{"data":{"id":"us-vt/23-v.s.a.-1258","jurisdiction":"us-vt","citation":"23 V.S.A. § 1258","heading":"Child restraint systems; individuals under 18 years of age","body":"(a) No individual shall operate a motor vehicle, other than a type I school bus, in this State upon a public highway unless every occupant under 18 years of age is properly restrained in a federally approved child restraint system as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended, or a federally approved safety belt, as follows:\n(1) a child under two years of age shall be properly secured in a federally approved rear-facing child restraint system with a harness, as those terms are defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended;\n(2) a child under five years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved rear-facing child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1) of this subsection shall be properly secured in a forward-facing federally approved child restraint system with a harness until the child reaches the weight or height limit of the child restraint system as set by the manufacturer;\n(3) a child under eight years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1) or (2) of this subsection shall be properly secured in a booster seat, as defined in 49 C.F.R. § 571.213, as may be amended;\n(4) a child under 18 years of age who is not properly secured in a federally approved child restraint system in accordance with subdivision (1), (2), or (3) of this subsection shall be restrained in a safety belt system\n(5) a child under 13 years of age shall always, if practical, ride in a rear seat of a motor vehicle; and\n(6) no child shall be secured in a rear-facing child restraint system in the front seat of a motor vehicle that is equipped with an active passenger-side airbag unless the airbag is deactivated.\n(b) An individual shall not be adjudicated in violation of this section if:\n(1) the motor vehicle is regularly used to transport passengers for hire, except a motor vehicle owned or operated by a child care facility;\n(2) the motor vehicle was manufactured without safety belts; or\n(3) the individual has been ordered by an enforcement officer, a firefighter, or an authorized civil authority to evacuate individuals from a stricken area.\n(c) The civil penalty for violation of this section shall be as follows:\n(1) $25.00 for a first violation;\n(2) $50.00 for a second violation; and\n(3) $100.00 for third and subsequent violations.","path":["Title 23: Motor Vehicles","Chapter 013: Operation of Vehicles","Subchapter 014: EQUIPMENT"],"source_url":"https://legislature.vermont.gov/statutes/section/23/013/01258","current_through":"2025 session","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T17:17:05Z","sha256":"540d8ed2e88563e7925e755fcf5608852d0cdbc1b5ce253b2a82acd92dfca0e1","source_id":"us-vt","stale":false,"prev":"us-vt/23-v.s.a.-1257","next":"us-vt/23-v.s.a.-1259"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}