SB0037A -1- SB 37
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SENATE BILL NO. 37
IN THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA
THIRTY-THIRD LEGISLATURE - FIRST SESSION
BY SENATOR CLAMAN
Introduced: 1/13/23
Referred: Prefiled
A BILL
FOR AN ACT ENTITLED
"An Act establishing the crime of airbag fraud." 1
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA: 2
* Section 1. AS 28.35 is amended by adding a new section to read: 3
Sec. 28.35.248. Airbag fraud. (a) A person commits the crime of airbag fraud 4
if the person 5
(1) knowingly sells, offers for sale, imports, installs, or reinstalls 6
(A) a replacement airbag that does not comply with federal 7
safety regulations specific to the vehicle's make, model, and year; 8
(B) an airbag that is counterfeit or nonfunctioning; or 9
(C) a part or device that is intended to conceal a counterfeit or 10
nonfunctioning airbag; 11
(2) knowingly manufactures 12
(A) a counterfeit or nonfunctioning airbag; or 13
(B) a part or device that is intended to conceal a counterfeit or 14
nonfunctioning airbag; or 15 33-LS0277\A
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(3) intentionally sells, leases, or trades or offers for sale, lease, or trade 1
a vehicle that the person knows has 2
(A) a replacement airbag that does not comply with federal 3
safety regulations specific to the vehicle's make, model, and year; or 4
(B) a counterfeit or nonfunctioning airbag. 5
(b) This section does not apply to 6
(1) a person installing, reinstalling, or replacing an airbag on a vehicle 7
used solely for police work; or 8
(2) an owner or employee of a motor vehicle dealership or the owner 9
of a vehicle who, before the sale of the vehicle, does not have knowledge that the 10
vehicle's airbag is counterfeit or nonfunctioning. 11
(c) This section does not 12
(1) preclude liability of any party in a civil action; or 13
(2) create a duty that, before the sale of a vehicle, an owner or 14
employee of a motor vehicle dealership or the owner of the vehicle inspect a vehicle in 15
the possession of the dealership or owner to determine whether the airbag is 16
counterfeit or nonfunctioning. 17
(d) In this section, 18
(1) "airbag" includes an airbag component; 19
(2) "counterfeit" means a replacement airbag displaying an 20
unauthorized mark that is identical, or substantially similar, to the genuine mark of a 21
motor vehicle manufacturer or supplier of parts to a motor vehicle manufacturer; 22
(3) "nonfunctioning" means a replacement airbag that is inoperable, 23
damaged, or recalled, has previously been deployed, will cause a vehicle's diagnostic 24
system to inaccurately indicate that the vehicle is equipped with a properly functioning 25
airbag, or results in an electric fault detected by a vehicle's diagnostic system after the 26
installation procedure is complete; 27
(4) "recalled" means an airbag that was removed from a vehicle 28
because a manufacturer or federal agency determined the airbag created an 29
unreasonable safety risk or did not meet minimum safety standards and that federal 30
law has not exempted from reinstallation. 31 33-LS0277\A
SB0037A -3- SB 37
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(e) Airbag fraud is 1
(1) a class A misdemeanor; or 2
(2) a class C felony if death or serious physical injury to another 3
person results from 4
(A) the manufacture, sale, importation, installation, or 5
reinstallation of a replacement airbag that does not comply with federal safety 6
regulations specific to the vehicle's make, model, and year or a counterfeit or 7
nonfunctioning airbag; or 8
(B) the sale, lease, or trade of a vehicle that has a replacement 9
airbag that does not comply with federal safety regulations specific to the 10
vehicle's make, model, and year or a counterfeit or nonfunctioning airbag. 11