| 1 | A bill to be entitled |
| 2 | An act relating to child safety devices; amending s. |
| 3 | 316.613, F.S.; providing child-restraint requirements for |
| 4 | children 4 through 7 years of age; redefining the term |
| 5 | "motor vehicle" to exclude certain vehicles from such |
| 6 | requirements; providing exceptions to such requirements; |
| 7 | providing a grace period; amending s. 327.50, F.S.; |
| 8 | revising equipment requirements for vessel safety; |
| 9 | providing effective dates. |
| 10 |
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| 11 | Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: |
| 12 |
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| 13 | Section 1. Effective January 1, 2011, paragraph (a) of |
| 14 | subsection (1) and paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of section |
| 15 | 316.613, Florida Statutes, are amended, and subsection (6) is |
| 16 | added to that section, to read: |
| 17 | 316.613 Child restraint requirements.-- |
| 18 | (1)(a) Each Every operator of a motor vehicle as defined |
| 19 | herein, while transporting a child in a motor vehicle operated |
| 20 | on the roadways, streets, or highways of this state, shall, if |
| 21 | the child has not attained 8 is 5 years of age or younger, |
| 22 | provide for protection of the child by properly using a crash- |
| 23 | tested, federally approved child restraint device that is |
| 24 | appropriate for the height and weight of the child. Such devices |
| 25 | may include a vehicle manufacturer's integrated child seat, a |
| 26 | separate child safety seat, or a child booster seat that |
| 27 | displays the child's weight and height specifications for the |
| 28 | seat on the attached manufacturer's label as required by Federal |
| 29 | Motor Vehicle Safety Standards FMVSS 213. The device must comply |
| 30 | with standards of the United States Department of Transportation |
| 31 | and be secured in the vehicle in accordance with instructions of |
| 32 | the manufacturer. For children who have not attained 4 aged |
| 33 | through 3 years of age, such restraint device must be a separate |
| 34 | carrier or a vehicle manufacturer's integrated child seat. For |
| 35 | children aged 4 through 7 5 years of age, a separate carrier, an |
| 36 | integrated child seat, or a child booster seat belt may be used. |
| 37 | The court may dismiss the charge against a motor vehicle |
| 38 | operator for a first violation of this paragraph upon proof of |
| 39 | purchase of a federally approved child restraint device. |
| 40 | (2) As used in this section, the term "motor vehicle" |
| 41 | means a motor vehicle as defined in s. 316.003 that is operated |
| 42 | on the roadways, streets, and highways of the state. The term |
| 43 | does not include: |
| 44 | (b) A bus or a passenger vehicle designed to accommodate |
| 45 | 10 or more persons and used for the transportation of persons |
| 46 | for compensation, other than a bus regularly used to transport |
| 47 | children to or from school, as defined in s. 316.615(1)(b), or |
| 48 | in conjunction with school activities. |
| 49 | (6) This section does not apply to a person who is |
| 50 | transporting a child 4 through 7 years of age if the person is: |
| 51 | (a) Visiting in this state; |
| 52 | (b) Transporting the child gratuitously and in good faith |
| 53 | in response to a declared emergency situation or an immediate |
| 54 | emergency involving the child; |
| 55 | (c) Transporting a child with a medically necessary |
| 56 | exception with appropriate documentation from a health |
| 57 | professional; or |
| 58 | (d) Acting generally as a Good Samaritan. |
| 59 | Section 2. Effective July 1, 2010, a driver of a motor |
| 60 | vehicle who does not violate the then-existing provisions of s. |
| 61 | 316.613(1)(a), Florida Statutes, but whose conduct would violate |
| 62 | that provision, as amended January 1, 2011, may be issued a |
| 63 | verbal warning and given educational literature by a law |
| 64 | enforcement officer. |
| 65 | Section 3. Section 327.50, Florida Statutes, is amended to |
| 66 | read: |
| 67 | 327.50 Vessel safety regulations; equipment and lighting |
| 68 | requirements.-- |
| 69 | (1)(a) The owner and operator of every vessel on the |
| 70 | waters of this state shall carry, store, maintain, and use |
| 71 | safety equipment in accordance with current United States Coast |
| 72 | Guard safety equipment requirements as specified in the Code of |
| 73 | Federal Regulations, unless expressly exempted by the |
| 74 | department. |
| 75 | (b) No person shall operate a vessel less than 26 feet in |
| 76 | length on the waters of this state unless every person under 6 |
| 77 | years of age on board the vessel is wearing a type I, type II, |
| 78 | or type III Coast Guard approved personal flotation device while |
| 79 | such vessel is underway. For the purpose of this section, |
| 80 | "underway" shall mean at all times except when a vessel is |
| 81 | anchored, moored, made fast to the shore, or aground. |
| 82 | (2) A No person may not shall operate a vessel on the |
| 83 | waters of this state unless the said vessel is equipped with |
| 84 | properly serviceable lights and shapes required by the |
| 85 | navigation rules. |
| 86 | (3) The use of sirens or flashing, occulting, or revolving |
| 87 | lights on any vessel is prohibited, except as expressly provided |
| 88 | in the navigation rules or annexes thereto. |
| 89 | Section 4. Except as otherwise expressly provided in this |
| 90 | act, this act shall take effect October 1, 2009. |