Hutchinson ? A KDOT official says if state lawmakers don’t produce a tougher seat belt law by the end of the session, they probably never will.

Under current law, a driver can’t be cited for nonuse of seat belts if not cited for the violation that prompted the stop.

KDOT law enforcement liaison Dave Corp said at a Hutchinson luncheon Tuesday that the main obstacle to a tougher law is state Rep. Gary Hayzlett, a Lakin Republican who is chairman of the House Transportation Committee.

Hayzlett said, “They would like to blame one person,” noting that a bill allowing primary enforcement of seat belt use failed 65-55 in the House this month.

Corp also said Kansas could get about $11 million in federal funds if it made seat belt use a primary violation, incentives Hayzlett called “the same old federal blackmail.”