Vehicle operators and passengers are now required to buckle in as President Surangel Whipps Jr. on Wednesday signed the seatbelt law.
RPPL No. 11-9 also includes a mandate for child restraint systems to protect children from injuries.
“This law is crucial in helping to ensure the safety of our people and reducing the incidents of vehicle-related injuries and fatalities that frequently occur in the Republic each year,” Whipps said in his signing statement.
The bill however will give time to the owner of vehicles to the requirements of seatbelts and child restraints for a period of one year, citing that the new law could impose a financial burden on some families.
He also lauded Congress for collaboration in the passage of the law and come up with a public safety measure that could save lives.
“The operator of a motor vehicle commits a violation of the operator or any passenger of the motor vehicle is not restrained during transit by a properly adjusted and fastened seat belt,” the law stated.
The law allows for a one-year transition period, and law enforcers will only issue warning citations to violators, giving them time to properly equip vehicles with the required seatbelt and child restraints.
Under the law, every passenger under six years old will need to have a child restraint system.
A fine of $100 will be imposed against violators for the first offense, $250 for the second offense, and license revocation for one year for the third offense.
The law also stated that the Bureau of Public Safety will conduct an education program ti inform the public of the new law. (B. Carreon)