Florida Senate - 2021 SB 380



By Senator Perry





8-00209-21 2021380__
1 A bill to be entitled
2 An act relating to child restraint requirements;
3 amending s. 316.613, F.S.; increasing the age of
4 children for whom operators of motor vehicles must
5 provide protection by using a crash-tested, federally
6 approved child restraint device; increasing the age of
7 children for whom a separate carrier, an integrated
8 child seat, or a child booster seat may be used;
9 providing an effective date.
10
11 Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
12
13 Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section
14 316.613, Florida Statutes, is amended to read:
15 316.613 Child restraint requirements.—
16 (1)(a) Every operator of a motor vehicle as defined in this
17 section, while transporting a child in a motor vehicle operated
18 on the roadways, streets, or highways of this state, shall, if
19 the child is 6 5 years of age or younger, provide for protection
20 of the child by properly using a crash-tested, federally
21 approved child restraint device.
22 1. For children aged through 3 years, such restraint device
23 must be a separate carrier or a vehicle manufacturer’s
24 integrated child seat.
25 2. For children aged 4 through 6 5 years, a separate
26 carrier, an integrated child seat, or a child booster seat may
27 be used. However, the requirement to use a child restraint
28 device under this subparagraph does not apply when a safety belt
29 is used as required in s. 316.614(4)(a) and the child:
30 a. Is being transported gratuitously by an operator who is
31 not a member of the child’s immediate family;
32 b. Is being transported in a medical emergency situation
33 involving the child; or
34 c. Has a medical condition that necessitates an exception
35 as evidenced by appropriate documentation from a health care
36 professional.
37 Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2021.