Fatal Paramus School Bus Crash Inspires Rep. Gottheimer's Push For Seatbelts

PARAMUS, NJ — On the fourth anniversary of a Paramus school bus crash that killed a teacher and a student, Rep. Josh Gottheimer introduced legislation that would require seat belts on all school buses nationwide.

"Miranda's Law" honors Miranda Vargas. The 10-year-old fifth-grader and teacher Jennifer Williamson died May 17, 2018, in a bus crash on Interstate 80 in Mount Olive. More than 40 people sustained injuries after the bus collided with a dump truck, prompting sweeping changes to school bus safety laws, and a prison sentence for the driver.

Miranda's family members visited Capitol Hill in 2019. Her father Joevanny Vargas, twin sister Madison and grandfather Johnny met with lawmakers, alongside Gottheimer (NJ-5) to gather support for bus-safety legislation.

"This is not a New Jersey problem," Joevanny Vargas said in 2019. "This is a national problem that needs to be addressed before we’re confronted with another tragedy. This is common-sense legislation — it’s not about Republicans or Democrats. It’s about moms and dads."

Last year, the House of Representatives passed school bus-safety provisions within a larger transportation package, which required the U.S. Department of Transportation to study how three-point seatbelts impact safety and determine whether to require seat belts on school buses. The larger package won't move forward in the Senate, Gottheimer says, so he introduced standalone legislation on seat belts in school buses.

Miranda's law would do the following:

• require seatbelts on all school buses nationwide
• establish three-point lap-and-shoulder seat belts as the national standard
• encourage "innovative" measures to ensure students actually wear seatbelts on school buses

The bill calls for "any innovative approaches to seat belt detection, seat belt reminder systems, and seat belt violation alert systems that would be incorporated into school bus designs."

"Miranda’s Law will help save lives," Gottheimer said in a statement, "and there’s nothing partisan about that."

Related coverage:

• May 2018: Hundreds Mourn Student,Teacher Killed In Paramus School Bus Crash
• July 2018: Paramus Bus Crash Victim's Dad: 'We're Still In Denial'
• April 2019: Fatal Paramus School Bus Crash: From Tragedy To Indictment
• July 2019: Miranda Vargas' Dad Visits Congress To Push For Bus Safety Bills
• May 2021: I-80 Bus Crash Victims Remembered In Paramus On Anniversary