Half of all motorists killed each year are not wearing seat belts, according to officials. In light of this and the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, the Minnesota Department of Public Safety has launched a seat belt campaign.

More than 300 law enforcement agencies will participate in the statewide Click It or Ticket campaign starting Monday, according to a news release. It will run until the end of the month.

Thirty-eight people who have died in crashes since the start of the year in Minnesota were not wearing seat belts, the release said.

From 2012 to 2014, Minnesota crashes killed 823 people. Only 52 percent were known to be belted, preliminary numbers from DPS show.

Click It or Ticket follows a six-day campaign in April in which 909 drivers were cited for distracted driving.

Officers can stop and ticket unbelted drivers and their passengers, according to Minnesota law.

A seat belt ticket is $25 but can cost more than $100 with fees, according to the DPS. Drivers can be ticketed for passengers ages 14 and younger who aren’t wearing seat belts.

As part of the Click It or Ticket launch, the Toward Zero Deaths campaign in southeast Minnesota will honor a 19-year-old crash survivor Monday.

Brittany Erding, who was wearing her seat belt when her vehicle careened over a 40-foot cliff south of Rochester, will receive the Saved by the Belt award.

The ceremony is at 10 a.m. Monday at Edgewater Park in Albert Lea.

— Katie Kather