Three US States STILL without Booster Seat laws

After all the press, hype and campaigning it’s hard to believe there are States across America that still do not require parents to use Booster Seats when taking their children on journeys in the car.

Of States without any laws (Arizona, Florida and South Dakota) Arizona is at least making some sort of move to rectify the situation. In the early part of 2009 a bill (HB2593) was introduced into the legislature that would require any child under 9 years old to be allowed to travel in a car only if seated on a Booster Seat.

At the time of writing, HB2593 was last updated on the 2nd Oct 2009. IT can be seen here.

Sadly this bill hasn’t yet made it out of committee stage. There is a hope it will be re-introduced early in 2010 when regular sessions begin again.

The good news is that 50 states do have laws that require seats for children when transported in a motor vehicle. That is good news until you realise each state has a slightly different take on what constitutes a legal requirement.

A good example of this is what would happen if you and your son who’s just turned 6 were traveling from New Hampshire into Maine. Being 6 years old in New Hampshire means you no longer have to sit in a booster seat, however as you drive over the border (without the booster seat) into Maine you’ll be breaking the law - over there you’ll need one into your child's seventh year.

Have you had any strange cross border related Booster Seat issues? Know of an impending change of the law in those last remaining ‘lawless’ states? Let us know, leave a comment below.

Tags: Arizona