Almost there!

by Steve Panten

I am happy to report that I survived another Summer Hummer! It was a great event, and I would like to thank everyone that volunteered for all the hard work it takes to put this together for us. We would not be able to do this without their dedication and efforts. Also, thank you to all the sponsors for help offsetting the cost of the event and finally, thank you to everyone who attended. This event is a great opportunity to meet the membership that I don’t normally get to see during the year.

Right before the Summer Hummer happened, the Wisconsin State Senate passed our consumer choice engine bills, AB141/SB213 and AB142/SB212. Next step is for the Legislature to send them to the Governor for him to sign them, veto them, or do nothing. If he chooses to do nothing then after 6 days, not including Sundays, it automatically becomes law (wasn’t that a great lesson). John and I met with the Governor’s Senior Policy Advisor and said they are not completely comfortable with the legislation because it says, “No state or local government agency can” and they typically do not like to restrict local governments. This may be a sticking point that would result in him vetoing these 2 bills.

There are scheduled dates to send bills to his office for him to act on and the next scheduled day is August 3rd. I say scheduled day because at any time the Governor can request bills to act on. This s a budget year and Legislators like to get out of Madison as soon as the budget passes so they can focus on duties in the district, like parades and carnivals. Because of this, as soon as they agree on a budget, they might call for all bills to act on them and move into the summer break, so we need to reach out to his office now!

Last month we sent out a “Call to Action” asking people to send a message to the Governor’s Office asking him to pass these bills to protect a consumer’s choice in the State. The Call to Actions was sent to everyone that signed up to receive them through our website, and they were posted on social media. I am hoping that everyone saw the action item and acted on it. If we can get enough people to reach out, we can make a difference, even if it is to start conversations with his office. Please, take the 15 seconds it takes to enter your information and send the pre-drafted message to Governor Evers. Also send it to all your like-minded family and friends. These bills affect everyone, not just motorcyclists.

Last month John and I met with Secretary Thompson from the DOT along with the Deputy Secretary, the head of the state’s Bureau of Transportation Safety (BOTS) and the head of the State Patrol. We try to meet with them every Spring to discuss motorcycle related issues happening in the state and how we can partner to reduce fatalities while maintaining our freedoms that we enjoy. There will be more coming out on that meeting next month but one item that was discussed is autonomous technologies on Wisconsin roads.

A recent article in the Washington Post quoted a former NHTSA Senior Safety Advisor when talking about the number of Tesla crashes, including those with motorcycles, as saying “It’s very dangerous for motorcycles to be around Teslas.” ABATE of Wisconsin has been saying for years that Wisconsin roads are not the place to be testing autonomous, driverless, or driver assist technology until they can prove it is safe for these vehicles to be on the roads with motorcycles. There are over 325,000 registered motorcycles in the state and there is no documented proof that a Tesla will “see” a motorcycle. Please be aware and remind all your brothers and sisters that you normally ride with to pay extra attention around these vehicles.

Congratulations to the State of Nebraska for getting their helmet requirement bill repealed! They have been working very hard on this for years and finally won. Starting in January of 2024 you will not be required to wear a helmet if you are over 21 and have completed a motorcycle training course. When traveling across Nebraska be sure to carry your completion card with you. It’s a secondary offense so you cannot be pulled over because you do not have a helmet on, but when you get pulled over for speeding you could also get a helmet ticket without proof of completion. Again, congratulations Nebraska! I know from talking with the motorcyclists from that state during national conventions, it has been a long, tough fight for them.

Speaking of National Conventions, in September the Motorcycle Riders Foundation will have their Meeting of the Minds event in Harrisburg Pennsylvania. We have a very limited number of scholarships available to cover your cost of the conference, travel, and hotel so if you are interested, please let me know and I will you put your name on the list to be considered.

Stay vigilant my friends. We did a great job with our bills to protect combustion engine sales in Wisconsin. We are one of the few states with a strong enough motorcycle rights organizations to take on this issue and we may not be done yet. We will also have to fight to protect ourselves from experimental software being put into vehicles to rush them into full production. Be safe and enjoy the great areas to travel in Wisconsin.

That’s it.

Steve