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Child Passenger Safety Laws
Child passenger restraint requirements vary based on age, weight and height. Often, this happens in three stages: infants use rear-facing infant seats; toddlers use forward facing child safety seats; and older children use booster seats.
Many laws require all children to ride in the rear seat whenever possible, and most states permit children over a particular age, height or weight to use an adult safety belt. First offense fines for not complying with a state's child passenger safety laws vary from $10 to $500. Some states also use driver's license points as an additional penalty for noncompliance.
- All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and the Virgin Islands require child safety seats for infants and children fitting specific criteria.
- 47 states and the District of Columbia require booster seats or other appropriate devices for children who have outgrown their child safety seats but are still too small to use an adult seat belt safely. The only states lacking booster seat laws are Arizona, Florida and South Dakota.
- 5 states (California, Florida, Louisiana, New Jersey and New York) have seat belt requirements for school buses. Texas will require them on buses purchased after September 2010.
| State | Child Restraint Required unless indicated, # refers to Yrs.(Lbs.) |
Adult Safety Belt Permissible unless indicated, # refers to Yrs.(Lbs.) |
Maximum Fine 1st Offense |
| Alabama | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat; 1 - 4 (or 20 - 40) in forward-facing child safety seat; 5 (but not yet 6) in booster seat | 6 - 14 | $25 + points |
| Alaska | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat; 1 - 4 (and >20) in child safety seat; 4 - 8 (and 20 - 64 lbs. or <57") in booster seat | >4 (and >64 or >57") 8-16 (and <64 or <57") |
$15 + points |
| Arizona | <5 | Not permissible | $50 |
| Arkansas | <5 (and <60) | 6 - 14 (or >60) | $100 |
| California | <5 (or <60) in a rear seat if available | 6 - 15 (or >60) | $100 + points |
| Colorado | <1 (and <20) in rear-facing infant seat in rear seat if available; 1 - 3 (and 20 - 40) in forward-facing child safety seat; 4 - 7 (and <55") in booster seat (eff. 8/10) | 8 - 15 (or >55") (eff. 8/10) |
$82 |
| Connecticut | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing restraint system; 1 - 6 (and <60) in child restraint system; booster seats only w/ a lap and shoulder belt | 7 - 15 (and >60) | $60 ($15 for 4 - 16 and >40 lbs.) |
| Delaware | <7 (and <66) | 8 - 15 (or >66) | $25 |
| D.C. | <7 | 8 - 15 | $75 + points |
| Florida | <3 | 4 - 5 | $60 + points |
| Georgia | <5 (and <57") in rear seat if available | >57"; >40 lbs. can use lap belt if lap/shoulder belt unavailable | $50 + points |
| Guam | <12 in child restraint or booster seat | >12 | $100 |
| Hawaii | <3 in child safety seat; 4 - 7 in booster seat or child restraint | 4 - 7 (and >4'9"); 4 - 7 (and >40 lbs.) in rear seat can use lap belt if lap/shoulder belt unavailable | $100 |
| Idaho | <7 | Not permissible | $69 |
| Illinois | <7 | 8 - 15; >40 lbs. in rear seat if only lap belt available | $50 |
| Indiana | <7 | 8 - 15; >40 lbs. can use lap belt if lap/shoulder belt unavailable | $25 + points |
| Iowa | <1 (and <20) in a rear-facing child seat; 1 - 5 in child restraint | 6 - 17 | $25 |
| Kansas | <3 in child restraint; 4 - 7 (and <80 or <57") in child restraint or booster seat | 8 - 13; 4 - 7 (and >80 or >57") | $60 |
| Kentucky | <40" in child restraint; <6 (and between 40" and 50") in booster seat | <6 (and >50") | $50 child restraint; $30 booster seat |
| Louisiana | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing child safety seat; 1 - 3 (or 20 - 39) in forward-facing child safety seat; 4 - 5 (or 40 - 60) in booster seat | 6 -12 (or >60) | $100 |
| Maine | <40 lbs. in child safety seat; 40 - 80 lbs. and <8 yrs. in safety system that elevates child so that adult safety belt fits properly; <11 (and <100) in rear seat if available | 8 - 17 (or <18 yrs. and >4'9") | $50 (max. $250 for subsequent offenses) |
| Maryland | <8 years (and either <57" or <65 lbs.) | 8 - 15 (or >57" or 65 lbs.) | $25 |
