COAST TO COAST LEGISLATIVE REPORT for AUGUST 2013

Even as motorcyclists and others are calling for further research and testing of fuels containing ethanol, and the fact that E-15 (gasoline containing 15% ethanol) is not approved for use in any of the millions of motorcycles on and off-road, two bills have been introduced in Congress to protect the fuel industry from lawsuits resulting from its use.

Illinois Congressman John Shimkus, otherwise a longtime friend of motorcycle riders, has authored H.R.1214, the Domestic Fuels Protection Act of 2014; “To provide liability protection for claims based on the design, manufacture, sale, offer for sale, introduction into commerce, or use of certain fuels and fuel additives.”

Likewise, Texas Congressman Gene Green has offered H.R.2267, the American Fuel Protection Act of 2013, which “Deems a claim for liability against a qualified entity as a claim against the United States for damages resulting from, or aggravated by, the use of transportation fuel containing ethanol in concentrations greater than 10% to operate an internal combustion engine. Abrogates U.S. sovereign immunity and makes the United States exclusively liable for such claims. Limits awards to actual damages sustained by a claimant. Defines “qualified entity” to mean an entity engaged in the manufacture, use, sale, or distribution of: (1) transportation fuel or renewable fuel, or (2) products which use transportation fuel. Grants U.S. district courts exclusive jurisdiction of any civil actions on such claims.”

Both bills have been referred to committee, and either proposal would indemnify fuel manufacturers and suppliers from legal actions for damages caused by their product, leaving U.S. taxpayers to foot the bill for clean-ups from leakage and limiting their liability to actual damages by a claimant, such as the out-of-pocket cost to rebuild an engine damaged by E-15 gas.

The secretary of state’s office has announced that a petition to restrict passengers on motorcycles has met standards for circulation, and supporters can begin collecting signatures to get the proposal on the 2014 ballot.

The proposal, to be put to voters to decide, would require Missouri motorcycle operators to be at least 21 and complete a rider-safety class before they could carry passengers. The restrictions would not apply to those who have had had a motorcycle license for the previous two years and were born in 1984 or earlier.

The first violation would be a misdemeanor with a fine of up to $300. Penalties would increase for repeat offenses.

The Maine lawmaker who was the driving force behind the popular pink ribbon breast cancer awareness license plate in that state says the response to creating a motorcycle version has been lukewarm.

The Maine Cancer Foundation says nearly 70 people have committed to the motorcycle license plate, but 500 pre-orders are required for the Bureau of Motor Vehicles to begin production.

State Representative Meredith Strang Burgess (R-Cumberland) has told the Journal Tribune newspaper that she’s setting a deadline of year’s end for collecting pre-orders. If the pre-registrations are gathered, it will take three months for the state to produce the plates before the first ones will be seen on Maine motorcycles.

Members of a motorcycle club claim their constitutional rights were violated when Arizona officers rousted them at gunpoint at a campsite where a man shot his wife and two others before killing himself at a 2011 bike rally near Flagstaff.

The Sons of Hell have filed a federal lawsuit last week against the Arizona Department of Public Safety and the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office seeking monetary compensation. Its members claim officers were trying to collect information for a criminal street gang database, even though they knew club members weren’t involved in the shooting.

The Motorcyclist Movement of Quebec, which represents more than 8,000 motorcyclists in the province, says sky-high hikes in insurance premiums are unfair and discriminate against motorcycle owners, and held a protest in downtown Montreal to launch a $100 million class-action lawsuit against Quebec’s automobile insurance board (SAAQ).

The organization’s president and founder, Michael Mosca, says license plate registration fees have increased by 400% since 2008.  “They’re being discriminated upon. It’s a very abusive law,” he says.

However, the SAAQ says the premiums are needed in order to compensate victims involved in motorcycle accidents.  The board adjusted insurance premiums after a review revealed a $109 million deficit in 2006.  While Mosca admits that motorcycles are higher-risk vehicles, he claims that “When there are accidents between cars and motorcycles, 94 or 95% of the time it’s the car’s fault, so the motorcyclist is being punished when he’s not at fault.”

Instead of increasing fees, Mosca suggests the SAAQ should do more to educate people about road safety, adding that it’s time people change their minds about motorcycles.  “Motorcycles consume less fuel, they cause less pollution, less damage to the roads, which is beneficial to the whole planet,” he said.

Motorcycles account for over 65% of motor vehicle registrations every month in Kenya, but new rules requiring motorcycle assemblers to use locally generated parts, when no companies in East Africa are manufacturing them, could spell doom for motorcycle firms.

Manufacturers are raising the red flag over the new law, in force effective July 1st, which stipulates a 25% duty remission on motorcycle assemblers who fail to adhere to the new regulations which require parts such as seats, mudguards, wheel rims, break-gears, exhaust pipes, tires, chassis, batteries and shock absorbers to be manufactured within the East African Community (EAC).

