including the resignations of two executive directors over three years, as well as three transportation managers and one coordinator.
The complaint states that some newly hired managers allegedly lack a basic understanding of pupil transportation law and have given operational direction that employees believe violates the law.
The employee who spoke anonymously said that since Fogerty retired about five years ago, the district’s transportation operation has experienced management problems and communication breakdowns.
The employee said workers are frustrated because they believe district leaders do not understand the legal requirements involved in managing the department.
The April 18 complaint specifically criticizes the district’s appointment of Jeff Keeney, former principal of Valle Vista Elementary School, as executive director of transportation, alleging the district emphasized the need for a “cheerleader” while overlooking the regulatory and operational expertise required for the position. The complaint also alleges that several managers remain new in their jobs and appear unfamiliar with applicable transportation laws and regulations.
