An Ohio lawmaker wants to give police the power to pull you over if they see you not wearing a seatbelt.

State Rep. Jon Cross introduced a bill that would allow motorists to be pulled over for not wearing their seatbelt without another reason.

Right now, an officer needs another reason before pulling over someone not wearing a seat belt. If the new bill passes, not wearing your seat belt will be considered a primary offense.

Governor Mike DeWine showed support for the change in his State of the State address last month. Although DeWine is pushing for the change, some state legislators feel making the change isn't what's best for Ohio.

"I think this is trying to regulate self responsibility. I’d rather see us investing in educational resources promoting seatbelt use," said Lauren McNally, Ohio State Representative.

Ohio Senator Mike Rulli said as of now, he is against the bill since the change would create just another reason for officers to pull over a motorist. 

According to the Ohio State Highway Patrol,  District four had 1,242 unbelted fatal and serious injuries between 2018 and 2023.

Sergeant Bridget Matt from the Ohio State Highway Patrol said wearing a seat belt could help lower these numbers.

“There’s still a lot of room for improvement. Until we get to 100%, we’re not going to see those numbers of fatalities from crashes and unbelted motorists go down,” said Matt.