The Virginia Coalition of Motorcyclists and Tom McGrath’s Motorcycle Law Group would like to invite all interested motorcyclists to attend this year’s Motorcycle Lobby Day. This year it will be held on Monday January 19, 2015. This is a holiday, so many people are off. That morning, Virginia Coalition of Motorcyclists lobbyists, as well as members of other state motorcycle rights organizations, independent motorcyclists and any other interested people will go to the Virginia General Assembly to speak to the Delegates and Senators about upcoming legislation that affects motorcyclists in Virginia.
On Sunday January 18th, from 1:00 p.m. until we get through, Virginia Coalition of Motorcyclists lobbyists will lead an informational meeting at the Holliday Inn at 2000 Staples Mill Rd, Richmond, VA, 23230 to discuss this year’s legislation affecting motorcyclists. We will also discuss how to talk to your legislators about these issues in case you have never done that. Later that evening, attendees will enjoy a free homemade BBQ dinner.
On Monday the 19th, we leave the hotel at 8:00 a.m. sharp for our annual trip to the Capitol. After lobbying our legislators, we will head to Penny Lane Pub where Tom McGrath’s Motorcycle Law Group provides lunch to all who attended as a thank you for coming to support Virginia motorcyclists.
This year we know that there will be a bill to amend the Code of Virginia to allow motorcyclists to use auxiliary lights in order to increase visibility to other motorists. The bill will also eliminate the five second limit on the amount of time that a motorcycle brake light may modulate. The purpose is to increase the visibility of the motorcycle to motorists approaching from behind, thus reducing rear-end collisions.
As always, there will be numerous bills submitted at the last minute which may negatively affect motorcycling. As these bills are filed, we will identify them and discuss them at Lobby Day so that we can convince legislators to oppose them. Those who have participated in Lobby Day in the past remember bills that we have defeated such as the one that would have required proof of insurance before one person could sell another person a motorcycle, even if the person buying the motorcycle had no intention of putting the bike on the road. We defeated that one with the help of all of those who participated at Lobby Day. A few years ago we defeated a bill that would have prohibited children under eight from riding on a motorcycle as a passenger. We pointed out that the proposed law improperly infringed on the rights and responsibilities of parents. Those at Lobby Day also pointed out the fact that in the prior ten years not a single child under eight was killed on a motorcycle. Both of these bills may have become law if it were not for the efforts of Virginia motorcyclists who took the time to come to Richmond and oppose them.
I encourage everyone who can to join us. It is a lot of fun, it is educational, and most importantly it shows the legislators that motorcyclists are a significant and active portion of the electorate.
For more information you may call VCOM at (804) 353-3971. For Room Reservations call 1- (888) 465-4329. Make sure to ask for the VCOM rate. We hope to see you at Lobby Day.
Matt Danielson
McGrath & Danielson
Tom McGrath’s Motorcycle Law Group
1-800-321-8968
Motorcyclelawgroup.com