Broken Arrow Rep Files Seat Belt Legislation

OKLAHOMA CITY – State Rep. Ross Ford (R-Broken Arrow) today announced the filing of a new bill to strengthen the state’s seat belt laws for children.

At a press conference held in Broken Arrow this afternoon, Ford announced that House Bill 2791 would require all youth aged 17 or younger to wear seat belts when riding in the back seat of a vehicle on Oklahoma roadways. State law currently only requires belts for children under age 9.

“This bill is about protecting our young people from death or serious injury when they are riding as passengers in our automobiles,” Ford said when unveiling the legislation. “As a former police officer, the worst news you can ever deliver to a parent is that their child was killed in a car crash because they were not wearing a seat belt.”

Oklahoma ranks last in the nation in protecting children in car crashes, which statewide is the leading cause of death and injury to those 8 and older, according to information from the American Automobile Association (AAA). Over half of deaths and serious injuries in car crashes can be prevented with proper use of seat belts.

Currently, state law requires only youth ages 8 or younger to wear a seatbelt while riding in the backseat of a moving vehicle. Oklahoma thus remains the only state in the nation without a law requiring children 8 to 17 to wear seat belts when riding in the back seat of a moving vehicle.

According to data from the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office, 67 children ages 8 to 17 were injured and 16 were killed in 2017 in Oklahoma who weren’t wearing seat belts.

Ford worked with AAA, Safe Kids Oklahoma and the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS) to draft the legislation, which is supported by the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, the Oklahoma Hospital Association, chiefs of police organizations throughout the state and others.