AN ACT Relating to school bus safety; amending RCW 46.37.510 and 46.61.688; and adding new sections to chapter 28A.44 RCW.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1. Section 1, chapter 117, Laws of 1963 as last amended by section 7, chapter 113, Laws of 1986 and RCW 46.37.510 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) No person may sell any automobile manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1964, nor may any owner cause such vehicle to be registered thereafter under the provisions of chapter 46.12 RCW unless such motor car or automobile is equipped with automobile seat belts installed for use on the front seats thereof which are of a type and installed in a manner conforming to rules adopted by the state commission on equipment. Where registration is for transfer from an out-of-state license, the applicant shall be informed of this section by the issuing agent and has thirty days to comply. The state commission on equipment shall adopt and enforce standards as to what constitutes adequate and safe seat belts and for the fastening and installation of them. Such standards shall not be below those specified as minimum requirements by the Society of Automotive Engineers on June 13, 1963.

(2) Every passenger car manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1965, shall be equipped with at least two lap-type safety belt assemblies for use in the front seating positions.

(3) Every passenger car manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1968, shall be equipped with a lap-type safety belt assembly for each permanent passenger seating position. This requirement shall not apply to police vehicles.

(4) Every passenger car manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1968, shall be equipped with at least two shoulder harness-type safety belt assemblies for use in the front seating positions.

(5) Every school bus manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1988, and used to transport students for a school district of this state, shall be equipped with a lap-type safety belt assembly for each permanent passenger seating position.

(6) The commission on equipment shall excuse specified types of motor vehicles or seating positions within any motor vehicle from the requirements imposed by subsections (1), (2), and (3) of this section when compliance would be impractical.

((~~(6)~~)) (7) No person may distribute, have for sale, offer for sale, or sell any safety belt or shoulder harness for use in motor vehicles unless it meets current minimum standards and specifications conforming to rules adopted by the commission or the United States department of transportation.

Sec. 2. Section 1, chapter 152, Laws of 1986 and RCW 46.61.688 are each amended to read as follows:

(1) For the purposes of this section, the term "motor vehicle" includes:

(a) "Buses," meaning motor vehicles with motive power, except trailers, designed to carry more than ten passengers;

(b) "Multipurpose passenger vehicles," meaning motor vehicles with motive power, except trailers, designed to carry ten persons or less that are constructed either on a truck chassis or with special features for occasional off-road operation;

(c) "Passenger cars," meaning motor vehicles with motive power, except multipurpose passenger vehicles, motorcycles, or trailers, designed for carrying ten passengers or less; and

(d) "Trucks," meaning motor vehicles with motive power, except trailers, designed primarily for the transportation of property.

(2) This section only applies to (a) motor vehicles that meet the manual seat belt safety standards as set forth in federal motor vehicle safety standard 208 and (b) school buses equipped with safety belts. This section does not apply to a vehicle occupant for whom no safety belt is available when all designated seating positions as required by federal motor vehicle safety standard 208 are occupied.

(3) Every person sixteen years of age or older operating or riding in a motor vehicle other than a school bus shall wear the safety belt assembly in a properly adjusted and securely fastened manner. Regardless of age, every person riding in a school bus equipped with safety belts and for whom a safety belt is provided, shall wear the safety belt assembly in a properly adjusted and securely fastened manner.

(4) No person may operate a motor vehicle unless all passengers under the age of sixteen years are either wearing a safety belt assembly or are securely fastened into an approved child restraint device.

(5) ((~~During the period from June 11, 1986, to January 1, 1987, a person violating this section may be issued a written warning of the violation. After January 1, 1987,~~)) A person violating this section shall be issued a notice of traffic infraction under chapter 46.63 RCW. A finding that a person has committed a traffic infraction under this section shall be contained in the driver's abstract but shall not be available to insurance companies or employers.

(6) Failure to comply with the requirements of this section does not constitute negligence, nor may failure to wear a safety belt assembly be admissible as evidence of negligence in any civil action. School bus drivers, chaperons, aides, or other persons in charge of the student passengers are exempt from any liability for use or nonuse of safety belts by the student passengers.

(7) Enforcement of this section by law enforcement officers may be accomplished only as a secondary action when a driver of a motor vehicle has been detained for a suspected violation of Title 46 RCW or an equivalent local ordinance or some other offense.

(8) This section does not apply to an operator or passenger who possesses written verification from a licensed physician that the operator or passenger is unable to wear a safety belt for physical or medical reasons.

(9) The commission on equipment may adopt rules exempting operators or occupants of farm vehicles, construction equipment, and vehicles that are required to make frequent stops from the requirement of wearing safety belts.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 3. A new section is added to chapter 28A.44 RCW to read as follows:

A school bus manufactured or assembled after January 1, 1988, with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than ten thousand pounds and used to transport students for a school district of this state shall be equipped with:

(1) At least one roof escape hatch;

(2) Passenger seats with a seat back padded on both sides that, in the front projected view, has a front surface area above the horizontal plane that passes through the seating reference point, and below the horizontal plane twenty-eight inches above the seating reference point, of not less than ninety percent of the seat bench width in inches multiplied by twenty-eight.

NEW SECTION. Sec. 4. A new section is added to chapter 28A.44 RCW to read as follows:

Schools that transport students in buses equipped with safety belts shall instruct their students on proper safety belt usage at least three times each academic year.