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S1135.....................................................by TRANSPORTATION
MOTOR VEHICLES - SAFETY RESTRAINTS - Amends existing law relating to motor
vehicle safety restraint use to delete the provision limiting application
of this law to vehicles weighing not more than eight thousand pounds; to
increase the fine for violation of safety restraint law; and to provide for
distribution of fine revenues.
02/12 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
02/13 Rpt prt - to Transp
02/23 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/26 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/01 3rd rdg - PASSED - 22-12-1
AYES -- Andreason, Bastian, Bilyeu, Broadsword, Burkett, Corder,
Davis, Gannon, Geddes, Goedde, Hammond, Heinrich, Kelly, Keough,
Langhorst, Little, Lodge, Malepeai, McGee, Stegner, Stennett, Werk
NAYS -- Bair, Cameron, Darrington, Fulcher, Hill, Jorgenson, McKague,
McKenzie, Pearce, Richardson, Schroeder, Siddoway
Absent and excused -- Coiner
Floor Sponsor - Heinrich
Title apvd - to House
03/02 House intro - 1st rdg - to Transp
]]]] LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ]]]]
Fifty-ninth Legislature First Regular Session - 2007
IN THE SENATE
SENATE BILL NO. 1135
BY TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE
1 AN ACT
2 RELATING TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY RESTRAINT USE; AMENDING SECTION 49-673, IDAHO
3 CODE, TO DELETE THE PROVISION LIMITING APPLICATION OF THIS LAW TO VEHICLES
4 WEIGHING NOT MORE THAN EIGHT THOUSAND POUNDS, TO INCREASE THE FINE FOR
5 VIOLATION OF SAFETY RESTRAINT LAW, TO PROVIDE FOR DISTRIBUTION OF FINE
6 REVENUES AND TO MAKE A TECHNICAL CORRECTION.
7 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Idaho:
8 SECTION 1. That Section 49-673, Idaho Code, be, and the same is hereby
9 amended to read as follows:
10 49-673. SAFETY RESTRAINT USE. (1) Except as provided in section 49-672,
11 Idaho Code, and subsection (2) of this section, each occupant of a motor vehi-
12 cle which has a gross vehicle weight of not more than eight thousand (8,000)
13 pounds, and which was manufactured with safety restraints in compliance with
14 federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 208, shall have a safety restraint
15 properly fastened about his body at all times when the vehicle is in motion.
16 (2) The provisions of this section shall not apply to:
17 (a) An occupant of a motor vehicle who possesses a written statement from
18 a licensed physician that he is unable for medical reasons to wear a
19 safety restraint;
20 (b) Occupants of motorcycles, implements of husbandry and emergency vehi-
21 cles;
22 (c) Occupants of seats of a motor vehicle in which all safety restraints
23 are then properly in use by other occupants of that vehicle; or
24 (d) Mail carriers.
25 (3) (a) A citation may be issued to:
26 (i) Any occupant of the motor vehicle aged eighteen (18) years or
27 older who fails to wear a safety restraint as required in this sec-
28 tion; and
29 (ii) The operator of the motor vehicle if the operator is aged eigh-
30 teen (18) years or older and any occupant under eighteen (18) years
31 of age who fails to wear a safety restraint as required in this sec-
32 tion. For purposes of this paragraph (a)(ii), it shall be deemed a
33 single violation regardless of the number of occupants not properly
34 restrained.
35 (b) A person issued a citation pursuant to this subsection shall be sub-
36 ject to a fine of ten twenty-five dollars ($1025.00), with five ten dol-
37 lars ($510.00) of such fine to be apportioned to the catastrophic health
38 care cost fund, as set forth in section 57-813, Idaho Code, and ten dol-
39 lars ($10.00) to be apportioned to the state highway account for alloca-
40 tion to the office of highway safety in the Idaho transportation depart-
41 ment to be used to conduct seat belt and child passenger safety programs.
42 A conviction under this subsection shall not result in violation point
43 counts as prescribed in section 49-326, Idaho Code, nor shall such a con-
2
1 viction be deemed to be a moving traffic violation for the purpose of
2 establishing rates of motor vehicle insurance charged by a casualty
3 insurer.
