Car seat laws in Nebraska

All children up to 2 years of age must use a rear-facing child restraint until they outgrow the manufacturer's maximum height or weight for that seat. NHTSA and the AAP recommend going further: keeping your child rear-facing as long as possible, until they reach the top height or weight limit allowed by the car seat's manufacturer. A child under age 1 should always ride rear-facing, and most convertible seats allow rear-facing for 2 years or more.

All children up to 8 years of age must ride in a child passenger restraint system that meets Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 213 (a car seat or booster), correctly installed per the manufacturer's instructions. NHTSA and the AAP recommend going further: using a belt-positioning booster seat after your child outgrows the harnessed seat, until the vehicle seat belt fits properly, typically when they reach about 4 feet 9 inches tall and are 8 to 12 years old. The AAP says an adult seat belt fits when: the shoulder belt lies across the middle of the chest and shoulder, not the neck or throat; the lap belt is low and snug across the upper thighs, not the belly; and the child is tall enough to sit against the vehicle seat back with knees bent over the edge of the seat without slouching, and can stay that way for the whole trip. NHTSA uses the same lap-belt and shoulder-belt checks. The 5-step test, which California writes into law from January 1, 2027, asks: 1) Does the child sit all the way back against the seat? 2) Do the knees bend over the edge of the seat? 3) Does the shoulder belt snugly cross the center of the chest and shoulder, not the neck? 4) Is the lap belt as low as possible, touching the thighs? 5) Can the child stay seated like this for the whole trip?

Children under 8 must ride in a seat other than the front seat if that seat has a restraint system and isn't already taken by other children under 8. NHTSA and the AAP recommend going further: keeping all children younger than 13 in the back seat.

A violation is an infraction with a $25 fine per violation, and failing to restrain several children at once counts as one offense (§ 60-6,268). NDOT says court costs are added and 1 point is assessed against the driver's record. The under-8 rules are primary enforcement.

NHTSA's locator lists 26 car seat inspection stations in Nebraska, in 18 cities and towns. Scottsbluff has the most (3). Certified technicians check seats for free in most cases. Search NHTSA's locator by ZIP code and call the station before you go.