Assemblers are concerned about the capacity of the region to produce the specified parts, and they say such a move is likely to compromise safety standards, kill employment opportunities and make motorcycles unaffordable.  “The EAC region lacks capacity to produce these parts,” said Honda Motorcycle Kenya Ltd chairman, Isaac Kalua. “Currently, there is no particular company that can produce any of these parts.”

The new law crafted by the EAC seeks to encourage consumption of locally produced materials, but it is now causing jitters within the manufacturing fraternity. The Kenya Association of Manufactures (KAM) called the decision “a bit premature” and KAM Chief Executive Officer Betty Maina told Business Beat, “We are currently investigating to establish whether there is local capacity to produce those parts in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania before we advise the Government on the timing of that decision.”

For an easier identification of criminals, local authorities in Cotabato City have banned the wearing of motorcycle helmets after several deadly car bomb blasts.  City police said the measure will help them identify known criminals in the area, and are also hoping that the city council will support their move, radio dzBB has reported.

Several countries had cautioned their nationals to take precautions in traveling to Mindanao, in the Philippines, due to the bombings.  Cotabato City is a mixed Muslim-Catholic city on the main southern island of Mindanao where Muslim insurgents have waged a decades old rebellion that has claimed 150,000 lives.

Amid nationwide protests from motorcycle riders, a controversial new set of laws may soon force motorcyclists in Panama to emblazon their license plate number on reflective vests and helmets.

Following objections from motorcycle clubs, the Transport Authority (ATTT) decided to postpone the enforcement of the decree regulating the new safety standards for motorcycles, Resolution 904, which was originally set to begin July 24th.  Motorcyclist groups in this Central American country say that the measure will not help reduce the use of motorcycles in acts of crime, such as drive-by shootings, and they also insist that the measure is unconstitutional.

Ricardo Mosquera, the President of the Motorcycle Association of Panama, described the move as arbitrary, and as an imposition. “At no time were we consulted on this new standard, it also strikes me as having been negotiated with whoever is going to sell the vests. Moreover, a criminal could simply make a vest bearing any number, commit their crime, and the innocent would then be blamed,” Mosquera told Panama-Guide.com.

ATTT head Roberto Moreno said that motorcyclists only disagree with the use of numbered helmets and vests but are not opposed to driving with their lights on, and they also have no qualms about restrictions on driving on sidewalks and shoulders of the roads and in the middle of streets and avenues around the country.

BMW Motorrad and Dainese have announced that they are to cooperate in a joint development of innovative motorcycle safety clothing, partnering to develop motorcycle rider equipment with fully integrated inflatable protectors.

The first product to emerge from the cooperation will be the DoubleR RaceAir one-piece leather suit designed exclusively for use on racetracks, and the next stage will be to develop the Dainese D-Air Street System as a retrofit solution for BMW Motorrad.  The system is scheduled to be launched in 2015, following successful completion of all the crash tests. BMW Motorrad customers will then be able to retrofit the innovative safety system to their motorcycles.

Based in Germany, BMW Motorrad is the only motorcycle manufacturer to have developed the complete range of rider equipment ever since the 1970s – from motorcycle helmets to rider suits, boots and gloves.  The ABS pioneer says it has always regarded motorcycling and safety as being inseparably linked and anchored in the “Safety 360°” principle, which breaks down the overall concept of safe motorcycling into three facets: safety technology in the vehicle, safety deriving from rider equipment and safety through rider training.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) and the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI) have petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to upgrade the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 122 Motorcycle brake systems (49 CFR 571.122).

“This standard should be strengthened to require ABS on all new motorcycles manufactured for on-highway use in the United States,” wrote the IIHS and HLDI in joint letter on May 30, 2013 to NHTSA Administrator David L. Strickland.

Research by IIHS and HLDI indicate that ABS reduces the motorcycle fatal crash rate by an estimated 31% and the collision insurance claim rate by an estimated 20%.

Allstate Insurance Company announced the newest initiative under its Rider Protection Project portfolio – a series of programs all focused on making the roads a safer place to ride. The Allstate Good Ride Grant contest will award a combined total of $25,000 to five contest winners with the best ideas for advancing motorcycle safety and awareness.

Now through August 31, 2013, contest applicants may submit their Good Ride Grant submissions through the designated tab on Allstate Motorcycle’s Facebook page at facebook.com/AllstateMotorcycle.  Entries are welcome from anyone, including local governments, dealerships, rider clubs and individuals.

A six-person judging committee will determine the top 15 finalists, whose ideas will then be featured on the Allstate Motorcycle Facebook page where fans can vote for their favorites and the top five will each receive a $5,000 grant to help put their ideas into action.

QUOTABLE QUOTE: “Every man owes a part of his time and money to the business or industry in which he is engaged.  No man has a moral right to withhold his support from an organization that is striving to improve conditions within his sphere.”

~ Theodore Roosevelt (1858-1919) 26th President of the United States