MRF Alerts

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For Immediate Release

April 21, 2016

Modified Motorcycles Potentially Under Attack

Members of both Houses of Congress have introduced proposed legislation that would protect the rights of Americans to modify their vehicles for racing purposes. Dubbed the Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2016 (RPM Act, H.R. 4715 and S. 2659), this legislation would ensure that converting any motor vehicle (including street motorcycles) into a competition-only vehicle remains legal.

This proposed legislation became necessary after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, under the guise of maintaining emissions as outlined by the Clean Air Act, announced plans to regulate the conversion of street motorcycles and other motor vehicles into race vehicles. This attempt is reminiscent of the EPA's efforts back in 2003 to regulate motorcycling through another unrelated proposed regulation aimed at heavy equipment, steam engines and diesel engines that would have prohibited owners from changing anything on their motorcycles except for paint color or chrome.

Through the Color and Chrome initiative, the MRF was successful in separating motorcycles from the EPA’s regulations and created exemptions to protect the custom and aftermarket industries and our lifestyle.

On April 15, 2016, the EPA announced that, under pressure from Congress, it would drop the language from its proposed regulations; nevertheless, it shows the clear intent of the EPA to attempt to overstep its bounds, as outlined by the Clean Air Act, in an effort to strip motorcyclists of the rights to modify their motorcycles as they see fit.

The MRF urges its members to contact their U.S. Representative and Senator and ask them to support H.R. 4715/S. 2659, the Recognizing the Protection of Motorsports Act of 2016, so that the EPA makes no further attempts to erode motorcyclists’ rights.

Motorcyclists Unite on Anti-Profiling Bill Language

Consistent with the Motorcycle Riders Foundation’s (MRF) 2016 Legislative Agenda as voted on by its Sustaining State Motorcyclists Rights Organizations, the MRF has aligned with other national motorcyclists’ rights organizations on proposed federal anti-profiling language. (The full version of the language can be read in a link below.)

The MRF recognizes the importance to all motorcyclists of this much-needed language, and we applaud the hard work of organizations that are addressing this issue legislatively on the state level. The time has come, however, to address profiling on a national level. There is a public misconception that profiling is strictly an issue that affects only motorcycle clubs; in reality, nothing could be further from the truth, as profiling injustices continue to happen across the country to all types of motorcyclists. This issue is a matter of civil liberties, and now is the time to roll up the sleeves and get to work.

To that end, at the most recent Anti-Profiling Action Group meeting in Las Vegas, ranking members from many motorcycling organizations all agreed to support anti-profiling language, including James “Doc” Reichenbach II, Chairman of the National Coalition of Motorcyclists (NCOM), Frank Ernst, Chairman of the NCOM Legislative Task Force, and David “Double D” Devereaux, representing the Council of Clubs and author of this anti-profiling language. Other members of the Anti-Profiling Action Group include the Committee Lead Russell Radke, MRF President Kirk “Hardtail” Willard, Committee Secretary Shelly Holcomb, MRF PAC Treasurer Lenny Holcomb, and nationally known motorcyclists’ advocate Dick “Slider” Gilmore.

As the true “boots on the ground” of motorcycling rights, the MRF is asking each of you to reach out to your federal legislators and ask them to support anti-profiling language. Time is of the essence—we need to know who will support us and who will not by May 1, two weeks prior to our “Bikers Inside the Beltway” national biker lobby day on May 12, 2016.

Please send all responses from your legislators—both those that are in favor and those that are against—to Russell Radke at Russell@MRF.org. Russell will then forward all the compiled information to the MRF’s analyst to compile into a list of talking points for the MRF’s national biker lobby day known as Bikers Inside the Beltway to be held in Washington D.C. on May 12th.

Anti-Profiling Victory at the State Level

Maryland recently passed an Anti-Profiling bill through both the House and Senate. Public Safety-Motorcycle Profiling-Training passed the Senate with a 47-0 vote and the House of Delegates with a 136-0 vote. Maryland would be the second state in the union joining Washington to pass an Anti-Profiling bill after a procedural vote across both bodies and a signature by the Governor. 

National Motorcycle Profiling Act Draft 2016