ADMINISTRATIVE LETTER: 29
POLICY CODE: EEAEB
TO: Superintendents of Schools
FROM: Susan A. Gendron, Commissioner
DATE: May 31, 2007
RE: URGENT/Enclosed Survey/Antitrust Merger Review
At the request of Maine Attorney General Steve Rowe, I am forwarding to you for expedited attention a survey designed to gather information about the bid market for school bus services. In cooperation with the U.S. Department of Justice and a number of other state Attorneys General, Attorney General Rowe is investigating whether the proposed merger of First Student and Laidlaw (the two largest providers of such services in the country) would violate state or federal antitrust laws.
The data the survey is designed to gather may have a critical importance in this context. Moreover, competition is an important ally in the effort to reduce costs and maintain efficiency. Accordingly, I invite and encourage your full participation in this effort – again, by completing the survey and returning it to the address listed at the top of the survey no later than June 13, 2007. The survey is available on the Department of Education’s web page
http://www.maine.gov/education/edletrs/2007/adlet/07adlet029survey.rtf
Please call Assistant Attorney General Francis Ackerman at 626-8847 or Research Assistant Kathi Peters 626-8854 with any questions.
