Proponents:
   Many organizations believe that seat belts should be required on large school buses to maximize occupant protection. Among the organizations advocating the installation of seat belts in school buses with GVWRs greater than 10,000 lb., and the year in which they adopted the position, are the following:

• State of Florida, 1999
• State of Louisiana, 1999
• State of California, 1999
• American Academy of Pediatrics, 1984
• American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 1992
• American College of Emergency Physicians, 1987
• American Medical Association, 1987
• Cable News Network (CNN), 1998
• Clarkstown Parent Teacher Association, 1988
• Great Britain, 1998
• National Coalition for Seatbelts on School Buses (NCSSB)
• National Parent Teacher Association (PTA), 1985, 1998
• New Jersey Institute of Technology, 1989
• People Advocating Seat Belt Safety
• Physicians for Automotive Safety, 1980
• Society for Adolescent Medicine, 1985
• State of New Jersey, 1992
• State of New York, 1987

Opponents:
Meanwhile, many other organizations believe that large school buses should not be equipped with seat belts to maximize occupant protection. Among the organizations opposing the installation of 2-point, lap-belt seat belts in school buses with GVWRs greater than 10,000 lb., and the year in which they adopted the position, are the following:

• 10th National Conference on School Transportation, 1985
• Florida Dept. of Education, Pupil Transportation Unit, 1997
• National Academy of Sciences, Transportation Research Board, 1989
• National Association for Pupil Transportation
• National Association of State Directors of Pupil Transportation Services (NASDPTS), 1995 *
• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 1997 **
• National Safety Council, 1986
• National School Transportation Association, 1984
• National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) ***
• New Hampshire School Transportation Association
• New York Association for Pupil Transportation
• Ontario School Bus Operators Association, 1995
• Province of Ontario Ministry of Transportation
• Student Transportation Association of Massachusetts
• Transport Canada

* For lap/shoulder belts, NASDPTS said in 2002 that it was concerned seating capacity could be adversely affected, as could school bus joint strength. But if funding were made available to implement lap/shoulder belts in school buses, the state directors would support the initiative.

** Advocates three-point lap/shoulder belts as a safer alternative to two-point lap belts and as an additional safety measure to school bus compartmentalization.

*** Since 1999 the NTSB's official position on lap/shoulder belts on school buses is that they exhibit safety benefits above and beyond compartmentalization and that they should be considered.