Texas seat belt 'Click It or Ticket' push begins

[TexasTowelie]

AUSTIN, Texas — No excuses — wear your seat belt.

Texas is part of the 13th annual "Click It or Ticket" safety effort to make sure travelers buckle up. The campaign that began Monday and runs through June 1 means law enforcement officers are ready to ticket anyone not using a seat belt.

Texas law requires everyone in a vehicle to wear a seat belt.

The stepped-up enforcement effort includes the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Texas Department of Transportation and sheriff's offices statewide.

More at http://www.statesman.com/ap/ap/texas/texas-seat-belt-click-it-or-ticket-push-begins/nfzBD/ .

[Uben]

1. Tickets run $200-$250

I wear a seatbelt always. After a few trips on an EMT rescue truck with my BIL, I was convinced. Windshields are not kind to those who pass thru them! But, $200 is too much. That means not eating for a bunch of folks here in Texas. Fines should be based on terms of income. With a set rate, it doesn't equally affect the recipients as needed to deter.

A person making $15K/yr is having to pay over 1% of their annual income, while a person making $150K/yr only pays 1/10th of 1% of theirs. Fair? Hell no, but that's the way it is. Why?

I'm in the 1/10th of 1% club. If I paid 1%, it would be more like a $1500 citation. Why do we not fix the inequality of this practice?