ENGROSSED
Senate Bill No. 615
(By Senator Schoonover)
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[Introduced February 19, 1998; referred to the
Committee on Transportation.]
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A BILL to amend and reenact section forty-four, article fifteen,
chapter seventeen-c of the code of West Virginia, one
thousand nine hundred thirty-one, as amended, relating to
motorcycle operators and passengers; requiring certain
persons under the age of twenty-one or who have been
licensed less than two years to wear a helmet; helmet
standards; requiring the use of eye protection and setting
standards therefor; equipment standards; carrying of
passengers; and approval of equipment.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
That section forty-four, article fifteen, chapter seventeen- c of the code of West Virginia, one thousand nine hundred thirty- one, as amended, be amended and reenacted to read as follows:
ARTICLE 15. EQUIPMENT.
§17C-15-44. Safety equipment and requirements for motorcyclists,
motorcycles, motor-driven cycles and mopeds; motorcycle safety standards and education
committee.
(a) No person
less than twenty-one years of age or who has
had a valid motorcycle license under section one, article two,
chapter seventeen-b of this code or a valid license which has
been endorsed under section seven-b, article two, chapter
seventeen-b of this code for less than two years shall operate or
be a passenger on any motorcycle or motor-driven cycle unless the
person is wearing securely fastened on his or her head by either
a neck or chin strap a protective helmet designed to deflect
blows, resist penetration and spread impact forces. Any helmet
worn by an operator or passenger shall meet the current
performance specifications established by the American national
standards institute standard, Z 90.1, the United States
department of transportation federal motor vehicle safety
standard no. 218 or Snell safety standards for protective
headgear for vehicle users.
(b) No person shall operate or be a passenger on any
motorcycle or motor-driven cycle unless the person is wearing
safety, shatter-resistant eyeglasses (excluding contact lenses), or eyegoggles or face shield that complies with the performance
specifications established by the American national standards
institute for head, eye and respiratory protection, Z 2.1. In
addition, if any motorcycle, motor-driven cycle or moped is
equipped with a windshield or windscreen, the windshield or
windscreen shall be constructed of safety, shatter-resistant
material that complies with the performance specifications
established by department of transportation federal motor vehicle
safety standard No.
205 and American national standards
institute, safety glazing materials for glazing motor vehicles
operated on land highways, standard Z 26.1.
(c) No person shall operate a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle
or moped on which the handlebars or grips are more than fifteen
inches higher than the uppermost part of the operator's seat when
the seat is not depressed in any manner.
(d) A person operating a motorcycle, motor-driven cycle or
moped shall ride in a seated position facing forward and only
upon a permanent operator's seat attached to the vehicle. No
operator shall carry any other person nor shall any other person
ride on the vehicle unless the vehicle is designed to carry more
than one person, in which event a passenger may ride behind the
operator upon the permanent operator's seat if it is designed for
two persons, or upon another seat firmly attached to the vehicle to the rear of the operator's seat and equipped with footrests
designed and located for use by the passenger or in a sidecar
firmly attached to the vehicle. No person shall ride side saddle
on a seat. An operator may carry as many passengers as there are
seats and footrests to accommodate those passengers. Additional
passengers may be carried in a factory produced sidecar provided
that there is one passenger per seat. Passengers riding in a
sidecar shall be restrained by safety belts.
(e) Every motorcycle, motor-driven cycle and moped shall be
equipped with a rearview mirror affixed to the handlebars or
fairings and adjusted so that the operator shall have a clear
view of the road and condition of traffic behind him or her for
a distance of at least two hundred feet.
(f) There is hereby created a six-member motorcycle safety
and education committee consisting of: The superintendent of the
state police or a designee; the commissioner of motor vehicles or
a designee; the director of the West Virginia safety council or
a designee; a licensed motorcycle operator; an owner of a
motorcycle dealership; and a supplier of aftermarket
nonfranchised motorcycle supplies. The nongovernmental
representatives shall be appointed by the governor with the
advice and consent of the Senate, shall serve without
compensation, and the terms shall be for three years, except that as to the members first appointed, one shall be appointed for a
term of one year, one shall be appointed for a term of two years
and one shall be appointed for a term of three years. Members
may be reappointed to the committee.
The committee shall continue to exist pursuant to the
provisions of article ten, chapter four of this code until the
first day of July, one thousand nine hundred ninety-nine, to
allow for the completion of a preliminary performance review by
the joint committee on government operations.
The committee is hereby authorized to recommend to the
superintendent of public safety types and makes of protective
helmets, eye protection devices and equipment offered for sale,
purchased or used by any person. The committee is authorized to
make recommendations to the commissioner of motor vehicles
regarding the use of the moneys in the motorcycle safety fund
created under section seven, article one-d, chapter seventeen-b
of this code.