Tennessee Lawmakers Reluctantly Move Bill Requiring Seat Belts on School Buses

A bill that would require seat belts on new school buses in Tennessee continues to advance in the Legislature, but lawmakers remain skeptical about the restraints.

Questions about the cost of the measure and concerns about whether the restraints might trap children if the bus caught on fire continue to dog the proposal. Lawmakers from Chattanooga, however, remained committed to fight for the bill that came as a result of deadly crash that killed six children in that city in November.

The Senate Education Committee voted on Wednesday to pass the bill and moved it along to the Senate Finance Committee.

The bill, which has been amended to keep costs down, would now require that only new school buses purchased after July 2019 have the restraints.