HONOLULU – The state Department of Transportation and the four county police departments will conduct the annual "Click It or Ticket" seat belt enforcement campaign beginning Monday, May 12, through Sunday, June 1, 2008.

Police statewide will issue citations to motorists not wearing seat belts, in an effort to have motorists and passengers better protect themselves. Hawaii's seat belt laws require all front-seat occupants to buckle up, as well as back-seat passengers under the age of 18. Violators of seat belt laws will be assessed a $92 fine.

State law also requires children under 4 years old to ride in a child safety seat, and children ages 4 to 8 to ride in either a child safety seat or a booster seat. Violators of Hawaii's Child Passenger Restraint Law are required to attend a four-hour class and may be assessed a fine between $100 and $500 depending on the number of offenses.

Hawaii's seat belt usage jumped to 97.6 percent during the 2007 Click It or Ticket campaign, giving Hawaii the highest rate in the nation. This rate also makes Hawaii the first state to ever reach the 97 percent mark during the history of the safety campaign. The national average for seat belt use in 2007 was 82 percent.

"It's important for every motorist to be aware of our state's seat belt and child passenger restraint laws," said Department of Transportation Director Brennon Morioka. "Every single person that's buckled up could be a life saved."

This year's seat belt campaign will continue to focus on the lowest-rated groups of unbuckled drivers and passengers: the 18- to 25-year-old age group and drivers of pickup trucks. In addition to issuing citations for seat belt violations, police will enforce child restraint laws, ticketing drivers if children are not restrained properly in child safety seats in the vehicle's back seat.

During the May 2007 campaign, police officers around the state issued 2,793 citations for seat belt violations and 170 citations for child safety restraint infractions.

National statistics have shown that the use of seat belts is the single most effective act that drivers can do to protect themselves in a traffic accident. Preliminary statistics show that last year in Hawaii, 14 lives could have been saved if vehicle occupants were buckled up when involved in a crash.

The Click It or Ticket campaign combines the efforts of the state departments of Transportation, Health and Education; the four county police departments, the federal Highway Administration, the federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and safe community coalitions. Funding for the campaign is provided by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Television, radio and movie theater public service announcements will air throughout the campaign to remind the public to buckle up.

For more information about the "Click It or Ticket" campaign, contact the Highway Safety Section at 587-6301 or visit the Hawaii Department of Transportation at hawaii.gov/dot.