School bus makers, a subcommittee, and an agency

For many years, a trade association representing companies that build school buses has worked closely with the House subcommittee that oversees federal vehicle safety programs and with the federal agency that writes safety standards for school buses. The association's political action committee contributes to the reelection campaigns of subcommittee members, and the association's engineers often testify at the subcommittee's hearings. Several of the agency's senior officials previously worked for bus manufacturers.

Last year, the subcommittee approved a budget increase for the agency's vehicle-testing office. Around the same time, the agency agreed to the association's request to give manufacturers five more years to meet a new standard requiring lap-and-shoulder seat belts on all new school buses.

A parents' organization that wants the seat-belt standard to take effect sooner has had trouble raising money. Polls show that most parents of school-age children support faster action, but fewer than 1 percent of those parents have joined or donated to the organization.