S T A T E O F N E W Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________
893
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
I N A S S E M B L Y
January 14, 2019
___________
Introduced by M. of A. CUSICK, ZEBROWSKI -- read once and referred to
the Committee on Transportation
AN ACT to amend the vehicle and traffic law and the education law, in
relation to requiring three-point seat safety belts on school buses
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Subdivision 5 of section 383 of the vehicle and traffic
law, as added by chapter 747 of the laws of 1986, is amended to read as
follows:
5. (a) Passenger seat safety belts for school buses. Every school bus,
as defined in section one hundred forty-two of this chapter, manufac-
tured for use in this state on and after July first, [nineteen hundred
eighty-seven] TWO THOUSAND TWENTY, shall be designed so that all passen-
ger seats on such vehicle are equipped with THREE-POINT seat safety
belts and increased seat back padding on passenger seats of a type and
specification as approved by the commissioner of transportation through
the adoption of rules and regulations. Such rules and regulations shall
provide that when any contactable surface of the school bus, as speci-
fied in the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard, 49 CFR Section
571.222, is impacted from any direction at twenty-two feet per second by
the head form, the axial acceleration at the center of gravity of the
head form shall be such that the head form impact requirement shall not
exceed eight hundred.
(b) Passenger THREE-POINT seat safety belts for existing school buses.
[Any] EVERY school bus, as defined in section one hundred forty-two of
this chapter, [which is scheduled for retrofitting pursuant to action by
a board of education or board of trustees under section thirty-six
hundred thirty-five-a of the education law] NOT EQUIPPED WITH THREE-
POINT SEAT SAFETY BELTS shall be retrofitted so that all passenger seats
on such vehicles are equipped with THREE-POINT seat safety belts and
additional padding of a type and specification as approved by the
EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00258-01-9
A. 893 2
commissioner of transportation through the adoption of rules and regu-
lations. Such rules and regulations shall provide that when any contact-
able surface of the school bus as specified in the Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standard, 49 CFR Section 571.222 is impacted from any direction
at twenty-two feet per second by the head form, the axial acceleration
at the center of gravity of the head form shall be such that the head
form impact requirement shall not exceed eight hundred. Furthermore, the
commissioner shall have the power through rules and regulations to
exempt certain design school buses from retrofitting. In granting such
exemptions, the commissioner shall consider safety factors, structural
integrity of the school buses and any other items deemed necessary to
preserve the safety and welfare of the school bus passengers. Provided
further, however, that the commissioner of transportation shall not
authorize retrofitting of any school bus manufactured prior to April
first, [nineteen hundred seventy-seven] TWO THOUSAND FIVE.
§ 2. Section 3635-a of the education law, as added by chapter 747 of
the laws of 1986 and subdivision 1 as amended by chapter 474 of the laws
of 1996, is amended to read as follows:
§ 3635-a. Safety belt usage. 1. A board of education or board of
trustees may, in its discretion, following a public hearing for the
purpose of determining whether a resolution shall be adopted, provide
for the use of THREE-POINT seat safety belts on such school buses, in
accordance with regulations and standards established by the commission-
er [under subdivision one of section thirty-six hundred thirty-eight of
this chapter].
2. Such public hearing, conducted upon reasonable notice, shall be
held to consider: (a) whether the district shall install THREE-POINT
seat safety belts on buses purchased and/or contracted for prior to [the
effective date of this section] JULY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY and
require their use; (b) when such installation shall be provided, and (c)
whether use of THREE-POINT seat safety belts shall be required on all
school buses within the district so equipped after a date to be deter-
mined by the board of education or board of trustees.
3. Such hearings shall consider the effect of THREE-POINT seat safety
belts installation on the total number of students that can be trans-
ported on such buses.
4. Within twenty days after the public hearing, the board of education
or board of trustees shall, by resolution, determine whether to require
installation and use of THREE-POINT seat safety belts on some or all
school buses.
5. This section shall apply only to vehicles owned or leased by school
districts and nonpublic schools, and to vehicles used to perform
contracts with such school districts and nonpublic schools for the
purpose of transporting school children for hire.
6. Nothing in this section shall be construed to impose a duty upon
boards of education or boards of trustees to provide THREE-POINT seat
safety belts on school buses purchased or contracted for prior to [the
effective date of this section] JULY FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY, nor
shall any board of education or board of trustees be held liable for
failure to provide THREE-POINT seat safety belts pursuant to this
section. A school board member or trustee shall have immunity from any
civil or criminal liability that might otherwise be incurred or imposed
as a result of the provisions of this section provided that such person
shall have acted in good faith. For the purpose of any proceeding, civil
or criminal, the good faith of any such person shall be presumed.
A. 893 3
7. The provisions of this section shall not apply to school districts
which are using THREE-POINT SEAT safety belts on school buses or have
installed or have contracted for the installation of THREE-POINT seat
safety belts prior to [the effective date of this section] JULY FIRST,
TWO THOUSAND TWENTY.
§ 3. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day following a first
appropriation for the school districts electing to provide for the use
of three-point seat safety belts; provided that the commissioner of
education shall notify the legislative bill drafting commission upon the
occurrence of such appropriation in order that the commission may main-
tain an accurate and timely effective data base of the official text of
the laws of the state of New York in furtherance of effectuating the
provisions of section 44 of the legislative law and section 70-b of the
public officers law.