School bus seat belts.

WORKING DRAFT
2009
STATE OF
WYOMING
09LSO-0360.E1

SENATE FILE
NO.
SF0052

School bus seat belts.

Sponsored by:
Senator(s)
Jennings
and Representative(s) Wallis

A BILL

for

AN ACT relating to
school buses
; requiring seat belts in school buses as specified;
limiting liability;

imposing duties upon the department of education;
and providing for effective date
s
.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of
Wyoming
:

Section 1.

W.S.
21
‑
3
‑
131(b)(iv) and by creating a new subsection (c)

and
31-5-1402 by creating a new subsection (b) and by renumbering (b)
through
(f) as (c) through (g)
are amended to read:

21
‑
3
‑
131.

School bus standards; operators; vehicle operation
; liability limited
.

(b)

Each district shall establish and maintain minimum standards for the operation of school buses, including:

(iv)

Passengers
in type A school
buses
equipped with factory installed lap belts

shall wear a properly secured lap

or seat
belt at all times the
vehicle

school bus
is in motion
;

as follows:

(A)

In type A school buses equipped with factory installed lap belts and ordered by a district prior to July 1, 2009
, as evidenced by the date specified on the district's purchase order or dealer's factory order;

(B)

I
n all school buses
ordered by a district on or
after July 1, 2009,

as
evidenced
by the date specified on the district's purchase order or dealer
's
factory order,
and
equipped with a factory installed seat belt assembly complying with federal motor vehicle
safety
standards adopted by the United States department of transportation (49 C
.
F
.R.
Part 571, FMVSS no. 222)
.

(c)

Evidence of a person's failure to wear a
lap or
s
eat
belt as required by
paragraph (b)(iv) of this section, or the failure of a school bus
operator
to require a passenger to wear a
lap or
seat belt
as required under W.S. 31
‑
5
‑
1402(a)
,
shall not be admissible in any civil action.

Evidence of a passenger's failure to wear a lap or seat belt as required by paragraph (b)(iv) of this section, or the failure of a school bus operator to require a passenger to wear a lap or seat belt as required under W.S. 31
‑
5
‑
1402(a), shall not be admissible for the purposes of W.S. 31
‑
5
‑
1402(a).

31
‑
5
‑
1402.

Safety belts required to be used; exceptions; reduction in fine.

(b)

Each passenger of a school bus
ordered by a school district
on or after July 1, 2009
,
as evidenced by the date specified on the district's purchase order or dealer's factory order,
and operated in this state shall wear, and each school bus operator shall require that each passenger shall wear, a seat belt assembly as required under W.S. 21
‑
3
‑
131(b)(iv). Each school bus operator shall wear a lap belt as required under W.S. 21
‑
3
‑
131(b)(iii).

(b)
(c)

Subsection (a) of this section does not apply to:

(i)

Any person who has a written statement from a physician that it is not advisable for the person to wear a safety belt for physical or medical reasons;

(ii)

Any passenger vehicle which is not required to be equipped with safety belts under federal law;

(iii)

A carrier of the
United States
postal service performing duties as a postal carrier;

(iv)

Any person properly secured in a child safety restraint system in accordance with W.S. 31
‑
5
‑
1301 through 31
‑
5
‑
1305; or

(v)

Any person occupying a seat in a vehicle in which all operable safety restraints are being used by the driver or passengers and any person occupying a seat in a vehicle originally manufactured without a safety belt.

(c)
(d)

No violation of this section shall:

(i)

Be counted as a moving violation for the purpose of suspending a driver's license under W.S. 31
‑
7
‑
129;

(ii)

Be grounds for increasing insurance premiums or made a part of the abstracts kept by the department pursuant to W.S. 31
‑
5
‑
1214.

(d)
(e)

No motor vehicle shall be halted solely for a violation of this section.

(e)
(f)

All citations for violations of the motor vehicle laws of this state and for violations of traffic ordinances or traffic regulations of a local authority shall contain a notation by the issuing officer indicating whether the driver and passengers complied with this section. Compliance with this section shall entitle a licensee to a ten dollar ($10.00) reduction in the fine otherwise imposed by any court having jurisdiction over the alleged offense. The driver who violates this section may be issued a citation and may be subject to a fine of not more than twenty-five dollars ($25.00). Any passenger who violates this section may be issued a citation and may be subject to a fine of not more than ten dollars ($10.00).

(f)
(g)

Evidence of a person's failure to wear a safety belt as required by this act shall not be admissible in any civil action.

Section 2.

The department of education shall notify each school district of school bus seat belt
assembly
requirements imposed under this act, and shall accordingly modify school bus equipment standards promulgated under W.S. 21
‑
13
‑
320 within sufficient time for application to school bus purchases and leases on or after July 1, 2009.

Section 3.

(a)

Except
as provided in subsection (b) of this section,
t
his act is effective July 1, 200
9
.

(b)

Notwithstanding subsection (a) of this section, s
ection 2 of this act is effective immediately upon co
m
pletion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constit
u
tion.

(END)

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SF0052