SECURES Act of 2026

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office] [H.R. 7428 Introduced in House (IH)] <DOC> 119th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7428 To require the Secretary of Transportation to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking concerning seat belts on school buses, and for other purposes. _______________________________________________________________________ IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES February 9, 2026 Mr. Gottheimer (for himself and Mr. Lawler) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure _______________________________________________________________________ A BILL To require the Secretary of Transportation to publish a notice of proposed rulemaking concerning seat belts on school buses, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. This Act may be cited as the ``Secure Every Child Under the Right Equipment Standards Act of 2026'' or the ``SECURES Act of 2026''. SEC. 2. PROPOSED RULEMAKING. (a) Requirements.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking on new Federal standards for school bus seat belt requirements on all new school buses, regardless of gross vehicle weight rating. (b) Considerations.--In the proposed rulemaking, the Secretary shall consider-- (1) the safety benefits of a lap/shoulder belt system (also known as a ``Type 2 seat belt assembly''); (2) the conclusion of the National Transportation Safety Board that ``Lap/shoulder belts provide the highest level of protection for school bus passengers'' and that ``Properly worn lap belts provide some benefit,'' while ``Properly worn lap/ shoulder belts provide greater benefit by reducing injuries related to upper body flailing''; (3) the 2015 announcement by the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Saf