0661: FLOOR ANALYSIS - CHILD CAR SEAT SAFETY GRANT PROGRAM

CHILD CAR SEAT SAFETY GRANT PROGRAM - S.B. 661: FLOOR ANALYSIS

Senate Bill 661 (as reported without amendment)

Sponsor: Senator Mike Rogers

CONTENT

The bill would amend the Michigan Vehicle Code to require the Department of Community Health (DCH) to establish a child car seat safety grant program for the purpose of providing grants for training, promotion, and education concerning the child restraint system use requirements under the Vehicle Code. The program would have to provide grants to persons whom the DCH considered eligible. The bill would require the Legislature to appropriate $300,000 from the General Fund to fund the child care seat safety grant program.

The DCH would have to promulgate rules under the Administrative Procedures Act to implement the bill, including, but not limited to, eligibility standards for the award of a grant.

(The Vehicle Code requires that a child under four to be in a child restraint system, regardless of where he or she is seated.)

Proposed MCL 257.710g - Legislative Analyst: P. Affholter

FISCAL IMPACT

As this bill would appropriate $300,000 GF/GP for the grant program, one may assume that this would be the maximum cost to the State. Of course, as it is not clear whether funds also are intended to cover administrative costs, there could be additional costs of this nature. In addition, some Statewide health care savings could accrue if this grant program reduced death and injury from lack of, or improper use of, child restraint systems. However, according to the "National SAFE KIDS Campaign", even though correctly installed and properly used child safety seats will reduce child fatalities or serious injury in automobile accidents, they will not eliminate them. As an example, this organization reports 71% and 54% reductions in fatalities for infants and children aged one through four, respectively, and a 69% reduction in hospitalization for children four and under when restraints are properly used. As such, quantifying those probable savings would be difficult due to the relatively small number of deaths of children below five years of age in car crashes (e.g., for 1994, 14 deaths where restraints were not used and 11 where restraints were used).

Date Completed: 5-16-00 - Fiscal Analyst: J. WalkerFloor\sb661 - Bill Analysis @ http://www.state.mi.us/sfa

This analysis was prepared by nonpartisan Senate staff for use by the Senate in its deliberations and does not constitute an official statement of legislative intent.