Chapter 300
Oregon Laws 2011
AN ACT
HB 3590
Relating to
child safety in motor vehicles; creating new provisions; and amending ORS
811.210.
Be It Enacted by the People of the State of Oregon:
SECTION 1. ORS 811.210, as amended by
section 10, chapter 30, Oregon Laws 2010, is amended to read:
811.210. (1)(a) Except as provided in
ORS 811.215, a person commits the offense of failure to properly use safety
belts if the person:
(A) Operates a motor vehicle on the
highways of this state and is not properly secured with a safety belt or safety
harness as required by subsection (2) of this section.
(B) Is the parent, legal guardian or
person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child who is
under 16 years of age and the child, while operating on public lands a Class I
or Class II all-terrain vehicle that is not registered under ORS 803.420, is
not properly secured with a safety belt or safety harness.
(C) Is the parent, legal guardian or
person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child who is
under 16 years of age and the child, while operating on public lands a Class II
all-terrain vehicle registered under ORS 803.420, is not properly secured with
a safety belt or safety harness as required by subsection (2) of this section.
(D) Operates a motor vehicle on the
highways of this state with a passenger who is under 16 years of age and the
passenger is not properly secured with a child safety system, safety belt or
safety harness as required by subsection (2) of this section.
(E) Is the parent, legal guardian or
person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child who is
under 16 years of age and the child, while riding on public lands in or on a
Class I or Class II all-terrain vehicle that is not registered under ORS
803.420, is not properly secured with a safety belt or safety harness.
(F) Is the parent, legal guardian or
person with legal responsibility for the safety and welfare of a child who is
under 16 years of age and the child, while riding on public lands in or on a
Class II all-terrain vehicle registered under ORS 803.420, is not properly
secured with a safety belt or safety harness as required by subsection (2) of
this section.
(G) Is a passenger in a privately
owned commercial vehicle, as defined in ORS 801.210, that is designed and used
for the transportation of 15 or fewer persons, including the driver, and the
person is 16 years of age or older and is responsible for another passenger who
is not properly secured with a child safety system as required under subsection
(2)(a), (b) or (c) of this section.
(H) Is a passenger in a motor vehicle
being operated on the highways of this state who is 16 years of age or older
and who is not properly secured with a safety belt or safety harness as required
by subsection (2) of this section.
(b) As used in this subsection, “public
lands” includes privately owned land that is open to the general public for the
use of all-terrain vehicles as the result of funding from the All-Terrain
Vehicle Account under ORS 390.560.
(2) To comply with this section:
(a) A person who is under one year of
age, regardless of weight, or a person who weighs 20 pounds or less must be
properly secured with a child safety system in a rear-facing position.
(b) A person who weighs 40 pounds or
less must be properly secured with a child safety system that meets the minimum
standards and specifications established by the Department of Transportation
under ORS 815.055 for child safety systems designed for children weighing 40 pounds
or less.
(c) Except as provided in subsection
(3) of this section, a person who weighs more than 40 pounds and who is four
feet nine inches or shorter must be properly secured with a child safety system
that elevates the person so that a safety belt or safety harness properly fits
the person. As used in this paragraph, “properly fits” means the lap belt of
the safety belt or safety harness is positioned low across the thighs and the
shoulder belt is positioned over the collarbone and away from the neck. The
child safety system shall meet the minimum standards and specifications
established by the department [of
Transportation] under ORS 815.055 for child safety systems designed for
children who are four feet nine inches or shorter.
(d) A person who is taller than four
feet nine inches must be properly secured with a safety belt or safety harness
that meets requirements under ORS 815.055.
(e) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and
(c) of this subsection, a person who is eight years of age or older need not be
secured with a child safety system but must be properly secured with a safety
belt or safety harness that meets requirements under ORS 815.055.
[(3)
If the rear seat of a vehicle is not equipped with shoulder belts, the
requirements of subsection (2)(c) of this section do not apply provided the
person is secured by a lap belt.]
(3) The requirements of subsection
(2)(c) of this section do not apply:
(a) If the rear seat of a vehicle is
not equipped with shoulder belts, provided the person is secured by a lap belt;
or
(b) If the child is properly secured
with a child safety system that meets the minimum standards and specifications
established by the department under ORS 815.055 for child safety systems
designed for children weighing more than 40 pounds.
(4) The offense described in this
section, failure to properly use safety belts, is a Class D traffic violation.
SECTION 2. The amendments to ORS
811.210 by section 1 of this 2011 Act apply to offenses committed on or after
the effective date of this 2011 Act.
Approved by
the Governor June 9, 2011
Filed in the
office of Secretary of State June 9, 2011
Effective date
January 1, 2012
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