21212.  (a) A person under 18 years of age shall not operate a
bicycle, or ride upon a bicycle as a passenger, upon a street,
bikeway, as defined in Section 890.4 of the Streets and Highways
Code, or any other public bicycle path or trail unless that person is
wearing a properly fitted and fastened bicycle helmet that meets the
standards of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI Z 90.4
bicycle helmet standard), the Snell Memorial Foundation's Standard
for Protective Headgear for Use in Bicycling, or the American Society
for Testing Materials (ASTM F-1447 standard).  This requirement also
applies to a person who rides upon a bicycle while in a restraining
seat that is attached to the bicycle or in a trailer towed by the
bicycle.
   (b) Any helmet sold or offered for sale for use by operators and
passengers of bicycles shall be conspicuously labeled in accordance
with the standard described in subdivision (a) which shall constitute
the manufacturer's certification that the helmet conforms to the
applicable safety standards.
   (c) No person shall sell, or offer for sale, for use by an
operator or passenger of a bicycle any safety helmet which is not of
a type meeting requirements established by this section.
   (d) Any charge under this subdivision shall be dismissed when the
person charged alleges in court, under oath, that the charge against
the person is the first charge against that person under this
subdivision, unless it is otherwise established in court that the
charge is not the first charge against the person.
   (e) Except as provided in subdivision (d), a violation of this
section is an infraction punishable by a fine of not more than
twenty-five dollars ($25).
   The parent or legal guardian having control or custody of an
unemancipated minor whose conduct violates this section shall be
jointly and severally liable with the minor for the amount of the
fine imposed pursuant to this subdivision.
   (f) Notwithstanding Section 1463 of the Penal Code or any other
provision of law, the fines collected for a violation of this section
shall be allocated as follows:
   (1) Seventy-two and one-half percent of the amount collected shall
be deposited in a special account of the county health department,
to be used for bicycle safety education and for assisting low-income
families in obtaining approved bicycle helmets for children under the
age of 18 years, either on a loan or purchase basis.  The county may
contract for the implementation of this program, which, to the
extent practicable, shall be operated in conjunction with the child
passenger restraint program pursuant to Section 27360.
   (2) Two and one-half percent of the amount collected shall be
deposited in the county treasury to be used by the county to
administer the program described in paragraph (1).
   (3) If the violation occurred within a city, 25 percent of the
amount collected shall be transferred to and deposited in the
treasury of that city.  If the violation occurred in an
unincorporated area, this 25 percent shall be deposited and used
pursuant to paragraph (1).