SB148 Summary

• Amends Section 32-5B-4 of the Alabama Code to require all occupants of passenger cars manufactured with safety belts to have a safety belt fastened while the vehicle is in motion, expanding the current requirement that applies only to front seat occupants.

• Removes "front seat" language from existing law to extend the safety belt requirement to all passengers in vehicles equipped with safety belts complying with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208.

• Maintains existing exemptions for child passengers (governed by Section 32-5-222), individuals with physician-documented medical inability to wear belts, rural postal carriers, newspaper/mail carriers, passengers in vehicles prior to 1965 model year, and passengers in vehicles that normally operate in reverse.

• Classifies the bill as defining a new crime under Amendment 621 of the Alabama Constitution, exempting it from local government funding requirements that would otherwise require a 2/3 legislative vote.

• Effective date is the first day of the third month following passage and approval by the Governor.