Senate Bill No. 597
               Senate Bill No. 597

               PUBLIC ACT NO. 97-46


AN ACT REQUIRING CHILDREN FIFTEEN YEARS OF AGE AND
UNDER TO WEAR BICYCLE HELMETS.


    Be  it  enacted  by  the  Senate  and House of
Representatives in General Assembly convened:
    Subsection  (b)  of  section  14-286d  of  the
general statutes is repealed and the following  is
substituted in lieu thereof:
    (b)  No  child [under twelve] FIFTEEN years of
age OR  UNDER  shall  operate  a  bicycle  on  the
traveled  portion of any highway unless such child
is wearing protective headgear which  conforms  to
the  minimum  specifications  established  by  the
American National Standards Institute or the Snell
Memorial   Foundation's  Standard  for  Protective
Headgear for Use in Bicycling. Failure  to  comply
with  this  section shall not be a violation or an
offense. Failure to wear  protective  headgear  as
required   by   this   subsection   shall  not  be
considered to be contributory  negligence  on  the
part  of  the  parent  or the child nor shall such
failure be admissible in any civil action.

Approved May 14, 1997