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THE AMA CORNER
Well, I took the summer off for the AMA Corner, but fall is upon us and planning is starting for the upcoming legislative session. I hope everyone had a great riding season and we still have a month or month and a half for folks to get in some more good times before the snows hit us(I hope).
There is going to be a change in the Corner from now on. I think you’ll find it more focused. In the past, I’ve done what should be done, keeping you informed on legislative matters in New York State, but also added in information that came in from a variety of different sources from all over the world. I’m going to stop adding in lots of additional material that I’ve found you can locate in a number of other places that deal with all kinds of subjects related to motorcycling. One place I would recommend is the national AMA website at www.AMADirectlink.com or www.ama-cycle.org. Another site I have found to have good general information and where you can also list an event if you wish is www.americanmotor.com It’s like a news desk with lots of different offerings and I’m sure you’ll find some things of interest there.
There are a couple of different “lists” as we call them that you might want to investigate and join. Joe Dickey, better known as “Cowboy” heads up Pennsylvania ABATE and puts out a column just about every day. His e-mail, if you’d like to be put on his list is hdcowboy@pa.net or go to his web page which is http://www.lonebiker.com Another person who has one hell of a good list that she puts out every day is Betsy Lister, better known in e-mail as gypsypashn@aol.com . She’s a terrific lady and you should ask her to put your e-mail on her list. She’s very active in Massachusetts’ motorcyclist rights organizations and is passionate about it. Both of these people glean information from many areas and around the world and include it in their almost daily columns.
For those who actually care about what’s going on politically and legislatively, you should get hold of Terry Cook at AMA government relations and get on his list to receive News and Notes for the Politically Motivated Motorcyclist. E-mail Terry at tcook@ama-cycl.org You might want to get in touch with the Motorcycle Riders Foundation as well at www.mrf.org
Now, to the business at hand. When we last left Larry and Prospector, they had been victorious in getting the anti-discrimination bill through the legislature. That bill, as you’ll remember, bars communities of any size from banning motorcycles from any road, street or highway that uses state funding to design, construct, operate or maintain the roadway. We’re waiting for the Governor’s office to call for the bill to be sent over. He has until the end of the year to do that, after which the bill would be automatically forwarded to the office. The Governor has ten days from the time it gets there to sign it or veto it or just let it become law without his signature. We have every confidence that the Governor will sign the bill.
On the “Yield the Right of Way” bill that we submitted last year:
We had a big meeting a couple of months ago with staff people and lawyers from both the Assembly and Senate. Some senators and the legal beagles in the Senate had objections to the bill as written. One of the major ones were that the penalties proposed were more severe than those for regular DWI cases. Bill Cox of ABATE pointed out that there were eight times more Yield cases than DWI and that the penalties were appropriate. We ended that meeting with my asking those staffers on the Senate and Assembly sides to work with each other and come up with a bill that would be satisfactory. They agreed to do this and we’re supposed to meet in mid-November again to see what they’ve come up with.
However, the more I thought about this issue, the more I’m inclined not to let them water the bill down. I told Senator Johnson’s office today, October 3rd, that maybe what Prospector and I should do is not change the bill, but try to convince objecting Senators and the legal staff that the penalties are justified. We’ll have to see about that.
Meanwhile, on other issues, we will be introducing a handlebar height bill again this year, asking that the permitted height be up to shoulder height instead of using inches above seat level. Inches above seat level makes no sense as physical stature is so different with each individual.
We’re still trying to get the New York State Thruway Authority to lower toll rates for motorcycles and they’ve been “evaluating” the situation as demanded by the Governor in his veto of our law that was passed by the legislature.
There is still the restoration of the ATV Trails and Maintenance fund…a bill adamantly opposed by environmental organizations who actually want to see ATV use eliminated or banned in the state. We’re still fighting on this front and we’ll have to see where it ends up this coming session. I can’t be too optimistic at this point. We thought we had an agreement with Environmental groups last year, but it turned out to be all smoke and mirrors and they were still trying to submarine anything that would permit a legal trail system.
We’re going to have to start research on what can be done on the state level to ameliorate the terrible wrong done to motorcyclists by regulators on the federal level. As you should know by now, under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act(HIPAA), while you cannot be barred from having medical insurance, the insurance companies are given leeway to deny your BENEFITS if you are hurt while motorcycling. There have been cases like this already and it’s outrageous. You pay your premiums, but if you’re hurt the insurance company can deny paying your medical bills. Exactly the opposite of what Congress passed in 1995.
Speaking of the federal government..both the AMA and MRF are strongly opposing proposed new emission rules for motorcycles which both say will kill off a lot of aftermarket businesses and possibly cause thousands of people to lose their livelihoods. Consequently, Rep. James Barcia of Michigan has introduced a bill that would in essence protect small makers and aftermarket firms from being squeezed out of business because of emission standards they could not meet. That bill is H.R. 5433 in the House of Representatives. There’s no companion bill in the U-S Senate, yet. You may want to contact your congressman to ask him to review the bill and possibly co-sponsor it. Unfortunately, on this score, the people who ride motorcycles and the big firms that make them like Harley-Davidson, may be at odds. Big firms say they can meet the stringent new standards proposed. They’ve got the R &D bucks to make it happen. Smaller manufacturers and custom builders don’t have that kind of money. If they went out of business, the big boys would have it all to themselves. More profit, less competition..but much less choice for YOU, the motorcyclist.
AMA has called on congress to fund a new “in depth study into the causes of motorcycle crashes. Ed Moreland, V-P for Government Relations testified before the House Subcommittee on Highways nad Transit, recently. The last such study was done 21-years ago. Moreland called on lawmakers to make motorcycle safety a priority. He also said law should be strengthened to make the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration(NHTSA) concentrate on crash prevention rather than how to make crashes safer. Also, he said motorcyclists should be included in the research effort and congress should continue the ban on lobbying at the state and local level by NHTSA.
Meanwhile, AMA and NHTSA are partnering on a campaign to educate motorcyclists about the dangers of drinking and riding. The AMA is the first national motorcycling organization to act on a recommendation of the National Agenda for Motorcycle Safety. Remember, if someone you’re riding with insists on drinking, get the hell away from him/her. They’re just an accident going somewhere to happen. Don’t you become one, too.
As you know from prior Corners, AMA has gained special Non-Govermental Organization(NGO) status with the United Nations and now the Motorcycle Riders Foundation has gained the same recognition. How, the two national motorcycle organizations will be able to put our two cents in before any world standards for motorcycles are approved through the United Nations.
Because of the outcry from AMA and others, a provision of a new law that would have allowed federal traffic safety officials to regulate motorcycle apparel, will not be part of that new law. Relax, the feds will therefore not be able to tell you how you must dress when riding.
Finally, a bunch of so-called environmental and consumer groups attacked the safety record of ATV’s , naturally ignoring vital data. They called for tighter regulation and a total ban on ATV use by any rider under 16-years old. They charged ATV injuries doubled between 1993 and 2001, conveniently ignoring the fact that during that same period the number of ATV’s in use nationally tripled meaning an individual ATV operator was actually much less likely to be injured in 2001. On a per rider basis, the sport is much safer today than it was a decade ago. Director of the All Terrain Vehicle Association(ATVA), Doug Morris noted that the Natural Trails and Waters Coalition and Bluewater Network(hate ATV’s), have never had any involvement with or interest in ATV safety. He said; “Instead, their agenda is to block access to public lands for ATV riders and others involved in motorized recreation.
That’s it for now, folks. Be free and ride safe, until the next time! |
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