Not really 4x4, but important:!!! ACTION ALERT! State OHV Law will hurt all of us!

[mbryson]

Dear Friends,



PLEASE READ AND ACT NOW!



We have a very important action alert item and we REALLY need your immediate action on this! Failure to heed our warning will cause the OHV community some serious heartburn!



Tomorrow at 3:00 p.m. on Utah’s Capitol Hill a house transportation committee will be reviewing a bill that will dramatically change the way you and I are allowed to use OHV’s on public land.



The bill is numbered as HB 355



Here are the details:



The bill will require adults to be in direct supervision of children AND at a distance of no more than 300 feet; and within which: visual contact is maintained; and advice and assistance can be given and received. Can you imagine how this would affect your next deer hunt? Keep the kids close, not over the hill or through a stand of trees; Or your next motocross race; are you going to ride along side your kids as they race? Or when your kids ride with your other kids, or the regular family outings many of us participate in; HOW WILL THIS AFFECT YOU? How will this affect rural Utah communities were responsible kids and adults use OHV’s on a daily basis? This could change rural life in a bad way. And in case you were wondering SNOWMOBILES do apply! Any person found guilty of this will be given a class “C” misdemeanor.



Wait that’s not all…



If you are in an accident with another person OF ANY KIND you MUST contact the nearest law enforcement agency ASAP. That means if you have a little fender bender with another person, no matter the cost of the repair, you must immediately or as soon as possible call and report the accident to the local law enforcement! How much will that cost agencies and tax payers to administrate? How will that affect your riding experience? How will that affect your next race? Are we going to stop a motocross race and report a pile up?!



You must also report accidents if:



injury requiring medical attention or death of any person; While we understand some of this why aren’t they asking for similar reporting requirements from mountain bikers, horse back riders, kids on trampolines, etc… this is discriminatory, and there are better ways to glean this data.



property damage to the operator's property in excess of $1,000; What damage to your OHV wouldn’t be under $1,000



property damage of any kind to the property of another. Again if you are in an accident and scratch your buddy’s fender are you going to report it? No, but why should you be told you must and if you don’t you are turned into a criminal?


Failure to give notice as required by this section is a class B misdemeanor. This is outrageous, stiffer jail times, steeper fines and oh yeah they can take away your regular drivers license. Doesn’t this give you a warm fuzzy feeling?



And last but not least:



If you own an OHV and you allow a minor to use it you are liable for any damages caused by the negligence of the operator if that operator is under 18. We can see some wisdom in this, but not in the other terms of this bill.



Simply put this bill stinks. It is discriminatory, it will be difficult and costly to enforce and administrate and creates as many problems as it attempts to solve.



The OHV community was not consulted prior to its release, and the problems in the bill reflect that. We recognize there are issues that HB 355 attempts to address and are worthy of discussion. We would ask that the legislature hold off on this attempt until, law enforcement, State agencies, and the OHV community can collaboratively address the problems and if needed put a bill forward that actually works.



Here is a link to the actual bill http://www.le.state.ut.us/~2006/bills/hbillint/hb0355.htm



What you MUST do…



If you will do this we WILL make a difference so PLEASE HELP.



Here is a list of all the committee members and their contact info. PLEASE call them especially if they are your representative! Not sure of your district go here http://www.le.state.ut.us/house/DistrictInfo/newMaps/State.htm ; even if they aren’t your rep let they and your rep know your concerns!



YOU MUST ACT before the committee meets at 3:00 pm Friday Feb 10. PLACE: Room W135, West Office Building, State Capitol Complex





Rep. Joseph G. Murray, Chair

Email: jmurray@utah.gov
Address: 1030 PEACH DR, OGDEN, UT 84404
Home Phone: 801-393-7062



Rep. J. Stuart Adams, Vice Chair

Email: stuartadams@utah.gov
Address: 3271 E 1875 N, LAYTON, UT 84040
Home Phone: 801-544-7676 Work Phone: 801-546-6000



Rep. Jeff Alexander

Email: jalexander@utah.gov
Address: 3127 PIUTE DR, PROVO, UT 84604
Home Phone: 801-375-1092 Work Phone: 801-224-8666



Rep. David Clark

Email: dclark@utah.gov
Address: 1831 RED MOUNTAIN, SANTA CLARA, UT 84765
Home Phone: 435-628-5108 Work Phone: 435-628-4479



Rep. Tim M. Cosgrove

Email: tcosgrove@utah.gov
Address: 477 E 6325 S, MURRAY, UT 84107
Home Phone: 801-685-0673



