OMRA Legal News

OMRA Legal News

December 2003

News & Notes for the Politically Motivated Motorcyclists is a monthly service compiled and edited by the AMA Government Relations Staff to keep motorcyclists informed of happenings around the world. We welcome your news & views. Please submit all material to Terry Lee Cook, Government Relations Specialist, 13515 Yarmouth Drive , Pickerington , OH 43147 ; fax 614-856-1920 or e-mail to tcook@ama-cycle.org.

AMA is hosting a Washington , D.C. , seminar for motorcyclists who want to learn how to influence governmental decisions, whether it’s in Congress or at their own local councils.

The seminar, to be held March 6-9 at the Phoenix Park Hotel in Washington , DC , allows participants to meet and learn from the AMA’s Washington staff as well as other political experts. In addition to learning about state and federal issues facing motorcyclists today, participants will get tips on building relationships with government-agency officials and on lobbying elected officials.

Participants will also prepare to meet face-to-face with members of their congressional delegation. But the seminar isn’t all work; there will be a welcome reception as well as a luncheon and a banquet over the course of the training.

The seminar registration fee is $75. The registration deadline is February 11. AMA membership is required.

For more information or to register, contact Sharon Titus at (614) 856-1900, ext. 1252 or by e-mail at stitus@ama-cycle.org.

Louisiana Governor Mike Foster called into question a report on motorcycle crashes released by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA). The NHTSA report indicates that motorcycle crash fatalities have doubled since the Louisiana Legislature repealed the state’s mandatory helmet law. Foster pointed out that the NHTSA looked merely at raw numbers and not at the circumstances of the crashes and the increasing number of motorcycle riders.

The number of registered motorcycles rose by over 12,000 in the years covered by the NHTSA study. In 1998, there were 60,000 registered motorbike operators in Louisiana ; two years later, 72,445 were registered with the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles.

According to a 2001 report by the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission, Traffic Crashes Involving Bicycles or Motorcycles, fatalities per 100 crashes only rose by 0.2 percent from 1998 to 2000. In 2001, that percentage actually went down to 3.8 percent. In 1998, 3.9 percent of every 100 crashes resulted in deaths. During that time, the number of crashes in general rose from 889 to 1,410, a fact that cannot be attributed to helmet usage rates. (Associated Press)

The US Forest Service has closed all 833,988 acres of the Cleveland National Forest in California to all recreation.

Officials closed the forest after the Cedar fire began October 25 because of "extreme fire activity and the continued threat to life and property." The closure notice is on the Forest Service web site at http://www.r5.fs.fed.us/cleveland. The length of the closure is undetermined.

The Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) Imperial Sand Dunes, known in the off-highway vehicle community as Glamis, plan for reopening 49,000 acres to motorized recreation is once again on hold.

A federal plan that would have reopened a portion of the dunes that has been closed to off-road traffic in recent years was delayed as the US District Court in San Francisco ruled that the BLM must wait for more input from the US Department of Fish and Wildlife before issuing a plan to reopen 49,300 acres to vehicular traffic. The court action was in response to a suit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, which claimed the biological opinion from Fish and Wildlife in the plan was flawed.

A bipartisan bill to end health-care discrimination against motorcyclists and all-terrain vehicle riders has cleared a key U.S. Senate committee.

By a unanimous voice vote, the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee on Oct. 29 approved S. 423 that would bar health plans from denying benefits to people injured while riding motorcycles, ATVs, horses, or engaging in other legal recreational or transportation activities.

US Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Russ Feingold (D-WI) co-authored the bill. A similar measure, HR 1749, is being considered in the U.S. House of Representatives.

In 1996, Congress passed the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which prohibits companies from denying access to employer-sponsored health insurance for motorcyclists and those who participate in other recreational activities. However, federal regulators created a loophole that allows the denial of benefits under various conditions.

The AMA is among a number of groups working to get this legislation approved. AMA is working with groups like the Motorcycle Riders Foundation, American Horse Council, American Council of Snowmobile Associations, Blue Ribbon Coalition, and many others.

Pennsylvania House Bill 2133, introduced by Representative Kerry A. Benninghoff (R-Bellefonte), proposes to amend Title 75 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes by adding a section 4310 to read, "Auxiliary lighting may be added to a motorcycle to protect the driver, including blue dot illumination, standard bulb running lights and various colors of valve stem caps, light-emitting diode (LED) pods and strips, light wire, neon tubes and strobe lights." The bill was referred to the House Transportation Committee on October 27, 2003 .

Motorcyclists and safety experts know that additional lighting increases visibility of motorcycles to other motor vehicle operators. Many enthusiasts have decided that stock lighting on their motorcycles is not enough. The addition of after-market lighting boosts conspicuity, especially at night. Even during daylight hours, adding more lights may help other drivers more clearly identify motorcycles.

Show your support for HB-2133 by sending a letter to Honorable Richard A. Geist, Chairman, House Transportation Committee, Main Capitol Building - Room 144, Harrisburg , PA 17120-2020 .

Contacting your representative is also important in promoting HB-2133. You can use the "Take Action Now" feature of AMA StateWatch on www.AMADirectlink.com to send a pre-written letter of support for HB-2133 to your representative.

