The police’s quest to get drivers and passengers to buckle up could gain teeth if a bill introduced to the state Legislature earlier this month passes. Riding in a car without a seatbelt is currently illegal, but suspicion a driver is without a fastened seat belt is not legitimate grounds for a policeman to pull a car over, a feature of state law the bill would reverse.

Other states have adopted similar laws, which use the threat of a ticket to encourage people to wear seat belts.

If the bill is passed, the fine for a first offense would increase from the current $10 fine to $25 and the second and subsequent offenses would also increase to no less than $50 and no more than $75. Right now, a ticket for a seat-belt violation cannot be issued unless the driver has been stopped for a different traffic violation.

In a recent study, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated the bill’s impact would increase seat-belt usage to save an additional 76 lives as well as prevent 1,968 injuries per year.

Some state representatives have said the seat-belt legislation is important to help keep Wisconsin’s motorists safe.

Rep. John Ainsworth, R-Shawano, chairman of the Assembly’s Transportation Committee and lead author of the bill, says expanding Wisconsin’s highways to make them safer is too costly, so government must first try everything they can to ensure the public’s safety by other means.

“Our streets and highways are specially constructed public facilities, and motorists should know that the state is taking all necessary actions to ensure these facilities are as safe as possible for everyone’s travel,” Ainsworth said.

Wisconsin has one of the nation’s lowest seat-belt-use rates. Failure to use seatbelts caused 805 deaths in 2002, which is the highest level in 13 years.

Proponents of the bill said this law is firmly about saving lives. However, those opposed to the bill say seat-belt enforcement is not the highest priority of law enforcement.

Rep. Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford, says the Legislature’s energy should be focused elsewhere.

“I believe we have more important duties than seat-belt violations,” Suder said. “My constituents for the most part agree that this law goes too far and conflicts with more important crime, like the war on terrorism.”

Ainsworth does not think other areas of law enforcement take precedent over the seat-belt law.

“If one wants to focus on anti-terrorism, then they can go ahead and do that,” Ainsworth said.

Besides saving lives, the law could result in an annual economic state savings of an estimated $196 million. These savings include both medical costs and long-term economic losses associated with death.

Suder said the bill was designed to increase income for the state by the fines associated with tickets for not buckling up.

“This is legislative terrorism and blackmail of the worst kind by the federal government,” Suder said.

Suder says raising fees for tickets should not be part of the answer to solving the budget deficit. He said he supports enforcement of current safety belt usage for minors, but that he will vote against primary enforcement legislation for adults, even though he himself is a firm believer in the seat belt.

“We have a responsibility to protect those underage, for once one reaches the age of majority they should be able to make their own decision [to wear or not wear a seat belt],” Suder said.

Rep. Garey Bies, R-Sister Bay, vice chairman of the Assembly Committee on Highway Safety and a 30-year veteran of the Door County Sheriff’s Department, says if it passes, the law won’t have a negative effect.

“In all my years of law enforcement and in one term as a state legislator, I’ve yet to hear a legitimate argument against voting for the primary enforcement of seatbelts,” Bies said.

Sen. Ron Brown, R-Eau Claire, is a co-sponsor of the bill and agrees with Bies.

“This bill is about saving lives,” Brown said. “After 30 years in public safety, I’ve seen — far too often — what happens when people don’t wear seat belts.”