Rep. Bradley M. Daw

Email: bdaw@utah.gov
Address: 842 E 280 S, OREM, UT 84097
Home Phone: 801-226-5079 Work Phone: 801-434-7425



Rep. Brad L. Dee, BILL SPONSOR

Email: bdee@utah.gov
Address: 111 W 5600 S, OGDEN, UT 84405
Home Phone: 801-479-5495 Work Phone: 801-399-8623



Rep. John Dougall

Email: jdougall@utah.gov
Address: PO BOX 771, AMERICAN FORK, UT 84003
Home Phone: 801-492-1365 Work Phone: 801-492-1365



Rep. James A. Dunnigan

Email: jdunnigan@utah.gov
Address: 3105 W 5400 S SUITE 6, TAYLORSVILLE, UT 84118
Home Phone: 801-968-8594 Work Phone: 801-840-1800



Rep. Julie Fisher

Email: jfisher@utah.gov
Address: 865 S ORCHARD CT, FRUIT HEIGHTS, UT 84037
Home Phone: 801-544-3833



Rep. Kerry W. Gibson

Email: kwgibson@utah.gov

Address: 5454 W 1150 S, OGDEN, UT 84404
Home Phone: 801-731-8071 Work Phone: 801-731-7404



Rep. Brad King

Email: brad.king@ceu.edu
Address: 635 N 500 E, PRICE, UT 84501
Home Phone: 435-637-7955 Work Phone: 435-613-5246



Rep. Karen W. Morgan

Email: karenmorgan@utah.gov
Address: 8378 AUSTRIAN WAY, SALT LAKE CITY, UT 84121
Home Phone: 801-943-0067 Work Phone: 801-538-1029



Rep. Peggy Wallace

Email: pwallace@utah.gov
Address: 3297 W GREEN MESA WAY, WEST JORDAN, UT 84088
Home Phone: 801-233-9041 Work Phone: 801-965-3010



Rep. Larry B. Wiley

Email: lwiley@utah.gov
Address: 1450 W 3300 S, WEST VALLEY CITY, UT 84119
Home Phone: 801-487-8095 Work Phone: 801-535-6687



Forward this to all you know.



Thank you.



Utah Shared Access Alliance (USA-ALL)

Keeping public lands open!



PO BOX 131 Payson, Utah 84651

Office; 801-465-1145

Fax: 801-465-6972

www.usaall.org

info@usaall.org

 

[Tacoma]

Thank you for that.

 

[great scott]

Wow I just opened up an email about this. I hope its not to late to be heard because its now today!

 

[James K]

I am not the best writer but, tell me what you think of this...................

I fell this bill is inapproriate. My children have taken the state course to recieve there OHV license. I supervise my children when they ride but, I can not always stay within 300' of them. If we are riding at Little Sahara, I can not see them as I am on the down side of a dune and they are still coming up the front side of said dune. If we are riding in the Uintas I can not always maintain eye contact and 300' as some trails have blind corners and it would be unsafe to turn and always watch them as there are trees and rocks that could cause injury to me if I am not paying attention to what I am doing.

 

[James K]

I am not the best writer but, tell me what you think of this...................

I fell this bill is inapproriate. My children have taken the state course to recieve there OHV license. I supervise my children when they ride but, I can not always stay within 300' of them. If we are riding at Little Sahara, I can not see them as I am on the down side of a dune and they are still coming up the front side of said dune. If we are riding in the Uintas I can not always maintain eye contact and 300' as some trails have blind corners and it would be unsafe to turn and always watch them as there are trees and rocks that could cause injury to me if I am not paying attention to what I am doing.

added some more..............

How can it be enforced? Are there going to be more 'officials' out in riding areas to make sure the correct parents are watching the correct children? Or, how does someone report an incident to the authorities, if you are out in the middle of nowhere? Will someone be out there to report it to? Doesn't that mean more money will need to be spent to put more people out in those area? and where will that money come from?

What about those older kids in rural Utah who use ATVs (without the parents being with 300' feet of them) to perform their chores? Does that mean now they will be breaking the law to perform chores that benefit there families?

I believe in ATV safety, but this bill seems to be vague and inapproriate and will not help in making ATV riding safer.

 

[mbryson]

added some more..............

How can it be enforced? Are there going to be more 'officials' out in riding areas to make sure the correct parents are watching the correct children? Or, how does someone report an incident to the authorities, if you are out in the middle of nowhere? Will someone be out there to report it to? Doesn't that mean more money will need to be spent to put more people out in those area? and where will that money come from?

