A House committee debated at length a bill that would allow certain people to drive a motorcycle without a helmet but ultimately, laid the bill over to the next meeting.
The House Committee on Technology and Infrastructure met Monday to consider several bills. However, discussion on House Bill 2070 dominated the meeting.
House Bill 2070 would allow people in the state of West Virginia to operate a motorcycle without a helmet providing that they’ve held a motorcycle license for at least two years and are 21 or older. This bill proved to be contentious in the committee meeting, and generated a lengthy discussion on the parameters and implications of the legislation.
Bruce Martin, a director of the West Virginia Board of Risk and Insurance Management, presented information regarding the legislation.
Martin used Florida as an example of a motorcycle helmet repeal, citing the number of motor vehicle accidents decreased significantly after the state stopped requiring their riders to wear helmets.
Martin stood in strong support of the bill, arguing his data showed “people just ride safer without the helmet.”
His argument centered on the idea that when motorcyclists wear helmets, they feel invincible and are more likely to engage in reckless behavior. Additionally, Martin told the committee the majority of traumatic brain injury cases are whiplash-related — thus, implicating the helmet as a factor in causing the brain injury.
“You’ll find that in a lot of cases, these helmets, which add an extra five pounds on average, are actually causing traumatic brain injury due to whiplash,” Martin said.
Some delegates questioned Martin at length, mentioning concerns of costs to West Virginia Medicaid, increasing insurance premiums, and general safety concerns for people.
Delegate Michael Angelucci, D-Marion, argued the passage of the amendment could become costly to West Virginia Medicaid.
Also present to provide data was Jill Rice, the President of the West Virginia Insurance Federation.
Rice presented information that countered against Martin’s directly, citing the state of Michigan.
“After Michigan repealed their helmet laws, injury claims in the state went up twenty-two percent,” Rice said.
Rice stated that the use of a motorcycle helmet increased a cyclists’ chances to not suffer from traumatic brain injury by three times.
Due to the lengthy and contentious debate that House Bill 2070 generated, the bill was laid over until the next House Technology and Infrastructure Committee meeting. The committee adjourned, leaving the following two bills on the agenda to be laid over as well.
