AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — The Maine Legislature has declined to roll back the state's seat belt law.
A proposal to make failure to buckle up a secondary rather than primary offense failed Thursday in the Senate. It was rejected the day before in the House.
Republican Sen. Ron Collins of Wells said Thursday before the Senate vote that the 91-51 margin in the house was decisive and would be difficult to overcome.
The Senate voted 18-16 against the bill.
Maine's seat belt law, in effect since 2008, allows police to stop a car if someone is unbuckled and allows the driver to be cited if anyone under 18 is unbuckled. The fines for violating the law are $50 for the first offense, $125 for the second offense and $250 for subsequent offenses.
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Information from: Portland Press Herald, http://www.pressherald.com
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Seatbelt Rollback Dead in Legislature
I am pleased the Legislature killed the seatbelt law rollback.
Frankly, I hate wearing a seatbelt, but in two serious accidents it saved me from serious injury and maybe even death.
If it had been rolled back to being a secondary offense _ where police couldn't stop a motorist just for a seatbelt violation _ I would probably wear my seatbelt far less than I do now. With not wearing a seatbelt as a primary offense, I almost always wear mine.
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