New Truck Seat Belt Bill May Pass House

Drivers and passengers in pickup trucks, SUVs and other vehicles with Indiana truck plates would no longer be exempt from the state's seat-belt law under a bill endorsed by a House committee on Wednesday.

After hearing emotional testimony from family members of those killed in crashes, the House Transportation Committee endorsed the bill 9-1. It next goes to the House Ways and Means Committee for consideration of possible amendmentsthat would change how money from truck-plate registrations is distributed for road construction and repairs.

Current law requires that front-seat occupants in cars be buckled up. Back-seat passengers in cars who are age 16 and under are required to wear seat belts or be in child-restraint devices. But the law exempts occupants 16 and older in pickups and other truck- plated vehicles, including SUVs and minivans, from having to buckle up.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Peggy Welch, D-Bloomington, would require virtually everyone in cars and truck-plated vehicles buckle up. There would still be some exceptions, including occupants in trucks being used on a farm, or newspaper- and mail-delivery vehicles.

Bills to remove the exemptions for pickups and SUVs have passed the Republican-controlled Senate at least three times in recent years, but have never made it out of the House. Among other things, opponents have said the bill is an example of government intruding too far into citizens' freedom of choice.

If Indiana passed the bill, it would be eligible for an additional $15.7 million in federal money for highway safety programs or road improvements.

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