Conn. seat belt bill delayed for study of cost, safety

HARTFORD, Conn. — Lawmakers in the General Assembly are delaying action on H.B. 5033 until a study is completed regarding the impacts of seat belts on school buses.

The bill would require the installation of three-point belts on new school buses in the state. The legislature's Appropriations Committee on Monday amended the bill to require state motor vehicle and education officials to study safety issues and the costs to cities and towns involved in seat belt installation, the Hartford Courant reports.

Lawmakers said there were discrepancies in cost estimates submitted by the legislature's budget office. Officials from that office estimated that over the next 12 years, buying new buses with three-point belts will cost school districts an additional $45 million to $103 million.

The bill was approved by the Transportation Committee last month, and in January, a poll found that 73 percent of voters in the state approved of the seat belt bill, as SBF previously reported here.