4 (4) A citation may be issued to the operator of the motor vehicle if the
5 operator is under eighteen (18) years of age and the operator or any other
6 occupant who is under eighteen (18) years of age fails to wear a safety
7 restraint as required in this section. For purposes of this subsection, it
8 shall be deemed a single violation regardless of the number of occupants not
9 properly restrained. A person issued a citation pursuant to this subsection
10 shall be subject to a fine of ten twenty-five dollars ($1025.00), five with
11 ten dollars ($510.00) of such fine to be apportioned to the catastrophic
12 health care cost fund as set forth in section 57-813, Idaho Code, and ten dol-
13 lars ($10.00) to be apportioned to the state highway account for allocation to
14 the office of highway safety in the Idaho transportation department to be used
15 to conduct seat belt and child passenger safety programs, plus court costs. A
16 conviction under this subsection shall not result in violation point counts as
17 prescribed in section 49-326, Idaho Code. In addition, a conviction under this
18 subsection shall not be deemed to be a moving traffic violation for the pur-
19 pose of establishing rates of motor vehicle insurance charged by a casualty
20 insurer.
21 (5) Enforcement of this section by law enforcement officers may be accom-
22 plished only as a secondary action when the operator of the motor vehicle has
23 been detained for a suspected violation of another law.
24 (6) The department shall initiate and conduct an educational program, to
25 the extent sufficient private donations or federal funds for this specific
26 purpose are available to the department, to encourage compliance with the pro-
27 visions of this section and to publicize the effectiveness of use of safety
28 restraints and other restraint devices in reducing risk of harm to occupants
29 of motor vehicles.
30 (7) The department shall evaluate the effectiveness of the provisions of
31 this section and shall include a report of its findings in its annual evalua-
32 tion report on the Idaho highway safety plan which it submits to the national
33 highway traffic safety administration and federal highway administration pur-
34 suant to 23 U.S.C. section 402.
35 (8) The failure to use a safety restraint shall not be considered under
36 any circumstances as evidence of contributory or comparative negligence, nor
37 shall such failure be admissible as evidence in any civil action with regard
38 to negligence.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 17015
This legislation would amend Section 49-673 by increasing the
seat belt violation fine to $25 which will increase the incentive
to comply with Idaho's seat belt law. We expect an increase in
Idaho's safety restraint usage, which will save lives, reduce
serious injuries, and reduce the cost of traffic crashes.
Idaho's $10 fine for adult violators is currently the lowest fine
in the Nation. This legislation will increase the funding for the
Catastrophic Health Care Cost Fund by $5 per conviction, and
allocate $10 to the Highway Safety Fund to fund seat belt and
child passenger safety programs. This will reduce Idaho
dependence on federal funding for its traffic safety programs and
pass some of the program costs to those that violate Idaho's
traffic laws.
As is also now the case, violation of this section may not be
deemed to e a moving violation for establishing motor vehicle
insurance rates nor may it be used as evidence of contributory or
comparative negligence in any civil action with regard to
negligence.
FISCAL IMPACT
This legislation will reduce health care costs, including
Medicaid, Medicare, and state and county catastrophic health care
cost funding by increasing the incentive to use seat belts by
those last 20 percent that don't buckle up. To the extent that
such costs are paid from the general account through a variety of
state~subsidized health care programs, there will be a reduction
in such general account costs.
We anticipate approximately the same number of seat belt
citations will be written with this law change. By increasing the
contribution to the CAT fund for each seat belt citation, the
contribution will increase from $134,590 in 2006, to $269,180
annually assuming the same number of seat belt citations continue
to be written.
By allocating $10 from each conviction to be allocated to seat
belt and child passenger safety programs, this will reduce
Idaho's dependence of federal funding to sustain its programs,
and it will put some of the cost of life-saving programs onto
those that violate the laws. We anticipate approximately the same
number of seat belt citations will be written with this law
change, and that the fund might result in $269,180 to the highway
safety fund.
This legislation will make Idaho eligible for funding from the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to sustain efforts
to increase safety restraint usage. Under SAFETEA-LU Section 405,
Idaho could receive $947,000 annually to be designated for
projects that would increase proper use of seat belts and child
safety seats. These funds will be reflected in the Idaho
Transportation Department's budget.
By increasing the seat belt fine, Idaho's seat belt use rate may
achieve 85 percent use for two consecutive years. This could
allow Idaho to qualify for Section 406 funds totaling $4.5
million which could be used for highway safety projects and
programs.
Contact
Name: Senator Lee Heinrich
Phone: 208-332-1000
Senator John Andreson
208-332-1000
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE S 1135