2011 December NCOM Issues Urgent Call To Action

NCOM ISSUES URGENT CALL TO ACTION

Your Immediate Action Needed to Curb National Helmet Law & Protect Motorcycle Safety Programs

The National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM) joins with the AMA and the MRF in issuing an URGENT Call to Action regarding proposed amendments to S.1449 the "Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Improvement Act of 2011” that would call for a National Mandatory Helmet Law for all motorcyclists and could jeopardize funding for Motorcycle Safety programs across the country.

Your prompt action is necessary to derail this federal threat to motorcyclists’ rights, as the hearing on these amendments is scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, December 14, 2011 by the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee.

This federal highway funding measure will decide the future of the national transportation program, and of particular concern to riders are three amendments that would urge states to pass helmet laws and redirect motorcycle safety funds to promoting helmet use.

Please act immediately by contacting your U.S. Senators at the Capitol Hotline (202) 224-3121, especially if their name appears on the list of committee members below, and ask them to:

1. OPPOSE and Vote “NO” on Lautenburg Amendment #1 that would alter the motorcycle safety grant program to promote helmet laws by penalizing states that do not have compulsory helmet laws in place by redirecting their federal highway funds and making it more difficult to apply for safety grants.

2. SUPPORT and Vote “YES” on De Mint Amendments #1 and #18 that would remove language in the bill to lift the current ban on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) from lobbying states to enact universal helmet laws for all riders.

3. SUPPORT and Vote “YES” on De Mint Amendment #2 to delete the words “motorcycle helmet” from the bill’s modified definition of “motor vehicle equipment”, which would otherwise encourage states to spend federal money to promote helmet use.

Your immediate attention to this nationwide Call to Action is crucial to avoiding another federal helmet law battle and consequentially a future helmet fight in your own statehouse, so call your own two U.S. Senators and the following members of the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science & Transportation Committee TODAY!

 Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) – (202) 224-3324
 Senator Mark Begich (D-AK) – (202) 224-3004
 Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) – (202) 224-5721
 Senator John Boozman (R-AR) – (202) 224-4843
 Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) – (202) 224-3553
 Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) (202) 224-3441
 Senator James “Jim” De Mint (R-SC) – (202) 224-6121
 Senator Dean Heller (R-NV) – (202) 224-6244 
 Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX) – (202) 224-5922
 Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI) – (202) 224-3934
 Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA) – (202) 224-3643
 Senator John Kerry (D-MA) – (202) 224-2742
 Senator Amy Klobucher (D-MN) – (202) 224-3244 
 Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) – (202) 224-3224
 Senator Claire Mc Caskill (D-MO) – (202) 224-6154
 Senator Mark Pryor (D-AR) – (202) 224-2353
 Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) – (202) 224-6472
 Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) – (202) 224-3041
 Senator Roger Wicker (R-MS) – (202) 224-6253
 Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME) – (202) 224-5344
 Senator Pat Toomey (R-PA) – (202) 224-4254
 Senator John Thune (R- SD) – (202) 224-2321
 Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) – (202) 224-5941