The S.C. Senate passed a tougher seat-belt bill Wednesday, ending nearly two years of contentious debate on the issue.

Supporters say the bill will save lives. Opponents say it is government tyranny.

The bill passed the Senate by a 32-11 vote. Opponents, who filibustered to block a vote on a tougher law last year, realized they did not have the votes to defeat the bill Wednesday and allowed the vote to proceed without delay.

The bill now goes to the House, which passed a similar bill last year.

The big question is what happens when the legislation hits Gov. Mark Sanford’s desk. Sanford has never directly said whether he favors the bill. His spokesman said Wednesday the Republican governor has “some real reservations” about it.

However, Sen. Greg Ryberg, R-Aiken, the bill’s shepherd over the past two years, saw a message for the governor in Wednesday’s vote.

“Thirty-two votes? That’s enough to handle a veto,” Ryberg said.

It takes 31 votes in the Senate and 83 in the House to override the governor’s veto.

Ryberg and supporters said Wednesday’s vote was a victory for the state.

“We think it will save lives on South Carolina’s roads,” said Tracy Tisdale, executive director of the S.C. chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. “We’d like the governor to support this. The majority of South Carolinians want this.”

The bill allows police officers to issue tickets to most motorists and passengers who are not wearing seat belts.

Current state law requires seat-belt use, but in most cases, police can only write tickets for seat-belt violations if they first stop a motorist for another infraction.

Opponents have said the bill is a step away from individual liberties and toward allowing government to regulate personal behavior.

“States rights took a back seat to the federal bureaucrats,” said state Sen. Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston.

The state stands to lose $11 million in federal highway money if the seat-belt law is not strengthened.

“The average citizen of this state always ends up on the back burner when it comes to complying with federal mandates and the hoards of lobbyists outside the front door,” McConnell said. “We were always told public liberty needs to go in the back seat because we’re not going to get our money.”

McConnell said his political idol, the late U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, R-Arizona, tried “to keep government out of the lives of its citizens. Every year, government encroaches just a little more.”

But state Sen. John Courson, R-Richland, who told senators he once had a dog named Goldwater, said he would vote with seat-belt supporters.

This bill “is a different issue for a different time,” he said. “This is not a conservative-liberal issue. It is about savings taxpayer dollars. It is about saving lives.”

The bill calls for violators to pay a $25 fine. But the violation does not carry “points,” which are used to revoke a driver’s license, and would not be reported to the motorist’s insurance company. As a result, opponents said, the bill has no teeth.

“If we really wanted to save lives in this body, we would have adopted a few of these amendments,” said Sen. Jake Knotts, R-Lexington. “We would have put a higher fine on it. We would have put where it costs somebody some money.”

The governor has similar concerns, spokesman Will Folkssaid. Sanford supports a separate bill, dealing with lawsuit reform, that would allow a jury to consider an injured motorist’s negligence for failing to wear a seat belt. The seat-belt bill passed Wednesday does not allow that.

“Do we want fig-leaf legislation that covers up just enough of the problem to say we’ve done something, or do we want something to advance real, market-based reforms that will make a difference in the outcome we all want?” Folks said.

However, Sen. Brad Hutto, D-Orangeburg, said Wednesday’s decision by the Senate accomplishes the desired outcome.

“It’s the rare day that we can pass legislation in South Carolina that will actually saves lives.”

Reach Gould Sheinin at (803) 771-8658 or asheinin@thestate.com.