| Massachusetts | <7 (and <57") | 8 - 12 (or >57") | $25 |
| Michigan | <7 (and <57"); <4 in rear seat if available | 8 - 15 (or >57") | $10 for <4; $50 for 4 - 8 and under 4'9" |
| Minnesota | <7 (and <57") | >8 (or >57”) | $50 |
| Mississippi | <4 in child restraint; 4 - <7 (and <57" or <65 lbs.) in booster seat | >7 (and >57" or >65 lbs.) | $25 |
| Missouri | <4 (or <40) in child safety seat; 4 - 7 (and 40 - 80 and <4'9") in child safety seat or booster seat; >4 years (and >80 or >4'9") in booster seat or safety belt; if all safety restraints in use, <16 in rear seat | 8 - 16; >4 (and >80 or >4'9") | $50; $10 for >80 lbs. or >4'9" |
| Montana | <6 (and <60) | Not permissible | $100 |
| Nebraska | <5 | 6 - 17 | $25 + points |
| Nevada | <6 (and <60) | Not permissible | $500 (min. $100) |
| New Hampshire | <5 (and <55") | 6 - 17 (or <6 and >55") | $50 |
| New Jersey | <8 (and <80) in rear seat if available | Not permissible | $25 + court fees |
| New Mexico | <1 in rear-facing infant seat in rear seat if available; 1 - 4 (or <40) in child safety seat; 5 - 6 (or <60) in booster seat | 7 - 17 | $25 |
| New York | <3 unless >40 lbs. and no lap/shoulder belt available; 4 - 7 unless no lap/shoulder belt available | 8 - 15; or 4 - 7 (or >40) if no lap/shoulder belt available | $100 + points |
| North Carolina | <7 (and <80) | 8 - 15 (or 40 - 80 lbs. in seats w/out shoulder belts) | $25 + $100 court costs + points |
| North Dakota | <6 (and <57" or <80 lbs.) | 7 - 17; <6 (and >80 and >57"); <6 (and >40) can use lap belt if lap/shoulder belts unavailable | $25 + 1 pt. |
| Northern Mariana Islands | <5 (or <70) | >5 (or >70) | $50 - $250 |
| Ohio | <4 (or <40) in child safety seat; 4 - 7 (and <4'9") in booster seat | 8 - 14 | $75 |
| Oklahoma | <5 | 6 - 12; >40 lbs. can use lap belt if lap/shoulder belt unavailable | $50 (up to $207.90 with court costs) |
| Oregon | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing child safety seat; <40 lbs. in a child safety seat; >40 lbs. (and <4'9" or less than 8 years old) in safety system that elevates the child so that an adult seat belts fits properly | >4'9" | $97 |
| Pennsylvania | <7 | Not permissible | $100 |
| Rhode Island | <7 (and <80 and <57") in rear seat if available | <7 (and >80 or >57"); 8 - 17 | $75 |
| South Carolina | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat; 1 - 5 (and 20 - 39) in forward-facing child safety seat; 1 - 5 (and 40 - 80) in booster seat secured by lap/shoulder belt (lap belt alone is not permissible); <5 in rear seat if available | 1 - 5 (and >80) or <5 if child's knees bend over the seat edge when sitting up straight with his/her back firmly against the seat back | $150 |
| South Dakota | <5 (and <40) | 5 - 17 (or >40) | $25 |
| Tennessee | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat; 1 - 3 (and >20) in forward-facing infant seat; 4 - 8 (and <4'9") in booster seat; <8 (and <4'9") in rear seat if available; rear seat recommended for 9 - 12 | 9 - 15 (or <12 and >4'9") | $50 |
| Texas | <7 (and <57") | Not permissible | $25 |
| Utah | <7 (and <57") | 8 - 15 (or >57") | $45 |
| Vermont | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat in rear seat unless front passenger airbag is deactivated; 2 - 7 (and >20) | 8 - 17 (and >20) | $25 |
| Virgin Islands | <5 | >3 | $25 to $250 |
| Virginia | <7; rear-facing devices in rear seat if available; if not, in front seat only if front passenger airbag is deactivated | 8 - 17 (4 - 8 with physician's exemption) | $50 |
| Washington | <8 (and <4'9"); <13 in rear seat if practical | 8 - 15 (or <8 and >4'9"); >40 lbs. in position where only lap belt available | $124 to driver if passenger <16; $124 to passenger if >16 |
| West Virginia | <7 (and <4'9") | <7 (and >4'9) | $20 |
| Wisconsin | <1 (or <20) in rear-facing infant seat; 1 - 3 (and 20 - 40) in forward-facing child safety seat; 4 - 7 (and 40 - 80 and <57") in booster seat; <3 in rear seat if available | <8 (and >80 and >57") | $75 |
| Wyoming | <8 in rear seat if available | Not permissible | $50 |
| Totals | 50 States + D.C., Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Virgin Islands |
Sources: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and State Highway Safety Offices.