If you drive a car, you all know the seatbelt chime: the obnoxious tone that sounds if you drive without your seatbelt buckled. This writer won't tell you what to do, but it's always a good idea to buckle up when you're behind the wheel.
That being said, the decision to do that -- and how you're warned when you don't -- should be up to you and the car manufacturers.
But government? Nah. They have a horde of unelected bureaucrats just itching to create more rules.
Like this:
Requiring seatbelt warning chimes for all car seats is a significant change to existing law
— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) December 17, 2024
My copy of the Constitution says only Congress can make or change federal law
Unelected bureaucrats get away with this, but only because Congress and the Supreme Court have let them https://t.co/TUcSgPSsDa
More from The Washington Times:
The Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finalized a rule Monday that will require all car seats to adopt the “ding, ding, ding” safety belt chimes with warning lights that have long reminded drivers to buckle up.
The amendment to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 208 will require automakers to add front passenger seat warnings to all new cars, trucks, buses — except for school buses — and multipurpose passenger vehicles starting in September 2026.
Manufacturers must add the warning system to the rear seats of vehicles beginning in September 2027.
So all new vehicles will get more expensive.
Also, many cars and car seats attach to a latch system that often bypasses the seatbelt. So drivers will have to still engage the seatbelt to put a carseat in the back.
Or if you put luggage or groceries or drive for Uber, this will change how you operate. The weight of goods can trigger the warning.
Government doesn't think of this.
Adds more cost to every car thanks to some unelected bureaucrat and their rules.
— Souls 🇺🇲🇮🇱 (@PSouls2) December 17, 2024
Wheee!
Which is why Lee is correct. Only Congress should make these rules.
And even then, they shouldn't.
Here's a problem. When you load groceries or other items in the back seat, the sensors will assume there is a passenger, and then chime away unless you lock the seat belts. Government is stupid.
— Tom in FL (@thomasa56) December 17, 2024
As we said: government is stupid.
A seatbelt chime requires a weight sensor. That increases the cost and adds electronics to all seats. Then you put heavy boxes on your seat and the chime goes off.
— Chris (@Bitter_Grizzly) December 17, 2024
This writer used to carry a bag with medical supplies and a laptop for work.
THAT would trigger the front seat weight sensor.
This one won’t last. Once people get completely fed up with having to fasten the seat belt so that groceries on the back seat don’t set off an irritating warning beep, it will be the fastest regulation to disappear.
— John Quilhot (@johnjwq) December 17, 2024
The regulations won't disappear. They rarely do.
But people will find a way to disable the alarm.
The seat belt law was always about a reason to pull someone over when they were doing nothing wrong. It's not up to the government to force safety on people and fining them for noncompliance. I wear mine pretty religiously because I can think for myself. However, if people don't…
— The Disrespected Trucker (@DisrespectedThe) December 17, 2024
This.
This is a huge issue. The constant requirements for new features in cars drives up the cost of vehicles for Americans. https://t.co/NGX2k9P887
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) December 17, 2024
The bureaucrats don't care. To them, more expensive cars that price some people out of the market is a feature, not a bug.
This is exactly how government overreach works.
— THE REAL SLIM LAHEY (@REAL_SLIM_LAHEY) December 17, 2024
No, this particular case is not detrimental to the future of society.
But you have to ask yourself. How could this power over me be used negatively before you just hand away your rights and freedom piece by piece. https://t.co/3yFrBW30or
And this is why you don't give them an inch, cause they'll take a mile.
A big reason why car insurance is going up is that *every* part of a car now has electronics and software. Every fender bender now requires additional wiring for cameras and sensors. Windshields require computer calibration for lane detection technology. https://t.co/mui8Zk0V6W
— I'm Writing in Gary Johnson (@colorblindk1d) December 17, 2024
This, too.
These things have far-reaching consequences.
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