Most seat belt legislation in the United States is left to the states. However, the first seat belt law was a federal law which took effect on January 1, 1968 that required all vehicles (except buses) to be fitted with seat belts in all designated seating positions. This law has since been modified to require three-point seat belts in outboard seating positions, and finally three-point seat belts in all seating positions. Initially, seat belt use was not compulsory. New York was the first state to pass a law which required vehicle occupants to wear seat belts, a law that came into effect on December 1, 1984.
U.S. seatbelt legislation may be subject to primary enforcement or secondary enforcement. Primary enforcement allows a police officer to stop and ticket a driver if s/he observes a violation. Secondary enforcement means that a police officer may only stop or cite a driver for a seatbelt violation if the driver committed another primary violation (such as speeding, running a stop sign, etc.) at the same time. New Hampshire is the only U.S. state that does not by law require drivers to wear safety belts while operating a motor vehicle.
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“In the United States there’s a Puritan ethic and a mythology of success. He who is successful is good. In Latin countries, in Catholic countries, a successful person is a sinner.”
—Umberto Eco (b. 1932)
“He who placed me in this seat will keep me here.”
—Elizabeth I (1533–1603)
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—Bible: New Testament, Matthew 3:4.
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