After a Bicameral Conference Committee Hearing last November 26, the upper and lower houses of Congress have unanimously approved the proposed Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act.

Sen. JV Ejercito served as the chair of the bicameral conferees and he was joined by Sen. Risa
Hontiveros. Meanwhile, the House bicameral conferees on the other hand were Cong. Cesar Sarmiento and Cong. Mariano Michael Velarde, Jr., Cong. Johnny Pimentel, Cong. John Marvin C. Nieto, Cong. Florida Robes, and Cong. Rozzano Rufino Biazon.

Chair of the earlier Bicameral Conference Committee, Sen. Ejercito noted that “Seat belts save lives and it was about time that we [the Philippines] implement laws that are designed to protect the lives of our commuters, especially children.”

Once signed into law, here is what you can expect:

• It defines a child to be any person aged twelve (12) and below.
• It covers any private and public vehicle including government-owned and/or controlled and any diplomatic vehicle, but shall not include motorcycles and tricycles.
• It makes it illegal to leave a child unaccompanied by an adult in a motor vehicle whenever the engine is running.
• A child must always be secured a seatbelt whenever the engine is running in a vehicle.
• A child measuring at least 150 centimeters (59 inches) must be secured using the vehicle’s regular seatbelt.
• No child below the age of 12 shall be allowed to sit in the front seat unless he or she is exempted for medical reasons.
• Children falling below the mentioned criteria above (age and/or height) is required to be secured using a Child Restraint System.
• The only exemptions to not buckling up would be when the restraint system poses a risk to a child such as during a medical emergency or when the child transported has a medical or developmental condition.
• The Department of Trade and Industry will use United Regulation 44 and United Nations Regulation 129 to approve or disapprove child restraint systems that will be manufactured, sold, distributed, and sold in the Philippines.
• All manufacturers, importers, distributors, and sellers of child restraint systems must be required to secure a Bureau of Product Standards (BPS) mark license or Import Clearance Certificate (ICC) prior to their sale and distribution.
• Any driver found in violation of this law, including the use of a substandard child restraint system, will be subject to a P 1,000 fine for the first offense, P 2,000 for the second, and P 5,000 for the third offense. The driver’s license will also be suspended for one (1) year for the third offense.
• For manufacturers, distributors, and sellers, failure to secure a BPS or ICC mark will entail a minimum fine of P 10,000 to a maximum of P 20,000 for every non-compliant product. Tapering will entail the same penalties.

According to the Bicameral Committee, the target date of the Child Safety in Motor Vehicles Act is within 6 (six) months. At that time, the necessary agencies will draft a more thorough Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) which will cover things including the proper installation and positioning of the child restraint system.

After the hearing, the Bicameral Committee also commemorated the World Day of Remembrance (WDR) for Road Traffic Victims.

In her opening remarks, the Chair of Committee on Public Services, Senator Grace Poe reminded,
“There are many children who became victim to road crashes. This event is very important, because every day we encounter traffic on the road so it is important that our vehicles, commuters and roads are safe.”