ABATE of OK wants state to FORCE bikers to pay for ABATE safety programs.

EDITORIAL. This is the opinion of jan
ABATE of Oklahoma proves itself a motorcyclist safety organization rather than a rights organization. I have verified with Senator Russell's office that ABATE of Oklahoma asked the senator to introduce Senate Bill 1324 which asks the state to FORCE motorcyclists to pay higher registration fees.

Not only does "A Brotherhood Aiming Toward Education" want the state to force Oklahoma bikers to pay more money every time they register their motorcycle, but they also want to gain from that money.
What ever happened to the idea of asking for donations rather than using the long arm of the law to steal money from bikers?

I received this in an this email this morning. It was from the Secretary of ABATE of Tulsa, Inc.
It speaks of a bill they are calling "Gunner's Bill" and a note from Robert "Gunner" Catcher says:

"One major issue is that this is an election years and, once again, those pesky legislators are hesitant to pass a fee bill. We have a lot of help to get Gunner's Bill passed, so we are optimistic."

SB 1324 "Gunner's Bill" This bill will add $3 to every motorcycle registration. The money collected will be placed in a "lockbox" to be used for motorcycle education and safety. A similar bill passed both houses by a huge majority last year, but did not get any further as the legislators did not want to pass any fee bills.

HB 3339 Motorcycle Advisory Committee This one is, in a way, "part 2" of Gunner's Bill and may be merged with SB 1324 in the future. This bill will change the make up of the existing advisory committee, which has only 3 riders on it and has never met. The purpose of this committee is to advise and assist the Commissioner in the development, administration and operation of the Motorcycle Safety and Education Program and the setting of goals, objectives and priorities for the Program. In other words, how to spend the money.

The new committee is to be made up of (from the bill) the Administrator, who shall serve as chair of the Committee and shall be a nonvoting member, and seven (7) voting members, six of whom shall be appointed by the Commissioner of Public Safety and one of whom shall be appointed by the Insurance Commissioner. One member shall be a certified instructor of motorcycle safety and education; three members shall be a licensed and safety course certified motorcycle owner/operators; one member shall represent private sector motorcycle rider education schools; one member shall be a representative of the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office; and the member appointed by the Insurance Commissioner shall be an employee of the Office of the Insurance Commissioner.