BILL REQ. #:  S-4045.1 

Read first time 01/11/2006.   Referred to Committee on Water, Energy & Environment.

     AN ACT Relating to off-road vehicle use; amending RCW 46.09.120; creating a new section; making an appropriation; and providing an expiration date.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

Sec. 1   RCW 46.09.120 and 2005 c 213 s 3 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) It is a traffic infraction for any person to operate any nonhighway vehicle:
     (a) In such a manner as to endanger the property of another;
     (b) On lands not owned by the operator or owner of the nonhighway vehicle without a lighted headlight and taillight between the hours of dusk and dawn, or when otherwise required for the safety of others regardless of ownership;
     (c) On lands not owned by the operator or owner of the nonhighway vehicle without an adequate braking device or when otherwise required for the safety of others regardless of ownership;
     (d) Without a spark arrester approved by the department of natural resources;
     (e) Without an adequate, and operating, muffling device which effectively limits vehicle noise to no more than eighty-six decibels on the "A" scale at fifty feet as measured by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) test procedure J 331a, except that a maximum noise level of ((one hundred and five)) ninety-six decibels on the "A" scale at a distance of twenty inches from the exhaust outlet shall be an acceptable substitute in lieu of the Society of Automotive Engineers test procedure J 331a when measured:
     (i) At a forty-five degree angle at a distance of twenty inches from the exhaust outlet;
     (ii) With the vehicle stationary and the engine running at a steady speed equal to one-half of the manufacturer's maximum allowable ("red line") engine speed or where the manufacturer's maximum allowable engine speed is not known the test speed in revolutions per minute calculated as sixty percent of the speed at which maximum horsepower is developed; and
     (iii) With the microphone placed ten inches from the side of the vehicle, one-half way between the lowest part of the vehicle body and the ground plane, and in the same lateral plane as the rearmost exhaust outlet where the outlet of the exhaust pipe is under the vehicle;
     (f) On lands not owned by the operator or owner of the nonhighway vehicle upon the shoulder or inside bank or slope of any nonhighway road or highway, or upon the median of any divided highway;
     (g) On lands not owned by the operator or owner of the nonhighway vehicle in any area or in such a manner so as to unreasonably expose the underlying soil, or to create an erosion condition, or to injure, damage, or destroy trees, growing crops, or other vegetation;
     (h) On lands not owned by the operator or owner of the nonhighway vehicle or on any nonhighway road or trail, when these are restricted to pedestrian or animal travel;
     (i) On any public lands in violation of rules and regulations of the agency administering such lands; and
     (j) On a private nonhighway road in violation of RCW 46.09.115(3).
     (2) It is a misdemeanor for any person to operate any nonhighway vehicle while under the influence of intoxicating liquor or a controlled substance.
     (3)(a) Except for an off-road vehicle equipped with seat belts and roll bars or an enclosed passenger compartment, it is a traffic infraction for any person to operate or ride an off-road vehicle on a nonhighway road without wearing upon his or her head a motorcycle helmet fastened securely while in motion. For purposes of this section, "motorcycle helmet" has the same meaning as provided in RCW 46.37.530.
     (b) Subsection (3)(a) of this section does not apply to an off-road vehicle operator operating on his or her own land.
     (c) Subsection (3)(a) of this section does not apply to an off-road vehicle operator operating on agricultural lands owned or leased by the off-road vehicle operator or the operator's employer.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   The sum of one hundred thousand dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated from the general fund to the interagency committee for outdoor recreation for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2007, to fund off-road vehicle education and enforcement activities by state agencies and local governments through the nonhighway and off-road vehicle activities program.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   (1) The department of natural resources shall convene a working group to develop and propose policy strategies and legislation to address issues relating to access to public and private lands for recreational off-road vehicle use, including:
     (a) Proposals to improve and increase recreational off-road vehicle use opportunities on public lands where such use is compatible with other types of recreation and the environmental, habitat, and trust responsibilities of the department of natural resources and other public land managers;
     (b) Proposals for addressing the conflicts and safety issues posed by the growing pressure on public and private lands available for recreational off-road vehicle use, including any recommended changes to the recreational use immunity statute, RCW 4.24.210; and
     (c) Proposals to ensure the existence of the financial resources necessary to provide access to public lands for recreational off-road vehicle use, including funding for agency planning and management activities, land stewardship and trail maintenance, and education and enforcement programs.
     (2) The working group consists of the following:
     (a) One member from the department of natural resources, appointed by the commissioner of public lands;
     (b) One member from the department of fish and wildlife, appointed by the director of the department of fish and wildlife;
     (c) One member from the state parks and recreation commission, appointed by the director of the state parks and recreation commission;
     (d) One member from the interagency committee for outdoor recreation, appointed by the director of the interagency committee for outdoor recreation;
     (e) Two members representing county governments, one county commissioner each from an urban and a rural county, invited by the commissioner of public lands;
     (f) One member representing the United States forest service, invited by the commissioner of public lands;
     (g) Two members representing off-road vehicle recreational user groups, invited by the commissioner of public lands;
     (h) One member representing private land managers, invited by the commissioner of public lands;
     (i) One member representing the off-road vehicle industry, invited by the commissioner of public lands; and
     (j) A representative of local law enforcement, invited by the commissioner of public lands.
     (3) In carrying out its duties, the working group shall provide a forum for interested citizens and organizations to provide information and suggestions to the working group.
     (4) The working group shall provide its policy strategies and legislative proposals to the appropriate policy and fiscal committees of the senate and house of representatives by December 1, 2007.
     (5) This section expires June 30, 2008.