New Booster Seat Law Takes Effect In Massachusetts
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“Parents are bombarded with health and safety messages regarding their kids,” says Arthur Kinsman, Director of Government Affairs for AAA Southern New England. “Their priority filters tell them that if a warning is not a law, the potential is not life-threatening. Nothing could be further from the truth when it comes to properly securing our kids.”
Studies show nine out of ten parents believe that if they adhere to their state’s current child passenger safety law, they’ll be taking the necessary steps to protect their children. “Previously, parents were given a false sense of security by following the letter of the Commonwealth’s law, and, in the process, unknowingly endangering their children,” said Mr. Kinsman. “Finally the law has caught up to best practice.”
"With the booster seat law going into effect, now is a great time to remind parents that booster seats save lives. Often, a seat belt alone is not enough to protect a child, or is even harmful because the child is not big enough to wear the seat belt properly. Booster seats help solve this problem," said Representative Michael Costello, Chair of the Joint Committee on Public Safety & Homeland Security. "This is a simple, inexpensive way that parents can protect their children while they are driving."
According to AAA, height is the best indicator of when a child can be safely buckled in an adult safety belt, because the booster seat raises up a child so that the seat belt is properly positioned across a child’s lap and chest. The age cutoff is important because it prevents smaller adults from being subject to the law.
"The purpose of this law is to save children’s lives," says Senator Steven A. Baddour, (D-Methuen), the bill’s sponsor and Chair of the Joint Committee on Transportation. "We must continue to educate parents about how they can protect their kids in the case of an accident – something I think any parent would do if they truly knew of the risks involved without booster seats."
Booster seats are available in some department stores for as little as $15, and for parents facing financial hardships, free booster seats are available through the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security/Highway Safety Division. For more information on free seats, Massachusetts residents can call the Child Passenger Safety Hotline at 1-877-392-5956, or TTY 1-617-725-0261 (for the hearing impaired,) or log on to www.mass.gov/child safety seats.
The fine for violating the new law would be $25 per child. Forty-three states and the District of Columbia have booster seat laws in place.
