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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2170
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE SASSMANN.
5849H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o repeal section 307.179, RSMo, and to enact in lieu thereof one new section relating to
child passenger restraint systems, with penalty provisions.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Section 307.179, RSMo, is repealed and one new section enacted in lieu
2 thereof, to be known as section 307.179, to read as follows:
307.179. 1. As used in this section, the following terms shall mean:
2 (1) "Child booster seat", a seating system which meets the Federal Motor V ehicle
3 Safety Standards set forth in 49 C.F .R. 571.213, as amended, that is designed to elevate a
4 child to properly sit in a federally approved safety belt system;
5 (2) "Child passenger restraint system", a seating system which meets the Federal
6 Motor V ehicle Safety Standards set forth in 49 C.F .R. 571.213, as amended, and which is
7 either permanently af fixed to a motor vehicle or is affixed to such vehicle by a safety belt or a
8 universal attachment system;
9 (3) "Driver", a person who is in actual physical control of a motor vehicle.
10 2. Every driver transporting a child under the age of sixteen years shall be
11 responsible, when transporting such child in a motor vehicle operated by that driver on the
12 streets or highways of this state, for providing for the protection of such child as follows:
13 (1) Children under thr ee years of age shall be secured in a rear -facing child
14 passenger res traint system; except that such child may be secured in a forward-facing
15 child passenger r estraint system when the child r eaches the highest r ear -facing weight
16 or height allowed by the manufactur er of the particular rear -facing system;
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
17 (2) Except as pro vided under subdivision (1) of this subsection, children [ less
18 than ] under four years of age, regardless of weight, shall be secured in a child passenger
19 restraint system appropriate for that child;
20 [ (2) ] (3) Except as pr ovided under subdivision (1) of this subsection, children
21 weighing less than forty pounds[ , regardless of age, ] and under eight years of age shall be
22 secured in a child passenger restraint system appropriate for that child;
23 [ (3) ] (4) Children at least four years of age but [ less than ] under eight years of age,
24 who also weigh [ at least ] forty pounds [ but less than eighty pounds, and who are also less than
25 four feet, nine inches tall, ] or mor e, shall be secured in a child passenger restraint system or
26 booster seat appropriate for that child;
27 [ (4) ] (5) Children at least eighty pounds [ or children ] and more than four feet, nine
28 inches in height , or at least eight years of age, shall be secured by a vehicle safety belt [ or
29 booster seat appropriate for that child ] in accordance with section 307.178 ;
30 [ (5) ] (6) A child who otherwise would be required to be secured in a booster seat may
31 be transported in the back seat of a motor vehicle while wearing only a lap belt if the back
32 seat of the motor vehicle is not equipped with a combination lap and shoulder belt for booster
33 seat installation[ ;
34 (6) When transporting children in the immediate family when there are more children
35 than there are seating positions in the enclosed area of a motor vehicle, the children who are
36 not able to be restrained by a child safety restraint device appropriate for the child shall sit in
37 the area behind the front seat of the motor vehicle unless the motor vehicle is designed only
38 for a front seat area. The driver transporting children referred to in this subsection is not in
39 violation of this section.
40
41 This subsection shall only apply to the use of a child passenger restraint system or vehicle
42 safety belt for children less than sixteen years of age being transported in a motor vehicle ].
43 3. Any driver who violates subdivision (1), (2), [ or ] (3) , or (4) of subsection 2 of this
44 section is guilty of an infraction and, upon conviction, may be punished by a fine of not more
45 than fifty dollars and court costs. Any driver who violates subdivision [ (4) ] (5) of subsection
46 2 of this section shall be subject to the penalty in subsection 6 of section 307.178. If a driver
47 receives a citation for violating subdivision (1), (2), [ or ] (3) , or (4) of subsection 2 of this
48 section, the char ges shall be dismissed or withdrawn if the driver prior to or at his or her
49 hearing provides evidence of acquisition of a child passenger restraint system or child booster
50 seat which is satisfactory to the court or the party responsible for prosecuting the driver's
51 citation.
52 4. The provisions of this section shall not apply to any public carrier for hire. The
53 provisions of this section shall not apply to students four years of age or older who are
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54 passengers on a school bus designed for carrying eleven passengers or more and which is
55 manufactured or equipped pursuant to Missouri Minimum Standards for School Buses as
56 school buses are defined in section 301.010.
57 5. The highways and transportation commission shall initiate and develop a program
58 of public information to develop understanding of, and ensure compliance with, the
59 provisions of this section.
✔
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