STAND

STAND. COM. REP. 603

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2003

RE: H.B. No. 52

H.D. 2

Honorable Calvin K.Y. Say

Speaker, House of Representatives

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Judiciary, to which was referred H.B. No. 52, H.D. 1, entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of the bill is to require drivers, with some exceptions, to place passengers:

(1) Under four years-of-age into a child passenger restraint system; and

(2) At least four years-of-age but under eight years-of-age and weighing less than 80 pounds into a safety seat or booster seat.

Your Committee received testimony in support of the measure from the Department of Transportation, the Honolulu Police Department, the Maui County Police, the Waianae Coast Comprehensive Health Center, Mothers Against Drunk Drivers, and Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition. The Hawaii Association of Independent Schools supported the intent of the measure and expressed reservations. The Office of the Public Defender opposed the measure.

Your Committee finds that this measure will better protect children younger than eight years old by having them properly fitted into motor vehicle child restraint seats. However, requiring parents of children who reach their ninth birthday shortly after the effective date of this measure to purchase child safety seats or booster seats that would only be used for a few months would be an undue burden. Your Committee further finds that requiring families with large numbers of children to strictly comply with restraint seat requirements would have the effect of requiring families to purchase extra automobiles or excluding some children from riding in the family automobile.

Your Committee has amended the bill by exempting motor vehicle operators from certain child restraint provisions when:

(1) The motor vehicle is equipped only with lap belts in the rear seat and no shoulder straps and the child is less than eight years old and over four feet nine inches in height;

(2) The child will become nine years old prior to July 1, 2004; and

(3) The vehicle does not have the capacity to fit enough child restraint systems for all the children riding in it, the children who are not placed in restraint systems are exempt, provided that the available systems are used for the youngest children and provided the children not in restraint systems are protected by a seat belt.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Judiciary that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of H.B. No. 52, H.D. 1, as amended herein, and recommends that it pass Third Reading in the form attached hereto as H.B. No. 52, H.D. 2.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Judiciary,

		____________________________ ERIC G. HAMAKAWA, Chair