By Sarah Green
KHI News Service
TOPEKA, March 26
A bill that would require children and young adults to wear seat belts is in limbo in the Kansas House.
House Majority Leader Ray Merrick, R-Stilwell, said Monday he wasn”t sure if Senate Bill 211 would be debated on the House floor on Tuesday or Wednesday, which is the deadline for debate on most legislation.
“I don”t know yet,” he said.
Advocates for the bill said they would be disheartened if the bill wasn”t debated in the House this year.
“Clearly, there was genuine support for this legislation during the session,” said Shannon Cotsoradis, executive vice president of Kansas Action for Children. “From our perspective, we”re very disappointed that House leadership is keeping this potentially life-saving legislation from a vote on the floor. This issue deserves, at a minimum, full debate on the floor and a vote.”
A variety of groups and agencies have testified in favor of
seat belt
legislation, including Safe Kids Kansas, the Kansas Highway Patrol, and the state departments of transportation and health. But that might not be enough to persuade Merrick to schedule the bill for debate.
“All those groups don”t motivate me much,” Merrick said when told advocates were pushing for the bill to be debated. “I”ve got all kinds of groups trying to push me this way and that.”
As many as 85 percent of children who die in motor vehicle crashes aren”t buckled up, Cotsoradis said.
“This is a simple solution to avoid the loss of young Kansas lives,” she said.
Senate Bill 211 would extend the state”s primary seat belt law to anyone under age 17. Currently, drivers can be stopped and ticketed if officers see children ages 14 or under without seat belts. The offense is a so-called “primary” violation, which means a motorist can be stopped and ticketed for it.
SB 211 also raises the fine for seat belt offenses to $60, including court costs. The fine is now $10 and the offense is a “secondary” violation, meaning drivers may only be charged with the offense if they are stopped for another reason. The bill includes a distribution plan for collected fines to improve traffic records systems and emergency medical services.
The House Transportation Committee this session passed both the Senate bill and an amended House bill
HB 2136
aimed at expanding the age of the current primary seat belt law to 17. Senate Bill 211 passed the Senate Transportation Committee with a favorable recommendation; it was amended on the Senate floor to cap the fine at $60 including court costs. The House Transportation Committee amended the bill again to include a flat $60 penalty, which could carry additional court costs.
Seat belt laws are a priority for The Driving Force, a citizen committee tasked with finding ways to reduce injuries and fatalities on Kansas roads. The group asked for legislation in January that would have made seat belt use mandatory for everyone.
SB 211 is the only seat belt bill that remains active this session.
The Driving Force plans to remain committed to enacting a primary seat belt law for everyone, regardless of action this year, said Maggie Thompson, public involvement liaison for the Kansas Department of Transportation, one of the sponsoring agencies of The Driving Force.
-Sarah Green is a staff writer for KHI News Service, which specializes in coverage of health issues facing Kansans. She can be reached at
sgreen@khi.org
or at 785-233-5443, ext. 118.