Current Car Seat Laws in Michigan
Parents want to keep their children safe. In order to do this while driving, parents need to make sure that their child is riding in the appropriate kind of car seat. Car seat laws in Michigan provide a great sense of safety for children, but as always, there are additional safety resources that can be followed to protect your specific child.
At any given age, children come in all different shapes and sizes. The current car seat laws in Michigan are written based on the age of a child. For example, children from ages 0 to 2 years old must be in a rear-facing car seat in the back of the car. From ages 2 to 4 years old, they need to be in a forward-facing rear car seat.
Changing Car Seat Laws in Michigan Based on Weight
The Michigan House of Representatives has recently proposed House Bill 4951, which would determine the position of a car seat based on a child’s weight. If a child weighs less than 30 lbs., or is less than 2 years old, they have to be in a rear-facing car seat. The next category would require children who weigh more than 30 lbs., but less than 50 lbs., or between the ages of 2 and 5 years old, to be in a forward-facing rear car seat.
These newly suggested categories may sound confusing because of the “or” that is in the middle of them. The “or” is added in there because children may not weigh between the certain weight for a particular age range.
Use This Bill to Think about Your Child’s Safety
HB 4951 was passed in the House in December of 2017. Since then, the Bill has been referred to the Senate and the Committee of the Whole. If the Bill were to pass in the Senate, it would then have to be signed by the Governor in order for it to become a law. It is quite possible that we may not see activity on this Bill for some time.
However, parents can use this bill on car seat laws in Michigan when they are considering where to position their children in the car.
