As I reflect back on growing up in Southeast Michigan and attending elementary school in the 1960s, I remember one of the things that we as kids looked forward to was the annual field trip that happened in the spring. Each grade went to a particular destination each year. So as a fourth grader, we went to a then-Detroit based auto manufacturing plant, given that Michigan was then the home to the United States auto industry. Another year my grade went to the University of Michigan’s natural history museum, and so on. Field trips were fun and exciting.

One of the fun things was the bus ride. The boys tried to all sit as far back as they could in the bus to maximize the bounce that they got when the bus hit a bump. The goal was to actually leave the seat and fly up into the air for a fraction of a second. If you were a ‘fraidy-cat (like me) you would hold onto the shiny metal bar across the top of the seat in front of you. Seatbelts? Ha, they didn’t exist, nor did padding on the bar nor much in the way of basic safety equipment.

I thought of those field trips and the random bus bouncing when I read a truly tragic story in Colorado Politics. Two wonderful and full of promise young kids were killed in horrific school bus accidents. I won’t go into any details, as you can find them in the CP story if you wish.

As a result of these twin tragedies, a bill, Senate Bill 85 would address a number of safety issues around school buses. The bill is a remarkable demonstration of bipartisanship and has yet to garner a single “nay” vote as it winds through the legislative process. This is, I’m quite sure, a good thing.

The bill was passed out of its first committee, but with a caveat: the entire $5.5 million in funding had been stripped from the bill, requiring the new law to be funded only by gifts, grants and donations. Another bipartisan effort was made to restore the funding, but that effort failed too. Finally, just this last week, the bill passed the Senate Appropriations Committee with $3.5 million in funding approved. It was passed unanimously by the whole Senate, and now awaits action by the House’s Education Committee. Fingers crossed that the funding will stick.

As pointed out in the CP article, though schoolrooms have changed dramatically since the 1960s – with the additions of amazing technology, among other improvements – the buses that get lots of kids to the school remain largely unchanged since the time I was in the back, hoping for a big bounce. It is indeed far past the time that we should address a wide range of bus safety improvements.

So why is the bill having difficulties in getting funded? After all, can you think of anything more important for taxpayer’s money to address than bus safety?

Well, as it turns out, there are lots and lots of good ideas for legislation that, on their own, are clearly worthy of government support. But at the end of the day, there are far more deserving programs than there is money to fund them.

I’m reminded of a conversation I had years ago with a friend who was John Denver’s manager, about the only other guy named “Hal” that I know, so I call him, “Hal the other.” I’ve mentioned before that I was fortunate to have known John and to be a friend of his, and through him, I met Hal. We were chatting about a guy who had come up to me at an environmental event John was hosting in the early 1990s. The gent, knowing that I had access to John, asked if I would help him get John to agree to appear at the national Home Economics Association annual meeting, where the fellow’s wife was the president. Spoiler: no, I didn’t help him.

But as I told Hal about this request, he kind of sighed and told me that in any given month, John got about 300 requests from charities to do a benefit, or to come do a meet and greet, or do some other action for the charity. That meant that every month, John had to turn down wonderful charities with very worthy goals, even as he did as many as he could. There just wasn’t enough John to go around.

And there just isn’t enough money to fund all the good stuff. If you ask, how can they vote not to fund school bus safety, you might hear another voice arguing for more funding of childhood cancer research, or support for battered spouses and their kids. How do you choose? There are far too many Sophie’s choices facing our elected officials every day. Funding school buses might mean not funding security guards in schools that might stop a school shooting, or paying for a school counselor who might prove vital in preventing a teen suicide. You can’t know a priori.

My gut is that school bus safety should be a high priority and well-funded, but I readily admit that I may be ignorant of a greater need and a stronger moral imperative from another issue. When we rail against our elected officials, I’d encourage us to also remember the challenges they face and the very difficult choices they must make. Ask yourself which terrible choice you would make when deciding what monies go to what programs, and you may get a sense of the challenges facing legislators every day.

I know that today I am quite certain that bus safety funding is vital, but I also admit that tomorrow, another even more vital need could arise.

Hal Bidlack is a retired professor of political science and a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel who taught more than 17 years at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.