H.R. 156·Elementary Beginner
A Bill to Require Seat Belts on All New School Buses
Rep. Singh (D-IL)
All newly manufactured school buses must come with three-point seat belts.
Sec. 1 — Mandate
School buses manufactured after January 1, 2027 must include three-point seat belts at every passenger seat.
Sec. 2 — Funding
$110 million to help districts purchase compliant buses.
Sec. 3 — Enforcement
The NHTSA enforces manufacturer compliance.
Sec. 4 — Effective Date
January 1, 2027.
Tournament Prep
Mechanical parts, sourced & timed
Use this as your pre-round checklist. Memorize the source citation. Time yourself to the delivery target.
- Bill / Number
- H.R. 156 — A Bill to Require Seat Belts on All New School Buses
- Funding source
- $110M from the Highway Trust Fund / NHTSA grant account.
- Timeline
- All new buses by January 1, 2027.
- Realistic — only applies to *new* manufacturing; doesn't retrofit existing fleet.
- Enforcing agency
- NHTSA (manufacturer compliance via FMVSS).
- Yes — NHTSA already sets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
- Penalty for non-compliance
- Civil penalties on non-compliant manufacturers under 49 U.S.C. § 30165.
- Source citation
- NTSB Special Investigation Report SIR-18/02 (2018) — ntsb.gov.
- Delivery time (read aloud)
- 55s
Strongest counter-argument
Compartmentalization (high seat backs) already makes school buses among the safest vehicles.
Your pre-emptive answer
Compartmentalization fails in side-impact and rollover crashes, which NTSB (2018) identified as the most fatal bus crash types. Lap-shoulder belts cut ejection deaths to near zero.