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Despite arguments that it would unfairly infringe on personal freedom, a bill to allow stricter enforcement of Utah's seat belt laws advanced out of committee Friday.
"There are very few bills that we get to vote on that will save lives. And this one, there's no doubt about it. The evidence is very clear," said Rep. Steve Eliason, R-Sandy.
The House Law Enforcement Committee voted 7-2 to pass HB79, and sent it to the full House.
It would make failure to wear a seat belt a primary offense, meaning officers could stop and cite people directly for the lapse. Currently, Utah has a "secondary" law for those 18 and older. A $45 ticket can be issued only when an officer stops a vehicle for another reason.
Bill sponsor, Rep. Lee Perry, R-Perry, is a Utah Highway Patrol lieutenant who says he has investigated too many fatalities caused by not wearing a seat belt — and wants to name his legislation the "Tyler and Mandi" bill in memory of two of them.
Tyler Stuart was a 16-year-old family friend of Perry, whom Perry found laying dead on Interstate 15. Perry had to break the tragic news to Tyler's mother, Kelli Stuart.
Stuart, an emergency room nurse, told the committee she too has seen too many people killed in gruesome ways by not wearing seat belts. "The day it was my son was the worst day of my life."
Melissa Brown, mother of Mandi Brown who was killed in the same accident, said their truck was intact but they were ejected because they did not wear seat belts. She said Perry's bill likely would have made them buckle up for fear of a ticket.
Carlos Braceras, executive director of the Utah Department of Transportation, said the 17 percent of Utahns who do not wear seat belts account "for half of the fatalities."
He said they can become projectiles in accidents and hurt or kill others in the car. Also, he said serious accidents often result from drivers losing control while swerving because forces pull them out of the seat, possibly killing others.
But Cindy O'Neil of Wellington said, "Wearing a seat belt will not make me a better driver, and laws should not criminalize my freedom." She said if lawmakers want to stop unbuckled passengers from becoming projectiles in accidents, they should also require tying down all cargo and personal items in cars, too.
Josh Daniels, a policy analyst with the Libertas Institute, called the bill an overreach. He said if people already do not wear a seat belt knowing it could kill them, "how will that change when the consequence is merely a possible ticket?"
Perry said he had heard complaints that police want such a law just to raise more revenue. So he amended the bill so that the fine would be waived for violators who choose to take a half-hour course instead.
Similar bills have been run for years, but have always failed because of concerns about how it affects personal freedom. Perry said people could still have the freedom not to buckle up, but his bill gives them incentive to do so by facing a ticket.