HOUSE FILE 128

BY  HUNTER

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to restraint requirements for motor vehicle occupants and making a penalty applicable.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

   Section 1.  Section 321.445, subsection 2, paragraphs a and b, Code 2011, are amended to read as follows:
   a.  The driver andfront seat occupants of a type of motor vehicle that is subject to registration in Iowa, except a motorcycle or a motorized bicycle, shall each wear a properly adjusted and fastened safety belt or safety harness any time the vehicle is in forward motion on a street or highway in this state except that a child under eighteen years of age shall be secured as required under section 321.446.
   b.  This subsection does not apply to:
   (1)  The driver orfront seat occupants of a motor vehicle which is not required to be equipped with safety belts or safety harnesses.
   (2)  The driver and front seat or occupants of a motor vehicle who are actively engaged in work which requires them to alight from and reenter the vehicle at frequent intervals, providing the vehicle does not exceed twenty-five miles per hour between stops.
   (3)  The driver of a motor vehicle while performing duties as a rural letter carrier for the United States postal service. This exemption applies only between the first delivery point after leaving the post office and the last delivery point before returning to the post office.
   (4)  Passengers on a bus.
   (5)  A person possessing a written certification from a health care provider licensed under chapter 148 or 151 on a form provided by the department that the person is unable to wear a safety belt or safety harness due to physical or medical reasons. The certification shall specify the time period for which the exemption applies. The time period shall not exceed twelve months, at which time a new certification may be issued unless the certifying health care provider is from a United States military facility, in which case the certificate may specify a longer period of time or a permanent exemption.
   (6)  Front seat occupants Occupants of an authorized emergency vehicle while they are being transported in an emergency. However, this exemption does not apply to the driver of the authorized emergency vehicle.
   Sec. 2.  Section 321.445, subsections 3 and 5, Code 2011, are amended to read as follows:
   3.  The driver andfront seat passengers may be each charged separately for improperly used or nonused equipment under subsection 2. However, the driver shall not be charged for a violation committed by a passenger who is fourteen years of age or older unless the passenger is unable to properly fasten a seat belt due to a temporary or permanent disability. The owner of the motor vehicle may be charged for equipment violations under subsection 1.
   5.  The department shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A providing exceptions from application of subsections 1 and 2 forfront seats andfront seat passengers of motor vehicles owned, leased, rented, or primarily used by persons with disabilities who use collapsible wheelchairs.
EXPLANATION
   This bill requires the driver and all occupants of a motor vehicle to wear a seat belt or safety harness while the vehicle is in forward motion on a street or highway. Currently, only the driver and front seat passengers are required to wear seat belts or safety harnesses. Restraint requirements do not apply to the driver and occupants of a motor vehicle that is not required to be equipped with seat belts or safety harnesses, persons who are engaged in work that requires frequent stops to exit and reenter the vehicle, letter carriers, bus passengers, persons with a certified physical or medical exemption, and occupants being transported in an emergency vehicle. The department of transportation is required to adopt rules providing exceptions from seat belt requirements for motor vehicles owned, leased, rented, or primarily used by persons who use collapsible wheelchairs.
   Pursuant to current law, children under 18 years of age are required to be secured by a child restraint system or a seat belt or safety harness, except that a passenger in the back seat may be exempted if there are not enough safety belts to accommodate every passenger. A violation of seat belt or restraint requirements involving a person under 18 years of age is a simple misdemeanor punishable by a scheduled fine of $100. Those provisions are not affected by the bill.
   A violation of seat belt requirements involving a person 18 years of age or older is a scheduled violation subject to a fine of $50. Seat belt and restraint violations are not a factor in establishing grounds for license suspension or identifying a person as a habitual violator.