Passengers sitting in the back seat of a vehicle now are required to wear a seat belt in New York.

The new legislation signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo to improve safety officially went into effect Sunday.

Before the law, people 16 and older were only required to wear a seat belt if they were driving or a passenger in the front seat.

New York became the 30th state to require all passengers in cars, regardless of age, to wear seat belts.

New York became the first state to pass a mandatory seat belt law in 1984 when the governor's father, Mario Cuomo, was governor.

The current governor's traffic safety committee has indicated that 30% of highway deaths in the state are those who were not wearing a seat belt.

The state has also added speed bumps and reduced speed limits to try to make driving safer.

The Department of Motor Vehicles says anyone caught not wearing a seat belt, as well as the driver of the car, can be fined up to $50.