The BlueRibbon Coalition Board of Directors has just announced that Bill Dart, presently the Public Lands Director for BlueRibbon, has been selected to become the next Executive Director for the national Coalition.

Dart will become only the second Executive Director for the Coalition. Previous Executive Director Clark Collins, a co-founder of the organization, served for 16 years in this position. Collins will stay on with BlueRibbon in a newly created Development Director position.

Dart has been involved in motorized recreation and land use issues for over two decades. Prior to coming to work for the BlueRibbon Coalition in June of 2002, Dart worked as the Legislative Officer for District 36 of the American Motorcyclist Association in California for nearly 15 years.

The San Francisco Motorcycle & Scooter Coalition is campaigning to increase motorcycle parking spaces within the city. To learn more about their efforts and how you can help, visit their website at www.sfmsc.org.

Michigan statewide outdoor groups concerned with the integrity of user-funded state recreational funds told Governor Granholm recently that they are prepared for action.

Michigan United Conservation Clubs, Michigan Council of Trout Unlimited, Michigan Boating Industries Association, Michigan Recreation and Park Association, Michigan Environmental Council, Michigan Snowmobile Association, Cycle Conservation Clubs of Michigan, Rails to Trails Conservancy Michigan Chapter, Michigan Mountain Biking Association, Great Lakes Four-wheel Drive Association and District 14 of the American Motorcyclist Association joined forces to send a clear message to Governor Granholm and the Office of Management and Budget. While the groups recognize the difficult financial situation facing the state, they outlined their concern over the state’s use of restricted recreational funds in a letter. The message -- they will not tolerate use of the restricted funds for non-recreational purposes.

The groups represent several million outdoor enthusiasts. User fees provide the monies for these funds, which are managed by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Specific language in the authorizing acts of each fund guide all fund expenditures and excess balances.

The outdoor groups will closely watch the budget process. Citizens have willingly paid their own way and these groups strongly object to their fees being used to solve the state’s budget problems.

The Wisconsin ATV Association (WATVA), State agencies and the Powersports Dealers Association are supporting legislation that would increase funding for trail maintenance and development by altering the State’s ATV registration program. The changes are encompassed in Assembly Bill 596, authored by Rep. Mark Pettis (R-Hertel), and its companion bill, Senate Bill 277, authored by Sen. Sheila Harsdorf (R – River Falls). The proposed legislation would raise the biennial registration fee from $12 to $30 and alter the formula used to determine how much fuel-tax revenue will be set aside for motorized recreation projects. The bills would also allow for the broader use of ATVs by young riders on private property and would impose a 96 decibels sound standard for ATVs. To learn more about the proposed changes, see the “Protecting Your Right to Ride” page of www.AMADirectLink.com.

New guidelines issued by the Bush administration could open up previously restricted federal land to off-highway vehicles. The guidelines rescinded previous quasi-wilderness status for approx. 3 million acres in Utah and millions of additional acres across the West, including Colorado . Under these new directives, the Bureau of Land Management can still set aside lands, but those decisions will be made in a public planning process for each parcel and weighed on equal footing against other potential uses and based on input from local land managers and residents.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is an agency within the Department of Transportation. The primary mission of NHTSA is to reduce fatalities, injuries, and monetary losses resulting from accidents on America ’s highways.

As background, in 1966 William Haddon, an epidemiologist, testified before Congress that traffic safety is a science. Dr. Haddon focused on injury prevention through new design changes in automobiles and other forms of transportation. On the strength of his testimony and others, Congress passed the Highway Safety Act of 1966 to address the rise in highway fatalities. The National Highway Safety Bureau, later called NHTSA, was vested with the responsibility of administering the statute. Hadden became the first Administrator.

The American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) believes that the means to accomplish this mission is fundamentally flawed. To focus on injury prevention as opposed to accident prevention is the proverbial “cart before the horse.” The statutory goals NHTSA attempts to achieve are doomed for failure. It accepts the idea that accidents will occur and therefore there is a governmental need to mitigate its affects.

The AMA believes that the statutory limitations on NHTSA have and will continue to prevent the agency from fulfilling its stated mission. That is why the AMA is encouraging you to use the Rapid Response icon on www.AMADirectlink.com to write your Member of Congress, and urge them to support a change in NHTSA’s direction within the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) reauthorization process.

Just three weeks after the bill was introduced in Congress, the House Resources Forests and Forest Health Subcommittee held a hearing on a proposal to crack down on people who willfully damage public land.

The bill, HR 3247, is called the Trail Responsibility and Accountability for the Improvement of Lands (TRAIL) Act. It would create consistent standards for law enforcement on federal land.

Also, the proposal substantially increases the penalties on recreational users of the land who willfully cause damage to public land. The fines would be used for rehabilitation, education, and awareness.

At the hearing, Mark Rey, US Agriculture Department undersecretary for natural resources and the environment, and Larry Parkinson, US Interior Department deputy secretary for law enforcement and security, offered support for the goals of the bill and offered to work with the subcommittee on the final language of the bill.

The AMA supports responsible riding on public land and believes that those who intentionally damage land should be punished, whether they're motorized vehicle users, horse riders, campers or hikers. The AMA decided to endorse the Tancredo legislation, in part, because another measure -- HR 751, commonly called ROVER -- targets only motorized vehicle users, and doesn't provide for consistent penalties among the various federal land agencies.