What about those older kids in rural Utah who use ATVs (without the parents being with 300' feet of them) to perform their chores? Does that mean now they will be breaking the law to perform chores that benefit there families?

I believe in ATV safety, but this bill seems to be vague and inapproriate and will not help in making ATV riding safer.

I like it. The last sentence pretty much sums my feelings up. (and I don't own ATVs at the moment {not since I had a 200x--that'll tell you how long ago that was})

 

[James K]

I like it. The last sentence pretty much sums my feelings up. (and I don't own ATVs at the moment {not since I had a 200x--that'll tell you how long ago that was})

Thanks. I am sending it out to all of them.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

This is VERY important... Mike Swenson gave me a call last night to try and get all the 4x4 crowd helping out the OHV guys (expecially since many 4x4 guys register their rigs as OHV's)

This bill is a waste of time for LEO & Park Rangers!!! They can't get to a serious accident (broken bones) for over an hour on a busy day, what happens to response time when they have to respond to every fender bender involving a OHV.

Bad mojo, make a call, write a couple emails ASAP!!!

 

[mbryson]

Here's the Bill

H.B. 355

1
OFF-HIGHWAY VEHICLE AMENDMENTS

2
2006 GENERAL SESSION

3
STATE OF UTAH

4
Chief Sponsor: Brad L. Dee

5
Senate Sponsor: ____________

6
7 LONG TITLE
8 General Description:
9 This bill modifies the Motor Vehicles Code by amending provisions related to
10 off-highway vehicles.
11 Highlighted Provisions:
12 This bill:
13 . defines "direct supervision";
14 . requires that a person operating an off-highway vehicle with an appropriate safety
15 certificate issued or approved by the Division of Parks and Recreation shall be
16 under the direct supervision of a person who is at least 18 years of age;
17 . changes the penalty for violating the off-highway vehicle supervision, safety
18 certificate, or driver license operating requirement from an infraction to a class C
19 misdemeanor;
20 . requires an operator of an off-highway vehicle involved in an accident to give notice
21 of the accident to the nearest law enforcement agency in certain circumstances;
22 . provides that it is a class B misdemeanor to not give required notice of an
23 off-highway vehicle accident;
24 . provides that an owner of an off-highway vehicle permitting a person younger than
25 18 to operate the off-highway vehicle, or a person who gives or furnishes an
26 off-highway vehicle to a person younger than 18, is liable for any damages caused
27 by the negligent operation of the off-highway vehicle; and

28 . makes technical changes.
29 Monies Appropriated in this Bill:
30 None
31 Other Special Clauses:
32 None
33 Utah Code Sections Affected:
34 AMENDS:
35 41-22-30, as last amended by Chapter 349, Laws of Utah 2004
36 ENACTS:
37 41-22-37, Utah Code Annotated 1953
38 41-22-38, Utah Code Annotated 1953
39
40 Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
41 Section 1. Section 41-22-30 is amended to read:
42 41-22-30. Supervision, safety certificate, or driver license required -- Penalty.
43 (1) As used in this section, "direct supervision" means oversight at a distance:
44 (a) of no more than 300 feet; and
45 (b) within which:
46 (i) visual contact is maintained; and
47 (ii) advice and assistance can be given and received.
48 [(1)] (2) A person may not operate and an owner may not give that person permission
49 to operate an off-highway vehicle on any public land, trail, street, or highway of this state
50 unless the person:
51 (a) is under the direct supervision of a certified off-highway vehicle safety instructor
52 during a scheduled safety training course;
53 (b) has in his possession the appropriate safety certificate issued or approved by the
54 division and is under the direct supervision of a person who is at least 18 years of age; or
55 (c) has in his immediate possession a valid motor vehicle operator's license, as
56 provided in Title 53, Chapter 3, Uniform Driver License Act.
57 [(2)] (3) (a) Any person convicted of a violation of this section is guilty of [an
58 infraction and shall be fined not more than $50 per offense] a class C misdemeanor.

