7:00 a.m. this morning in a jam packed House Room 3, we started right out with the Scooter bills, as a new one (HB2752) patroned by Todd Pillion (the Dentist from Abingdon) who we have seen previously on the House Transportation committee and Sub Comm 2, but not had much dealings with). This bill, which had just been dropped at the end of last week, causing several on the committee to state that they had not yet read it. When we got copies from the Bill Room after the meeting we noted a large LEGISLATION NOT PREPARED BY DLS (Dept. of Legislative Services) at the top of it, causing us to wonder who had prepared it. Whoever did, it would appear that the Scooter bills we had seen previously (HB2214/Jones & HB2232/Bagby) have now been superseded by this bill.
Lengthy discussion ensued, with lobbyists representing both Bird & Lime speaking in favor and law enforcement and other officials from Arlington, Alexandria, & Charlottesvile asking for the bill to be tabled until their in- progress Pilot Projects are completed and digested. Despite those requests, the bill was reported on to the full Trans Comm by a 7-3 vote, and the prevailing discussion seemed to be that the scooters would be permitted only on bike lanes, trails and sidewalks, and that all jurisdictions would have the authority to pass ordinances banning them from their sidewalks , if they chose to do so, which must have been the part that the Bird rep was unhappy with.
When we had a chance to look the language over after the meeting, it appears that the scooters will also be permitted on the highway, but not capable of moving at more than 20 mph. There seem to be enough unresolved questions here, and it was obvious that the Bird representative did not get what he wanted, so these questions will be discussed and clarified at the next steps in the process, and we will be anxious to see that they don’t result in any restrictions that spill over to the bicyclists. Throughout the bill as it presently stands, scooters appear to have much the same responsibilities and rules as bicycles do.
With so much time taken up on this bill at the start of a 90 minute meeting, it put the pressure on Chairman Garrett to move things along, so he kept reminding subsequent speakers of what our deadline to finish was, with the result that HB2155 prohibiting the passing of vehicles that are stopped at a crosswalk, carried by Del. Plum, the main bill we were there for, was carried over until NEXT Tuesday at 7:00 a.m.
Of the other bills heard, most failed, including the motorcyclist’s annual “death wish” bill ( HB1872), as Del. Frank Hargrove used to call it, as he would bring in his old helmet with the crack in it and display it when that year’s bill to eliminate the requirement for motorcyclists to wear a helmet was heard. This time they tried a new twist, to make an exemption for riders who would sign up to be organ donors, but it didn’t get any better results, as they will still be required to wear one, organ donor or not, as it failed 8-2.
Another bill to permit a motorcycle to bypass an accident scene by driving on the shoulder, was left in committee as it failed to get a second after strongly being opposed by the State Police rep. And a bill to require all adults in a vehicle to utilize a seat belt (not just those in the front seats) failed by a 6-3 vote, despite strong pitches for its worth in saving lives by AAA, the State Police, and the Insurance Industry rep. as Del. Paul Krizek of Alexandria vowed to be back next year for his fifth try at it.
Now, tomorrow we hopefully get to see our top of the list bills (all SBs— 1341, 1550, 1154, & 1768) banning cell phone use by drivers, and the Vulnerable Road User and Due Care bills, in Senate Trans, hoping that “shortly after adjournment of the Senate” doesn’t again turn out to be 3:30, as it did last Wednesday.
In addition to these bills, we got a bad surprise today when Champe discovered a Budget amendment that had quietly been requested by my Senator from Henrico Siobhan Dunnavant that would move the responsibility for the Maintenance of the Capital Trail from VDOT to the Dept. of Conservation & Recreation. We think this is a bad idea, and are not sure where it originated, but there are some heavy hitters also in opposition, so we are watching the situation so see what develops before entering the fray.
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