CA bill would ban some teens up to 16 years old from riding in the front seat

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- California teens could be banned from riding in the front seat of a car.

Last week, Assemblymember Lori Wilson's car seat bill passed its first committee in Sacramento.

It would require all children younger than 10 years old and shorter kids under 13 to sit on a booster seat. Kids under 13 would be prohibited from sitting in the front seat. Teens up to 16 years old would also be banned from riding shotgun unless they meet the height requirements.

Jennifer Rubin, coordinator with Safe Kids Greater Sacramento is a supporter.

"The national recommendations have been updated for awhile, in states like Louisiana, Minnesota, already have a law similar to this," Rubin said.

Right now, kids in California must stay in the backseat in their car seat or booster seat until they turn 8 years old or are 4 foot 9 inches or taller.

MORE: New 1st-in-the-nation CA legislation aims at phasing out ultra-processed foods in school meals

"Right now just giving the age of 8 misses a lot of kids that are not tall enough, or lanky enough to fit the seat belt just right," Rubin said.

Benjamin Arias and his wife own Beep Beep Car Seat.

Arias is a certified expert when it comes to car seat inspections and installations. Together, they've checked over 30,000 belts throughout the Bay Area. Arias explains why car seats are not so much tied to age, but tied to belt fit.

"The belt is touching the strongest parts of the body that's through the chest, and upper shoulders and upper hip- not on the neck, not on the tummy," Arias said.

Through instruction and education he hopes to adults understand why moving to a seat belt too early is dangerous.

"When I was working at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital, where a child came up to me and she had her glasses indented into her nose because that airbag deployed in her face and pushed her glasses in," Arias said.

MORE: California bill banning transgender athletes from girls sports fails

Assemblymember Tom Lackey, who is a former CHP officer, expressed concerns about enforcing the bill.

"Having enforced traffic laws determining the age of children is very difficult to do when you have no verifying identification at that age level, so you're going to have to trust the parents," Lackey said.

Lackey said the bill is well intended.

Safety advocates say the main goal is to boost safety and reduce injuries in crashes.

"If that child had just been in their $25 or $30 booster seat, they could've skipped those lifelong, internal, or spinal cord injuries that will impact them for the rest of their lives," Rubin said.

The car seat bill passed out of the assembly transportation committee and adjustments are still being made.