59 (b) It is a defense to a charge under this section, if the person charged:
60 (i) produces in court a license or an appropriate safety certificate that was:
61 [(i)] (A) valid at the time of the citation or arrest; and
62 [(ii)] (B) issued to the person operating the off-highway vehicle[.]; and
63 (ii) can show that the direct supervision requirement under Subsection (2)(b) was not
64 violated.
65 [(3)] (4) The requirements of this section do not apply to an operator of an all-terrain
66 type I vehicle with a properly displayed and current off-highway implement of husbandry
67 sticker.
68 Section 2. Section 41-22-37 is enacted to read:
69 41-22-37. Accidents involving off-highway vehicles.
70 (1) The operator of an off-highway vehicle involved in an accident shall immediately
71 and by the quickest means of communication available give notice or cause to give notice of
72 the accident to the nearest law enforcement agency if the accident resulted in:
73 (a) injury requiring medical attention or death of any person;
74 (b) property damage to the operator's property in excess of $1,000; or
75 (c) property damage of any kind to the property of another.
76 (2) Failure to give notice as required by this section is a class B misdemeanor.
77 (3) The provisions of Section 41-6a-402 apply to accidents reported under this section.
78 Section 3. Section 41-22-38 is enacted to read:
79 41-22-38. Owner giving permission and minor liable for damages caused by
80 minor operating off-highway vehicle.
81 The owner of an off-highway vehicle causing or knowingly permitting a person younger
82 than 18 years of age to operate the off-highway vehicle on any public land, trail, street, or
83 highway of this state, or a person who gives or furnishes an off-highway vehicle to a person
84 younger than 18 years of age, are each jointly and severally liable with the person younger than
85 18 years of age for any damages caused by the negligence of the person younger than 18 years
86 of age in operating the off-highway vehicle.




Legislative Review Note
as of 1-16-06 2:27 PM

Based on a limited legal review, this legislation has not been determined to have a high
probability of being held unconstitutional.

Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel

[Bill Documents][Bills Directory]

 

[James K]

sent to all

 

[Houndoc]

opposing view.....

Alright, not a geat bill and I must admit some of it seems odd (lack of dollar value on reporting accidents), but is there anything wrong with holding adults responsible for damage done by youth on their machines? NO.

Is it unreasonable to expect parents to be close enough to their kids to assist if there is an acident or problem? NO.

Dad heads to the next mountain while the kids ride and should they get hurt or injured no one is there to help.You would think common sense would apply in these cases, but too often it doesn't.

I would suggest that the bill is better modified then killed. Get a dollar value on the accidents and possible remove the exact distance and line of vision requirements and simply state that children must be supervise close enough to offer assistance.

We can do more harm trying to stop everything instead of modify/improve.

 

[mbryson]

Alright, not a geat bill and I must admit some of it seems odd (lack of dollar value on reporting accidents), but is there anything wrong with holding adults responsible for damage done by youth on their machines? NO.

Is it unreasonable to expect parents to be close enough to their kids to assist if there is an acident or problem? NO.

Dad heads to the next mountain while the kids ride and should they get hurt or injured no one is there to help.You would think common sense would apply in these cases, but too often it doesn't.

I would suggest that the bill is better modified then killed. Get a dollar value on the accidents and possible remove the exact distance and line of vision requirements and simply state that children must be supervise close enough to offer assistance.

We can do more harm trying to stop everything instead of modify/improve.

Nothing wrong with modification. I think the bill is well intentioned, but from a poorly informed perspective. I specifically stated issues about language on specific lines and suggested alternatives according to my opinions.

Also notice that there are NO MONIES appropriated for this bill? How does that work? You're going to tax already resource scarce agencies to do more? Come on.................

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Alright, not a geat bill and I must admit some of it seems odd (lack of dollar value on reporting accidents), but is there anything wrong with holding adults responsible for damage done by youth on their machines? NO.

Is it unreasonable to expect parents to be close enough to their kids to assist if there is an acident or problem? NO. ....

The 300 ft. thing isn't a biggy, though think about 300 feet, that isn't that far... Once again, something LEO/PR's don't have time/resources to enforce. Just like land-use laws, lawmakers can give into the greenies and pass every law they want... but until the LEO's can effectively enforce the ones we have, nothing is going to change...

The liabilities deal was kindve a given, no problem against that one... I think that is just a matter of putting it on paper.

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...We can do more harm trying to stop everything instead of modify/improve.

Possilby, however this bill and its sponsor took the shady route. No OHV advocates, resources, state OHV board, etc were consulted on this bill. Rather, it was tossed into the game YESTERDAY. Mike @ Usa-All was on the phone last night making the rounds.

You are absolutely right about making some needed modifications, but there was no chance, the lesser of two evils is to vote NO and let him reintroduce a "modified" bill.

In a car, both sides can agree to take care of it & drive off provided it is under a certain dollar amount. With this law it makes ANY damage a must report. I can tell you in working with Park Rangers on patrol in AF Canyon, they do NOT have the time to deal with small incidents like this. They are going to get called to any major accident anyways, why make them report to the ones OHV riders don't want to report?

