Senate Bill No. 116–Senators Nolan and Wiener

 

Joint Sponsors: Assemblywomen Leslie
and Chowning

 

CHAPTER..........

 

AN ACT relating to motor vehicles; requiring that a child who is both less than 6 years of age and weighs 60 pounds or less be secured in a child restraint system when traveling in certain motor vehicles; requiring that such a system be properly installed within and attached to the motor vehicle; revising the provisions relating to the imposition of a fine or a requirement to perform community service for failing to secure a child in a child restraint system; requiring that each child who is not required to be secured in a child restraint system must be secured with a standard safety belt; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

    Section 1. NRS 484.474 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    484.474  1.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 5, any

 person who is transporting a child who is [under 5] less than 6

 years of age and who weighs 60 pounds or less [than 40 pounds] in

 a motor vehicle operated in this state which is equipped to carry

 passengers shall secure [him] the child in a [device for restraining

 a] child restraint system which [has] :

    (a) Has been approved by the United States Department of

 Transportation[.] in accordance with the Federal Motor Vehicle

 Safety Standards set forth in 49 C.F.R. Part 571;

    (b) Is appropriate for the size and weight of the child; and

    (c) Is installed within and attached safely and securely to the

 motor vehicle:

        (1) In accordance with the instructions for installation and

 attachment provided by the manufacturer of the child restraint

 system; or

        (2) In another manner that is approved by the National

 Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

    2.  A person who violates the provisions of subsection 1 shall

 be :

    (a) Required to complete a program of training conducted by a

 person or agency approved by the Department of Public Safety in

 the installation and use of child restraint systems; and

    (b) Except as otherwise provided in this paragraph, punished

 by a fine of not less than [$35] $50 nor more than [$100 unless,

 within 14 days after the issuance of the citation for such a violation,

the person presents to the court specified in the citation proof of his

purchase of such a restraining device. Upon presentation of such

 proof, the court shall void the citation.]$500, or required to

 perform not less than 8 hours nor more than 50 hours of

 community service. The court may waive any amount of the fine

 in excess of $50 or any amount of the community service in

 excess of 8 hours if a person or agency approved by the

 Department of Public Safety certifies that the violator has:

        (1) Completed the program of training required by

 paragraph (a); and

        (2) Presented for inspection by the person or agency an

 installed child restraint system that satisfies the provisions of

subsection 1.

The court shall make available a list of persons and agencies

 approved by the Department of Public Safety to conduct programs

 of training and perform inspections of child restraint systems.

    3.  For the purposes of NRS 483.473, a violation of this section

 is not a moving traffic violation.

    4.  A violation of this section may not be considered:

    (a) Negligence in any civil action; or

    (b) Negligence or reckless driving for the purposes of

NRS 484.377.

    5.  This section does not apply:

    (a) To a person who is transporting a child in a means of public

 transportation, including a taxi, school bus or emergency vehicle.

    (b) When a physician determines that the use of such a

 [restraining device] child restraint system for the particular child

 would be impractical or dangerous because of such factors as the

 child’s weight, physical unfitness or medical condition. In this case,

 the person transporting the child shall carry in the vehicle the

 signed statement of the physician to that effect.

    6.  As used in this section, “child restraint system” means any

 device that is designed for use in a motor vehicle to restrain, seat

 or position children. The term includes, without limitation:

    (a) Booster seats and belt-positioning seats that are designed to

 elevate or otherwise position a child so as to allow the child to be

 secured with a safety belt;

    (b) Integrated child seats; and

    (c) Safety belts that are designed specifically to be adjusted to

 accommodate children.

    Sec. 2.  NRS 484.641 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    484.641  1.  It is unlawful to drive a passenger car

 manufactured after:

    (a) January 1, 1968, on a highway unless it is equipped with at

 least two lap-type safety belt assemblies for use in the front seating

 positions.

    (b) January 1, 1970, on a highway, unless it is equipped with a

lap-type safety belt assembly for each permanent seating position

 for passengers. This requirement does not apply to the rear seats of

 vehicles operated by a police department or sheriff’s office.

    (c) January 1, 1970, unless it is equipped with at least two

 shoulder-harness-type safety belt assemblies for use in the front

 seating positions.

    2.  Any person driving , and any passenger [5] who:

    (a) Is 6 years of age or older ; or

    (b) Weighs more than 60 pounds, regardless of age,

who rides in the front or back seat of any vehicle described in

 subsection 1, having an unladen weight of less than [6,000] 10,000

 pounds, on any highway, road or street in this state shall wear a

 safety belt if one is available for his seating position.

    3.  A citation must be issued to any driver or to any adult

 passenger who fails to wear a safety belt as required by

subsection 2. If the passenger is a child [5] who:

    (a) Is 6 years of age or older but [under] less than 18 years[,] of

 age, regardless of weight; or

    (b) Is less than 6 years of age but who weighs more than 60

 pounds,

a citation must be issued to the driver for his failure to require that

 child to wear the safety belt, but if both the driver and that child are

 not wearing safety belts, only one citation may be issued to the

 driver for both violations. A citation may be issued pursuant to this

 subsection only if the violation is discovered when the vehicle is

 halted or its driver arrested for another alleged violation or offense.

 Any person who violates the provisions of subsection 2 shall be

 punished by a fine of not more than $25 or by a sentence to perform

 a certain number of hours of community service.

    4.  A violation of subsection 2:

    (a) Is not a moving traffic violation under NRS 483.473.

    (b) May not be considered as negligence or as causation in any

 civil action or as negligent or reckless driving under NRS 484.377.

    (c) May not be considered as misuse or abuse of a product or as

 causation in any action brought to recover damages for injury to a

 person or property resulting from the manufacture, distribution, sale

 or use of a product.

    5.  The Department shall exempt those types of motor vehicles

 or seating positions from the requirements of subsection 1 when

 compliance would be impractical.

    6.  The provisions of subsections 2 and 3 do not apply:

    (a) To a driver or passenger who possesses a written statement

 by a physician certifying that he is unable to wear a safety belt for

 medical or physical reasons;

    (b) If the vehicle is not required by federal law to be equipped

with safety belts;

    (c) To an employee of the United States Postal Service while

 delivering mail in the rural areas of this state;

    (d) If the vehicle is stopping frequently, the speed of that vehicle

 does not exceed 15 miles per hour between stops and the driver or

 passenger is frequently leaving the vehicle or delivering property

 from the vehicle; or

    (e) To a passenger riding in a means of public transportation,

 including a taxi, school bus or emergency vehicle.

    7.  It is unlawful for any person to distribute, have for sale,

 offer for sale or sell any safety belt or shoulder harness assembly

 for use in a motor vehicle unless it meets current minimum

 standards and specifications of the United States Department of

 Transportation.

    Sec. 3.  This act becomes effective on June 1, 2004.

 

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