Click It or Ticket enforcement May 15–26

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched its 2026 Click It or Ticket campaign on May 6 and said state and local police would increase seat-belt enforcement during the Memorial Day travel period. NHTSA said the national campaign runs May 11 through May 31 and is aimed at drivers and passengers who are not buckled up. Local departments across Illinois, California and Kansas then issued their own notices with narrower enforcement windows and patrol plans tied to state funding and holiday traffic. (wqad.com) The result is a patchwork of dates that starts in some places on May 15, in others on May 17 or May 18, and in Kansas can extend to June 1. (nhtsa.gov) ### Why are some agencies saying May 15-26 while NHTSA says May 11-31? NHTSA’s campaign page says the Memorial Day Click It or Ticket effort runs from May 11 to May 31, while Traffic Safety Marketing materials list the 2026 high-visibility enforcement window as May 18 to May 31. (wqad.com) NHTSA’s May 6 press release also said state and local law enforcement would ramp up patrols from May 11 to May 31. Illinois agencies are using a different schedule. Rock Island police said their enforcement runs May 15 to May 26, and similar notices from Wheeling, Round Lake, Broadview and the Ogle County Sheriff’s Office use the same May 15-26 dates for the state’s Memorial Day push. Those releases say the effort is being carried out with Illinois law enforcement agencies during the holiday travel period. (nhtsa.gov) ### Which places have announced the campaign so far? Rock Island, Illinois, posted on May 15 that its police department had joined the campaign and would focus on seat-belt violations throughout the day. Chief Tim McCloud said in the department release that buckling up remains the most effective way to reduce serious injury or death in a crash. (nhtsa.gov) Los Angeles, California, announced on May 6 that the Los Angeles Police Department’s campaign would run from May 18 to May 31. LAPD said officers would be looking for drivers and passengers not wearing seat belts and for children not secured in the proper restraint systems. (wqad.com) Long Beach, Oxnard and Glendora, California, published similar notices this week with the same May 18-31 dates. Those departments said they would put additional officers on patrol during the campaign. Kansas agencies are also participating. Olathe police said increased enforcement would begin May 17 and continue through June 1, and El Dorado police said drivers should expect increased law-enforcement presence during a nationwide campaign running May 17 to June 1. (wqad.com) A Riley County-specific notice was not available in the sources reviewed, but the Kansas pattern in verified local releases matches the June 1 end date cited in the briefing. ### What are officers actually enforcing? (lapdonline.org) Seat-belt use is the main focus. NHTSA said the campaign is designed to remind drivers and passengers to buckle up and to highlight the legal consequences, including fines, for not wearing a seat belt. Local agencies said patrols would specifically target unbelted drivers and passengers. (longbeach.gov) California releases also highlighted child-restraint compliance, saying officers would look for children not secured in the right car seats or booster seats for their age. ### What numbers are officials using to justify the push? NHTSA said in its May 6 announcement that an unbuckled seat belt accounted for a passenger-vehicle death every 54 minutes in 2024. (olatheks.gov) Administrator Jonathan Morrison said buckling up “only takes a second” and can determine whether people live or die in a crash. Traffic Safety Marketing materials describe Click It or Ticket as a high-visibility enforcement campaign built around increased police presence and public awareness. (nhtsa.gov) Illinois template materials used by local agencies say the campaign is funded with federal highway safety funds administered by the Illinois Department of Transportation. Kansas says its Special Traffic Enforcement Program supports coordinated enforcement periods aimed at behaviors tied to injury and fatal crashes. (lapdonline.org) ### When should drivers expect the extra patrols to end? May 26 is the end date in the Illinois releases reviewed, including Rock Island, Wheeling and Round Lake. May 31 is the end date in the national NHTSA campaign and in the California city notices reviewed, including Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oxnard and Glendora. (nhtsa.gov) June 1 is the end date in the verified Kansas local notices reviewed, including Olathe and El Dorado. (wqad.com) (trafficsafetymarketing.gov)