Back Seat Mandate in CA - Effective Jan. 1st
Moms View Message Board: General Discussion: Archive December 2004:
Back Seat Mandate in CA - Effective Jan. 1st
New year, new laws: Children under 6 must sit in car's back seat
One in a series of reports on new state laws scheduled to take effect
Jan. 1.
By Alexa H. Bluth -- Sacramento Bee Capitol Bureau
Published 2:15 am PST Monday, December 27, 2004
Auto safety experts have sought to educate parents in recent years
about the dangers of letting young children sit in the front seat of
vehicles.
But beginning Saturday, it will be illegal in California for kids to
sit in the front seat, with a few exceptions.
A new state law that goes into effect Saturday requires that all
children under age 6, or weighing less than 60 pounds, be secured in
a child restraint system in the back seat.
"People need to understand that we have always felt that that was the
safer thing," said California Highway Patrol spokesman Tom
Marshall. "They are not going to be able to pile their kids in the
front seat."
The law, an update of the state's current seat belt and child safety
seat laws, comes amid rising concerns over the past decade that the
front seat can be dangerous for children because of the perils
associated with air bags and front-impact crashes.
At least three other states have similar requirements.
"I grew up at a time when children didn't even have seat belts, and
then we became aware of how you can minimize injury and prevent death
by having children safely secured," said the law's author,
Assemblywoman Fran Pavley, D-Agoura Hills. "Children really belong in
the back seat."
In an analysis of accidents, researchers have found 35 percent fewer
fatalities among children riding in the back seat, said Chuck Hurley,
vice president of the National Safety Council.
One of the primary dangers for children in a car's front seat is
passenger-side air bags, particularly in cars manufactured in the
1990s.
"Air bags and kids don't mix," Hurley said.
He said 137 children nationwide have died from air bag-related
injuries.
But even without an air bag and with improvements made to air bag
systems in recent years, experts said children are safer in the back
seat.
"Most crashes are still frontal crashes. You want to be as far away
from the point of impact as possible," said Phil Haseltine, president
of the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety.
Even though California's new law applies only to children under 6,
several traffic safety groups recommend that children age 12 and
under ride in the rear seat of vehicles.
In California, violating the new rules can carry a $100 fine for the
first offense and $250 for the second. Officers will begin ticketing
offenders immediately after the law takes effect, Marshall said.
"They can expect to be cited," he said. "We are not necessarily going
to have any grace period once the new year's started."
California law already requires seat belt use and requires parents to
properly secure children under age 6 in safety or booster seats.
The new law has a few narrow exceptions. Children can legally ride in
the front seat if:
* The car has no rear seat.
* The back seats are side-facing jump seats or rear-facing seats.
* The car seat or booster seat cannot be placed properly in the rear
seat.
* The rear seats are already occupied by other children.
* The child cannot ride in the back seat for medical reasons.
Even with these exceptions, however, the law requires that no child
under age 1, weighing less than 20 pounds, in a rear-facing safety
seat can ride in the front passenger seat.
Hurley said that Californians already have an exemplary record in
complying with seat belt laws, with 90 percent of drivers buckling up.
"The most important thing California is doing is getting one of the
highest adult-use rates in the country," Hurley said. "Adults who
buckle themselves usually buckle kids and do it properly. It's
essential that we do it right."
That is really awesome, but I have always thought that it was the law that kids cannot ride in the front seat until they are 12...I guess because I always read on the sun visor that it could be fatal. Anyway, I am glad they are doing something like this, maybe this law will make it's way over to tennessee. 
We also have kids under 12 in the back. Nicole will be 12 in April, and she's 100lbs, and I only let her in the front if I have 5 other kids in the van. Even then I move her seat back as far as possible.
I've noticed that you don't have helmet laws in the states, or at least the ones I drive through. Helmets are the law here for motorcycles, and I think also for kids on bikes.
