Parents across the state will be legally required to keep their children in booster seats longer starting June 24.
Monday, Gov. Steve Beshear joined child safety advocates and University of Kentucky medical staff in Lexington to ceremonially sign House Bill 315 – a measure increasing the age and height requirements for children riding in passenger seats without the special restraints.
Dr. Susan Pollack, a pediatrician with Kentucky Children’s Hospital, says the new rules up the age from seven to eight and the minimum height from 50 inches to 57 inches.
"If you think of all the children in our state who fall into those seven inches, that's a lot of children who have not been protected," she says. "The real issue is that we know that children don't get to be adult height at age seven, so this bill gives us the mechanism to protect children longer."
The bill brings Kentucky in line with 31 other states, including all seven bordering the Commonwealth.
Once the rule goes into effect, officers will be able to issue citations and $30 fines for violations.
