High court revives automobile airbag rule

The Supreme Court has revived the possibility that air bags or automatic seat belts will be standard equipment in new cars. The high court ruled unanimously Friday that the Reagan administration in 1981 illegally abolished a rule that would have required the safety equipment in cars beginning in September 1981. The court said the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had failed to prove that the new equipment would not be beneficial. The administration now must either order the new safety equipment installed or provide stronger arguments for rescinding the rule.

In other action, the justices struck down as unconstitutional a postal law that had banned contraceptive manufacturers from mailing unsolicited advertisements for birth-control devices.