BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2667
Page 1
DCONCURRENCE IN SENATE AMENDMENTS
AB 2667 (Hill)
As Amended August 18, 2010
Majority vote
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|ASSEMBLY: |65-6 |(May 20, 2010) |SENATE: |28-3 |(August 20, |
| | | | | |2010) |
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Original Committee Reference: TRANS.
SUMMARY : Requires medical facilities to provide contact
information to parents or other responsible parties on the
no-cost or low-cost assistance that is available for the
inspection and installation of child passenger restraint
systems.
The Senate amendments :
1)Specify that facilities providing this information would not
have any additional obligations relating to child restraint
systems.
2)Delete this bill's provision that would have limited a
facility's obligation to provide this information to one
instance per child.
3)Add the Department of Public Health's Web site containing the
child passenger restraint system safety inspection locator to
those contacts that might be provided by medical facilities to
parents of discharged children.
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.
AB 2667
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3)Prohibits a parent or legal guardian, while present in a motor
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.
AS PASSED BY THE ASSEMBLY , this bill:
1)Made 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)Required 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)Specified that such contact information may include, but is
not limited to, calling 1-866-SEAT-CHECK, visiting
www.seatcheck.org, and providing the telephone number of the
local office of the California Highway Patrol and the Web site
for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Child
Safety Seat Inspection Station Locator.
4)Provided that the specified facilities are responsible for
providing that information only one time per child.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee, there will be minor costs to hospitals, clinics and
other medical facilities (including the University of California
and other public facilities) to provide additional information.
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
AB 2667
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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, three 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, one to four 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 this bill would establish an
onerous mandate for medical establishments that are currently
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.
Analysis Prepared by : Howard Posner / TRANS. / (916) 319-2093
FN: 0006330