House Bill 0021c1

    Florida House of Representatives - 1999               CS/HB 21

        By the Committee on Education/K-12 and Representatives
    Chestnut, Ogles, Gay, Detert, Frankel, Logan, Casey, Dennis,
    Brown, Constantine, Stafford, Fasano, Ritter, Levine, Effman,
    Merchant and Warner



  1                      A bill to be entitled

  2         An act relating to school buses; requiring that

  3         buses purchased after a specified date and used

  4         in transporting certain students be equipped

  5         with safety belts that comply with specified

  6         standards; providing an exemption for certain

  7         school buses; requiring passengers to wear

  8         safety belts; providing immunity of a school

  9         district, bus operator, and others for injuries

10         to a passenger caused solely because the

11         passenger was not wearing a safety belt;

12         providing immunity to such persons for injury

13         caused by a passenger's dangerous or unsafe use

14         of a safety belt; providing certain provisions

15         for implementation; providing an effective

16         date.

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18  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

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20         Section 1.  (1)  Each school bus that is purchased

21  after December 31, 2000, and used to transport students in

22  grades pre-K through 12 must be equipped with safety belts in

23  a number sufficient to allow each student who is being

24  transported to use a separate safety belt. These safety belts

25  must meet the standards required under s. 316.614, Florida

26  Statutes. A school bus that was purchased prior to December

27  31, 2000, is not required to be equipped with safety belts.

28         (2)  Each passenger on a school bus that is equipped

29  with safety belts shall wear a properly adjusted and fastened

30  safety belt at all times while the bus is in operation.

31  Neither the state nor a school district shall be liable for

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CODING: Words stricken are deletions; words underlined are additions.






    Florida House of Representatives - 1999               CS/HB 21

    185-702-99






  1  personal injury to a passenger on such a school bus which is

  2  caused by the passenger's failure to wear a safety belt.

  3         (3)  A school district, school bus operator under

  4  contract with a school district, or an agent or employee of a

  5  school district or operator, including a teacher or volunteer

  6  serving as a chaperone, is not liable in an action for

  7  personal injury by a school bus passenger solely because the

  8  injured party was not wearing a safety belt.

  9         (4)  A school district, school bus operator under

10  contract with a school district, or an agent or employee of a

11  school district or operator, including a teacher or volunteer

12  serving as a chaperone, is not liable in an action for

13  personal injury by a school bus passenger for an injury caused

14  by another passenger's use of a safety belt in a dangerous or

15  unsafe manner.

16         (5)  In implementing the provisions of this section,

17  each school district must prioritize the allocation of buses

18  equipped with safety belts to ensure that elementary schools

19  within the district receive first priority.

20         Section 2.  This act shall take effect upon becoming a

21  law.

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