BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 1835
          Author:   Olsen (R)
          Amended:  7/1/14 in Senate
          Vote:     21


           SENATE TRANSPORTATION & HOUSING COMMITTEE  :  10-0, 6/24/14
          AYES:  DeSaulnier, Gaines, Beall, Cannella, Galgiani, Hueso,  
            Lara, Liu, Roth, Wyland
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Pavley

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  44-23, 5/23/14 - See last page for vote


           SUBJECT  :    Recreational off-highway vehicles:  helmets

           SOURCE  :     Author


           DIGEST  :    This bill specifies that the requirement for the  
          driver and passengers of a recreation off-highway vehicle (ROHV)  
          to wear a helmet only applies on public land.

           ANALYSIS  :    Off-highway motor vehicles (OHVs) include several  
          types of vehicles not designed or intended for highway use,  
          including dune buggies, certain motor bikes, snowmobiles, and  
          all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).   In order to operate an OHV on  
          public lands, the owner must apply to the Department of Motor  
          Vehicles (DMV) to register the OHV and receive an OHV  
          identification sticker, which serves in lieu of a license plate  
          and includes a unique number for each OHV.

          Existing law generally allows a person of any age to operate an  
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          OHV, provided that the person can reach the controls necessary  
          to operate the vehicle safely, and prescribes various rules for  
          the operation of and equipment on specified OHVs.  For example,  
          while on public lands, the operator of an ATV must wear a helmet  
          and may not transport passengers.

          In 2012, AB 1595 (Cook, Chapter 165) defined an "ROHV" as a  
          motor vehicle designed for operation primarily off of the  
          highway and that has:

           A steering wheel.
           Non-straddle seating for the operator and passengers.
           A maximum speed capability of greater than 30 miles per hour.
           An engine displacement equal to or less than 1,000 cubic  
            centimeters.

          AB 1595 included ROHVs among OHVs subject to DMV registration  
          and identification requirements and established requirements for  
          the operation of ROHVs, including that all ROHV operators and  
          passengers must wear safety helmets.

          This bill specifies that the requirement for the driver and  
          passengers of an ROHV to wear a helmet only applies on public  
          land.

           Previous legislation regulating ROHVs  .

          In 2012, the Legislature unanimously passed and Governor Brown  
          signed AB 1595 (Cook), which added the definition of ROHVs and  
          safety rules for their operation to state law.  The safety  
          requirements of AB 1595 included:

           An ROHV operator must be at least 16 years old or be directly  
            supervised in the vehicle by a parent, guardian, or adult  
            authorized by a parent or guardian.

           ROHV operators and passengers must wear safety helmets as well  
            as seatbelts and shoulder belts or safety harnesses that are  
            properly fastened when the vehicle is moving.

           All passengers must occupy seats provided by the manufacturer.

           An ROHV passenger must be able to grasp the occupant handhold  
            with the seat-shoulder belt or safety harness fastened while  

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            seated upright with his/her back up against the seatback and  
            with both feet flat on the floorboard.

          Beginning just a few weeks after the Governor signed AB 1595 in  
          July 2012, those who own, operate, and recreate in ROHVs have  
          objected to some of the safety rules contained in AB 1595.  Two  
          subsequent bills have changed those rules, as follows:

          AB 1266 (Nielsen, Chapter 529, statutes of 2012) delayed until  
          July 1, 2013, the effective date of the requirement that all  
          passengers occupy seats provided by the manufacturer, and  
          deleted the requirement that an ROHV passenger must be able to  
          put both feet flat on the floorboard when seated upright and  
          grasping the handhold with the safety harness fastened.

          SB 234 (Walters, Chapter 179, statutes of 2013) limits the  
          requirement that passengers in an ROHV may only sit in seats  
          installed by the original manufacturer to ROHVs with a 2014 or  
          later model year.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No   Local:  
           No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  7/1/14)

          American Brotherhood Aimed Towards Education
          Outdoor Sportsmen's Coalition of California

           OPPOSITION  :    (Verified  7/1/14)

          California Chapter of the American College of Emergency  
          Physicians
          California Medical Association
          County Health Executives Association of California

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    ROHVs operate somewhat like a car or  
          small pickup truck, in which the driver and passengers sit in  
          full seats and the driver uses a steering wheel to maneuver the  
          vehicle, as opposed to an ATV, in which the operator straddles  
          the vehicle and uses handlebars.  The author notes that ROHVs  
          are used daily by recreational users for outdoor enjoyment and  
          for farmers and builders to haul materials.  Proponents note  
          that ROHVs come equipped with roll cages, seat belts, and  
          shoulder harnesses, which make the likelihood of ejection less  

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          than that of a car or a golf cart.  They further note that a  
          helmet can make it more difficult to operate an ROHV because  
          helmets obscure the operator's vision and can cause fatigue,  
          particularly in hot weather.

           ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION  :    The Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle  
          Association (Association), a trade association made up of the  
          manufacturers and wholesalers of ROHVs, sponsored AB 1595 in  
          2012.  The Association asserts that the presence of roll bars  
          and the use of seat belts while riding in ROHVs do not mitigate  
          the need for operators and passengers to wear helmets.  In its  
          letter of opposition, the Association cites U.S. Consumer  
          Product Safety Commission (CPSC) studies showing that lack of  
          helmet use is implicated in 53% of ROHV injury and fatality  
          accidents.

          Writing in opposition to the bill, the California Medical  
          Association claims that requiring drivers and passengers of  
          ROHVs to wear helmets is grounded in sound public policy.  The  
          Medical Association also cites similar CPSC statistics regarding  
          ROHV injuries and notes that in nearly 70% of crashes the ROHV  
          rolled over, with the majority of these accidents causing  
          ejection of the passengers.  Despite the roll bar and other  
          safety measures contained in the ROHV, the Medical Association  
          asserts that ejections caused the majority of ROHV-related  
          deaths and that these deaths could have been avoided through  
          helmet use.

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  44-23, 5/23/14
          AYES:  Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Bigelow, Bocanegra, Bradford,  
            Ian Calderon, Chávez, Conway, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Donnelly,  
            Eggman, Fox, Beth Gaines, Gatto, Gorell, Gray, Grove, Hagman,  
            Hall, Holden, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Linder, Logue, Maienschein,  
            Mansoor, Melendez, Nestande, Olsen, Patterson, Perea, Quirk,  
            Quirk-Silva, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Salas, Stone, Wagner,  
            Waldron, Wilk, Atkins
          NOES:  Ammiano, Bloom, Bonilla, Bonta, Buchanan, Chesbro,  
            Dickinson, Frazier, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Levine,  
            Lowenthal, Medina, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Pan, John A. Pérez,  
            Skinner, Ting, Weber, Wieckowski, Yamada
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Brown, Campos, Chau, Cooley, Fong, Garcia,  
            Harkey, Roger Hernández, Nazarian, V. Manuel Pérez, Rodriguez,  
            Williams, Vacancy


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          JA:e  7/2/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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