Occupant Restraints

Occupant Restraints . 1. All children will be properly restrained whenever they are being transported in a motor vehicle. a. Every person transporting a child under the age of four (4) years in a passenger motor vehicle, and operated on a public roadway, street or highway, shall provide for the protection of the child by properly using a child passenger restraint device or system meeting applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards, e.g., child safety seat. b. Every person transporting a child in a passenger motor vehicle operated on a public roadway, street or highway, shall provide for the protection of the child by properly using a belt positioning booster seat system meeting applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards if the child is at least four (4) years of age, but less than seven (7) years of age and measures less than four (4) feet nine (9) inches in height or weighs less than sixty-five (65) pounds. c. Any vehicle equipped with seatbelts is subject to the requirements in items a. and b. above. 2. No vehicle shall be occupied by more individuals than its rated capacity. 3. No children shall be transported in the front seat of vehicles equipped with passenger- side air bags. 4. All vehicles under 10,000 lbs. GVWR (Gross Vehicle Weight Rated) shall be equipped with occupant restraints appropriate for the age and/or weight of the children being transported. A child under the age of four shall be transported only if the child is securely fastened in a child safety seat that meets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS, 49 CFR 571.213), which shall be indicated on the child safety seat. The child safety seat shall be appropriate to the child's weight and be installed and used according to the manufacturer's instructions. 5. Vehicles (e.g., school buses) with a GVWR 10,000 lbs. or more, at a minimum, shall meet the current Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) for buses of that size. It is the responsibility of the child care facility operator to have documentation verifying that a bus meets the current FMVSS. NOTE: Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) means the National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration's standards for motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment established under Section 103 of the Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966 (49 CFR Part 571) as they apply to school buses. 6. An individual seat restraint must be used for each child. The use of an individual seat restraint for two or more children is not allowed.