 

[Bone Down]

there are all ready laws that indicate that you as an adult are responsible for your children's action in terms of property damage, injury to others, etc.

This bill is over kill and is designed to discourage family's from enjoying these types of outings.

If you have placed your children thru the state ohv course's in that course they tell the adult's that this is not a license for them to ride un supervised.

This is unfounded and un-necessary, in fact starting this year Jan. 1 you now have to place actual plate numbering system on your OHV (not just a sticker anymore) this was something they use to do back in the 70's and now it is back.
License plate type numbering.

I am in the process of trying to find out who my rep is for herriman so that I can voice my concern over this HB 355 and encourage him to vote against such a bill.

 

[Bone Down]

I have all ready phoned, but had to leave a message (I doubt he is in the office, he is probably in session). I am following up with this letter (pelfed some from James K) tell me what you think before I send it off.

Representative
David L. Hogue

District 52

Party - R


I feel this bill is inapproriate. My children have taken the state course to recieve there OHV license.
I supervise my children when they ride but, I can not always stay within 300' of them; if we are riding at Little Sahara, I can not see them as I am on the down side of a dune and they are still coming up the front side of said dune.
If we are riding in the Uintas I can not always maintain eye contact and 300' as some trails have blind corners and it would be unsafe to turn and always watch them as there are trees and rocks that could cause injury to me if I am not paying attention to what I am doing.


How would this be enforced? Are there going to be more 'officials' out in riding areas to make sure the correct parents are watching the correct children? Or, how does someone report an incident to the authorities, if you are out in the middle of nowhere? Will someone be out there to report it to? Doesn't that mean more money will need to be spent to put more people out in these remote, rural areas? Where will the money come from to fund the additional man power that would be needed to regulate such a bill as HB355?

What about those older kids in rural Utah who use ATVs (without the parents being with 300' feet of them) to perform their chores? Does that mean now they will be breaking the law to perform chores that benefit there families?

I believe in ATV safety, but this bill seems to be vague and inapproriate and will not help in making ATV riding safer.

I would also like to add that I understand with the increasing popularity of the OHV recreation segment of the population that there have been and increase in accidents, property damage, as well as personal injury, there are all ready laws on the books in this fine State of Utah that cover such things as tresspassing, property damage, personal injury, the responsiblity of adults has all ready been set in place.

I think that this particular Bill HB355 is unsatisfactory and should be voted down.

Thank you for you time,

>Name Here<
>address<
>phone<

 

[Bone Down]

sent it anyways time is a wasting

 

[James K]

Alright, not a geat bill and I must admit some of it seems odd (lack of dollar value on reporting accidents), but is there anything wrong with holding adults responsible for damage done by youth on their machines? NO.

I AM responsible for what my kids do and I also carry insurance on my kids and my machines.

Is it unreasonable to expect parents to be close enough to their kids to assist if there is an acident or problem? NO.

Read what I wrote, it is not always possible.

Dad heads to the next mountain while the kids ride and should they get hurt or injured no one is there to help.You would think common sense would apply in these cases, but too often it doesn't.

common sense is lacking in some people but, why is it all need to be punished?

I would suggest that the bill is better modified then killed. Get a dollar value on the accidents and possible remove the exact distance and line of vision requirements and simply state that children must be supervise close enough to offer assistance.

We can do more harm trying to stop everything instead of modify/improve.

I agree it can be moified but, if I do not say something then how will they know they need to modify it?

 

[James K]

sent it anyways time is a wasting

I liked it, the part you added was also nice.

 

[Bone Down]

I liked it, the part you added was also nice.

I like what you wrote as well.

I really think if you dig down and research this it is probably from SUWA in some form..

I really think that it is designed to make the sport more of a hassel and therefore discourage people from participating.

I know right now that for around $15.00 I could license each of my quads for 2 years at a time in Oregan, my frien moved to NM about 1.5 years ago... think he told me you only have to license your quads there every 3-5 years for like $25.00 I think it was.

I pay around $35 per year x 5 then property tax on top of that x 5. hardly any of that money makes it way to adding more rangers out to Little sahara, or moab.

Heck last time I was in Moab Nov. 2005, our group came across a guy who had all ready been there for an hour with a clean break on his ankle and it was not until 4.5 or so hours later that the even life flighted him out..

This just makes me upset... more laws on the books does not always fix the problem... I bet some one knew someone, that knew some one that had a kid run into his 100k motorhome and he/she probably said there should be a law against this. arrrgggghhhhh