Marcia, in Ohio you have to wear a motorcycle helmet if you are under 18, or if you are a "novice" driver. As for bicycle helmets, our local city has a law that children must have helmets, but I think that is unusual.
In oregon we have a helmet law for motorcyclists, bike helmets for under 16, car seat for under 6 or 60 pounds but no law regarding if kids could ride in the frount seat. I dont let them ride up there because of the airbags but if we were still driving the 73 cadillac I would let them ride up front although now that I think about it the dash is pretty substantial on that car even though it does have shoulder harnesses... hmm.... guess when we get it back on the road I will have to think about that.
In Pennsylvania - for reasons which don't make sense to me - they recently rescinded the motorcycle helmet law. Some suggested that anyone who receives a fatal head injury while riding a motorcycle be automatically considered organ donors.
We do, on the other hand, have a fairly tight bicycle helmet law. I notice that people who ride bikes a lot (one of my sons is an avid biker and has friends in bicycling groups) wear helmets all the time.
Bike helmets are mandatory for under age 18 but most people you see riding have them here in CA.
I love the back seat law. It will get children in carseats OUT of the front seat. I hate seeing that!
I'm also glad to see that this is being made a law. Unfortunately, I see a lot more kids bouncing around the back seat without any seatbelts than I do in the front seat with a seatbelt. 
Trina, any suggestions on what my childrens' godmother can do when she has one of the kids in her truck? She doesn't have a backseat and she does turn the passenger side airbag off but I was wondering if there are any other precautions we can take.
Tink, this should answer your question.
NHTSA - Air Bags: FAQ
2. Should I put my child in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger frontal air bag?
No. An infant or child riding in the front seat can be seriously injured or killed by an inflating air bag. NHTSA recommends placing all children 12 and under in the rear seat. This is the safest place. This applies to all children 12 and under: an infant riding in a rear-facing infant seat, a child riding in a forward-facing child restraint, an older child riding in a booster seat and children large enough to wear a safety belt.
Infants in rear-facing child safety seats must never ride in the front seat of a vehicle with an active front passenger air bag. Children age 12 and under should ride buckled up in the back seat. They should use child safety seats, booster seats or safety belts appropriate for their age and size.
There may be occasions when a parent or caregiver has no other option than to place a child other than an infant in a rear-facing child safety seat in the right front seat, for example:
In a pickup truck with insufficient or no available rear seat, or
If a parent is transporting too many children for all to ride in the back, or
When transporting a child with a medical condition that requires monitoring and another adult is not available.
In the event there is no available rear seat and parents have no other option than to place a child other than an infant in a rear-facing child safety seat in a front passenger seating position, take these steps:
Ensure the child is properly restrained,
Move the seat as far back as possible,
Make sure the child is not leaning out of position, and
Set the air bag ON-OFF switch, if available, to the OFF position.
When faced with having to choose which child other than an infant in a rear-facing child safety seat to place in front of an air bag in the front seat, select the child that can be relied upon to remain in a proper seating position. This may not necessarily be the oldest child, but the child who is restrained at all times.
The safety recommendation is kids 12 and under in the back seat but, technically, kids can ride in the front seat "legally" in many states. Not safe, but legal. It's not about laws it's about lives.
Marcia, I believe there are only a couple states that don't legally require helmets for motorcyclists. NH is one of them.
My state (CT) legally requires bike helmets for kids under 16.
Kids are 30% safer in the back seat. With or without air bags.
More info:
IIHS - Kids and Air Bags
Regardless of the laws in WI, wearing a bike helmet in my house is mandatory and everyone does, including parents! What is with parents who buy helmets for their kids, but then down' wear one themselves? Sarah had a bike-riding unit for gym class, at the high-school level. Wearing helmets was mandatory for that, too. She just brought her own helmet to school.
Motorcycles scare me to death, but if I ever rode on one, I would want a helmet on! I have never ever been on a motorcycle!
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