9/4/26 - The Lane County Sheriff’s Office Reminds Everyone Child Safety Seats Save Lives! Lane County Sheriff’s Office continues to use state-funded grant overtime to enforce seatbelt laws, including child safety restraint requirements. Although enforcement helps, the most important step in preventing tragedy is ensuring a child safety seat is properly installed and used every time. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 46% of child car seats are installed incorrectly. The link below provides an excellent visual guide to Oregon’s Child Restraint Laws: https://www.oregon.gov/odot/Safety/Documents/ODOT_Car_Seat_Flyer_2021-English.pdf -Statistics- Car seats reduce the risk of fatal injury by 71% for infants and 54% for toddlers in passenger cars. Since 1975, child restraints have saved over 11,600 children under age 5. Nearly half of caregivers believe they installed seats correctly—but 46% are installed wrong. -Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT): Child Safety Seat Requirements- Children must use a child safety seat until 40 lbs or until they reach the upper weight limit of the seat. Infants must ride rear-facing until age two, unless they turned one before May 26, 2017. After outgrowing a forward‑facing harness, children must use a booster seat until 4'9" or age 8 and the adult belt fits properly. -Rear Seating- Oregon law does not prohibit children from riding in the front seat. However, rear‑facing seats may never be used in front of an active airbag. National best practices recommend children ride in the back seat through age 12. -Booster Seat Fit Test- To determine whether a child can safely transition from a booster to a seatbelt, answer YES to all: Can the child sit back with knees bending naturally at the seat edge? Do their feet rest flat on the floor? Does the shoulder belt lay flat across the collarbone and chest (not the neck)? Does the lap belt sit low across the thighs (not the stomach)? Can the child maintain this position comfortably for the entire trip? The Lane County Sheriff’s Office wants everyone to have a safe Holiday Weekend. So, please buckle-up and ensure every child is secured safely before your drive.