Interpretation ID: 23449ogm

Mr. Leonard Reisinger, Jr.
#EB-8933
301 Morea Road
Frackville, PA 17932

Dear Mr. Reisinger:

This responds to your letters addressed to former Administrator Martinez and former Secretary Slater. Your letters express concern that vehicles used by a private contractor for transporting prison inmates do not have seat belts. According to your letters, the vehicles at issue use school bus seats arranged to face each other to accommodate prisoners in transport. Your letter further indicates that these seats are located within a "cage" and that the seats are not equipped with seat belts. You are concerned that the failure to provide seat belts to prisoners violates both State and Federal safety belt laws.

Let me begin by making clear that this office has no special knowledge or expertise with respect to individual state laws. My answer will address only the requirements of the laws and regulations administered by this agency.

Some background information may be helpful. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is authorized under Chapter 301 of Title 49 of the United States Code (49 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) to issue motor vehicle safety standards that apply to the manufacture and sale of new motor vehicles and new items of motor vehicle equipment. NHTSA has exercised this authority to establish Standard No. 208, Occupant Crash Protection, (49 CFR 571.208) which, among other things, requires safety belts to be installed at certain seating positions in motor vehicles. However, different requirements apply depending on the vehicle type, seating position within the vehicle, and the size and weight of the vehicle. In addition, there are separate requirements applicable to new school buses. Accordingly, I cannot identify the specific requirements for the vehicles you are concerned about without knowing the vehicles' date of manufacture, seating capacity, and gross vehicle weight rating.

Chapter 301 provides that no person shall manufacture, import, or sell any new vehicle unless it complies with all applicable Federal motor vehicle safety standards, including the seat belt installation requirements in Standard No. 208 (See 49 U.S.C. 30112(a)). The requirement that a vehicle comply with all applicable safety standards applies only until the vehicle's first purchase in good faith for purposes other than resale. See 49 U.S.C. 30112(b). After such first purchase, the only provision in Federal law that affects modifications that can be made to the vehicle is set forth in 49 U.S.C. 30122(b). That section provides that:

A manufacturer, distributor, dealer, or motor vehicle repair business may not knowingly make inoperative any part of a device or element of design installed on or in a motor vehicle ... in compliance with an applicable motor vehicle safety standard prescribed under this chapter...

Please note that this prohibition applies only to the commercial entities identified in the section, not to individual vehicle owners. Vehicle owners may alter their own vehicles and operate them on the highways without violating Federal law, even if the owner's modifications cause the vehicle to no longer comply with the seat belt installation requirements of our standards. Thus, if an entity, such as a State or a contractor, purchases a vehicle and makes modifications itself, there is no violation of Federal law, even if the modified vehicle does not comply with our standards.

Your letter also asks if it is proper under state law for prisoners to be transported in highway vehicles without being restrained by seat belts. You also indicate that, when asked, a contractor that provides prisoner transport indicated that it was under no obligation to provide seat belts or air bags for prisoners. As noted above, this office cannot provide you with advice regarding the seat belt use laws of a particular state or states. I respectfully suggest that you contact the state or states whose laws may apply to your particular situation to determine if, and how, those laws apply.

Finally, you request "any information or studies" on seat belt safety and any hazards resulting from not having seat belts in vehicles. NHTSA has conducted many studies on this subject, including ones on the effectiveness of seat belts and automatic restraints in preventing or reducing injury. I am afraid that your request is so broad, and potentially encompasses so much material, that I cannot provide a specific response. If you have access to the internet, I would suggest that you visit the NHTSA website at www.nhtsa.dot.gov and review some of our most recent publications to determine if they contain the kind of information you require. If you do not have access to the internet, I would suggest that you call NHTSA's technical reference division at (800) 445-0197 to determine if there is a specific report or publication that is relevant to your particular concerns.

Sincerely,

John Womack
Acting Chief Counsel

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