BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2667
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Date of Hearing: April 19, 2010
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION
Bonnie Lowenthal, Chair
AB 2667 (Hill) - As Amended: April 8, 2010
SUBJECT : Child restraints
SUMMARY: Requires medical facilities to provide information to
parents on the inspection and installation of child passenger
restraint systems. Specifically, this bill :
1)Makes findings and declarations regarding the safety benefits
of properly using child restraint systems in motor vehicles
and the high rate of improper installation of those systems.
2)Requires public and private hospitals, clinics, and birthing
centers, at the time of the discharge of a child under six
years of age or under 60 pounds, to provide and discuss with
the parent or person to whom the child is released information
on where child passenger restraint systems can be inspected
and proper installation instruction can be given, by providing
appropriate contact information.
3)Specifies that such contact information may include, but is
not limited to 1-866-SEAT-CHECK, www.seatcheck.org, the
telephone number of the local office of the Highway Patrol and
the Web site for the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration's Child Safety Seat Inspection Station Locator.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires every public or private hospital, clinic, or birthing
center, at the time of the discharge of a child less than six
years of age or less than 60 pounds, to provide and discuss
information on the current law requiring child passenger
restraint systems to the parents or the person to whom the
child is released.
2)Provides that these facilities will not be responsible for the
failure of the parent or person to whom the child is released
to use a child passenger restraint system.
3)Prohibits a parent or legal guardian, while present in a motor
AB 2667
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vehicle, from permitting his/her child less than six years of
age or under 60 pounds to be transported upon a highway
without providing and properly securing a child passenger car
seat in the rear seat of the vehicle that meets federal safety
standards.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS : The author reports that he has hosted two child seat
safety check events in his district over the last six months and
saw first-hand the alarming number of child safety seats that
are not installed properly. He is therefore seeking to ensure
that parents know that existing resources are available to
obtain free safety seat inspections. He points to a recent
study indicating that over 90% of parents and caregivers believe
their child safety seats are installed correctly, whereas
research shows that seven out of 10 children are improperly
restrained, putting them at risk for serious injury or death in
a crash.
Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death of
children, 3 to 14 years of age. Many of these deaths can be
prevented through the proper use of child safety seats.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
child safety seats can reduce fatal injury by 7l% for infants
and by 54% for toddlers, 1 to 4 years of age.
The author notes that in vetoing two previous bills AB 2108
(Evans) of 2006, and AB 881 (Mullin) of 2007 that would have
established new child restraint requirements, the Governor
suggested that safety benefits would instead accrue from more
education and enforcement of existing requirements. This bill
seeks to take precisely that approach.
While some might suggest that the bill would establish an
onerous mandate for medical establishments that are already
under great stress to provide all the services expected of them,
it should be noted that these facilities are already required to
discuss child restraint issues with the parents of the young
children they treat. The requirements of this bill would seem
to represent more of a refinement of the existing mandate,
rather than the establishment of a new one.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
AB 2667
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Support
None received
Opposition
None received
Analysis Prepared by : Howard Posner / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093