PRINTER'S NO. 3500
No. 578 Session of 2006
INTRODUCED BY RUBLEY, ARGALL, ARMSTRONG, BAKER, BALDWIN,
BASTIAN, BEBKO-JONES, BELARDI, BELFANTI, BEYER, BOYD,
CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, CAUSER, COHEN, CORNELL, CORRIGAN,
CRAHALLA, CREIGHTON, CRUZ, DENLINGER, DeWEESE, DiGIROLAMO,
DONATUCCI, J. EVANS, FABRIZIO, FAIRCHILD, FEESE, FLEAGLE,
FLICK, FORCIER, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GEIST, GEORGE, GILLESPIE,
GINGRICH, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARHART, HERMAN, HERSHEY, HESS,
JAMES, KILLION, LEDERER, LEH, MAJOR, MANN, MARKOSEK, McCALL,
McGILL, McILHATTAN, MELIO, MILLARD, MUNDY, MUSTIO, MYERS,
PALLONE, PARKER, PAYNE, PHILLIPS, PICKETT, PISTELLA, PYLE,
RAPP, READSHAW, REICHLEY, ROBERTS, ROSS, SAINATO, SANTONI,
SATHER, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO, SCHRODER, SEMMEL, SHAPIRO,
SIPTROTH, B. SMITH, SOLOBAY, SONNEY, STAIRS, SURRA,
TANGRETTI, E. Z. TAYLOR, THOMAS, TIGUE, TRUE, WATSON,
WOJNAROSKI, YOUNGBLOOD AND ZUG, FEBRUARY 7, 2006
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35,
FEBRUARY 7, 2006
A RESOLUTION
1 Declaring the week of February 12 through 18, 2006, as "Child
2 Passenger Safety Week" in Pennsylvania.
3 WHEREAS, In 2004, motor vehicle crashes were the leading
4 cause of death for children of every age from 3 to 14 years of
5 age; and
6 WHEREAS, In 2004, children under 16 years of age accounted
7 for 2,286 of all vehicle occupant fatalities and 282,000 of all
8 the vehicle occupant-injured crashes; and
9 WHEREAS, From 1975 through 2004, an estimated 7,472 lives
10 were saved by the use of child restraints. In 2004, an estimated
11 451 children who were under five years of age were saved as a
1 result of child restraint use. If 100% of motor vehicle
2 occupants under five years of age were protected by child safety
3 seats, an estimated 566 lives could have been saved--that is an
4 additional 114 lives could have been saved if every child was
5 restrained in 2004; and
6 WHEREAS, Research shows that children are likely to be
7 buckled 92% of the time when adults are buckled, and only 72% of
8 the time when adults are not buckled; and
9 WHEREAS, According to the National Highway Traffic Safety
10 Administration (NHTSA), child safety seats, when correctly used,
11 can reduce the risk of fatal injury by 71% for infants and by
12 54% for toddlers in passenger cars; and
13 WHEREAS, All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico
14 and the United States Territories have enacted laws requiring
15 the use of child passenger protection systems; and
16 WHEREAS, Many child passenger safety seats are misused in
17 some way and correct placement and harnessing are critical to
18 ensure adequate protection; and
19 WHEREAS, Infants should always be placed in rear-facing seats
20 until they are at least one year of age and weigh 20 pounds; and
21 WHEREAS, Children who weigh between 20 and 40 pounds should
22 be placed in forward-facing safety seats; and
23 WHEREAS, All children who have outgrown child safety seats
24 should be properly restrained in booster seats until they are at
25 least eight years of age, unless they are four feet nine inches
26 tall; and
27 WHEREAS, Children in rear-facing child seats should not be
28 placed in the front seat of vehicles with passenger air bags as
29 the impact of a deploying air bag on a rear-facing child seat
30 could injure the child; and
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1 WHEREAS, Children 12 years of age and younger should ride in
2 the back seat; and
3 WHEREAS, Death and injury may be significantly reduced
4 through greater public awareness, information, education and
5 enforcement of child passenger safety seat laws; therefore be it
6 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives, in recognition
7 of every child's right to adequate protection when being
8 transported in a motor vehicle, declare the week of February 12
9 through 18, 2006, as "Child Passenger Safety Week" in
10 Pennsylvania.
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