NATIONAL COALITION OF SCHOOL BUS SAFETY NEWS UP TO DEC. 2003

Muttontown mom angered by state law on school bus seatbelts
October 23, 2003

OYSTER BAY - A Muttontown mother says she's being stopped from making sure her kids get to school safely.

When Julieanne Beckerman puts her 5 and 8-year-old sons on the bus, she wants to make sure their seatbelts are buckled for their trip to East Wood School in Oyster Bay Cove.

But Paul Mori of Hendrickson Bus Company claims allowing Beckerman to get on the bus would be against the law.

Since 1987 all new buses in New York State are required by law to have seatbelts, but there is a major loophole in that law. It is up to the individual school district to decide whether the kids have to wear them.

The Oyster Bay School District, which covers Muttontown, does not require that seatbelts be worn. The school district is not alone; only 10 districts on Long Island require that kids buckle up.

State Senator Charles Fuschillo (R-Freeport) is proposing a law that would require all riders on school buses buckle up. That law is currently being considered by the Education Committee in Albany.

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