AN ACT to clarify law regarding child restraint systems.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 20‑137.1 reads as rewritten:

§ 20‑137.1.  Child restraint systems required.

(a)        Every driver who is transporting one or more passengers of less than 16 years of age shall have all such passengers properly secured in a child passenger restraint system or seat belt which meets federal standards applicable at the time of its manufacture. For purposes of this section, a child passenger restraint system means any device designed to restrain or position a child in a motor vehicle, including a booster seat.

(a1)      A child less than eight years of age and less than 80 pounds in weight 57 inches in height shall be properly secured in a weight‑appropriate height‑ and weight‑appropriate child passenger restraint system. In vehicles equipped with an active passenger‑side front air bag, if the vehicle has a rear seat, a child less than five years of age and less than 40 pounds in weight shall be properly secured in a rear seat, unless the child restraint system is designed for use with air bags. If no seating position equipped with a lap and shoulder belt to properly secure the weight‑appropriate child passenger restraint system is available, a child less than eight years of age and between 40 and 80 pounds may be restrained by a properly fitted lap belt only.system as follows:

(1)        Beginning as a newborn, a child shall be properly secured in a rear‑facing child passenger restraint system with transition to a forward‑facing system according to the manufacturer's instructions related to the child's height and weight requirements for use of the system as indicated by the federally required label on the car seat which states those requirements.

(2)        The child shall be properly secured in a child passenger restraint system in a rear seat unless at least one of the following applies:

a.         The vehicle does not have a rear seat.

b.         The vehicle is not equipped with an active passenger‑side front air bag.

c.         The child passenger restraint system is designed for use with air bags.

(3)        Notwithstanding the other subdivisions of this subsection, under no circumstances shall a child be placed in a rear‑facing child passenger restraint system in a front passenger seat that has an active front air bag.

(a2)      Notwithstanding subsection (a1) of this section, a driver may satisfy the requirements of this section by properly securing a child passenger with a seat belt as follows:

(1)        A child less than eight years of age, between 40 and 80 pounds, and less than 57 inches in height may be restrained by a properly fitted lap belt, if no seating position equipped with a lap and shoulder belt to properly secure the weight‑appropriate child passenger restraint system is available.

(2)        A child at least eight years of age or 57 inches in height may be restrained by a properly secured lap and shoulder belt. For purposes of this subdivision, a lap and shoulder belt are properly secured if when fastened all of the following apply:

a.         The lap belt fits across the child's thighs and hips and not across the child's abdomen.

b.         The shoulder belt crosses the child's body diagonally at approximately the midpoint of the child's shoulder and the center of the child's chest.

c.         The child can sit with the child's back straight against the vehicle's seat back cushion and with the child's knees bent over the vehicle's seat edge without slouching.

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SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to offenses committed on or after that date.