Shir Haberman
news@seacoastonline.com
CONCORD — The first substantial changes to a nearly 20-year-old state law governing motorcycle noise levels and enforcement are on the doorstep of becoming law.
The Senate used a voice vote Wednesday to pass a bill that would reduce the legal noise level to 92 decibels while motorcycles are idling and allow for roadside testing by police.
House Bill 1442 now goes to Gov. John Lynch for his signature. Colin Manning, Lynch's press secretary, said Lynch will review the bill, but noted there is virtually no opposition to changes made in the bill, which typically has a positive influence on the governor's decision.
The House amended the bill and passed it 261-80 on Feb. 22.
The amended bill represents a compromise between all parties. House Transportation Committee Chairman Rep. Sherman Packard, R-Londonderry, held several meetings with motorcycle dealers, riders, law enforcement officials, legislators and citizens to draft the amendment. The original bill was filed by Michele Peckham, R-North Hampton. It would have set the allowable decibel level at 82, in accordance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's standard for motorcycle manufacturers and tied that level to specific RPM readings.
The reaction to the amended bill has been positive.
“We think this is a good compromise,” said Dave Hickey of Rye and a member of the New Hampshire Citizens Against Loud Motorcycles group (NH-CALM) at the February House hearing. “It's the standard used in Maine and all the information from that state indicates it has helped.”
Motorcyclists who attended the hearing were equally pleased.
Motorcyclists who attended the hearing were equally pleased.
“If we're really trying to solve the problem (of excessive motorcycle noise), we decided we have to look at it holistically,” Candi Alexander, president of the New Hampshire Motorcyclists' Rights Organization said at the hearing. “This is the best solution that we have.”
During hearings, the EPA standard was roundly criticized by riders, the organizations that represent them and law enforcement. Police Chiefs Brian Page of North Hampton and Kevin Walsh of Rye, along with representatives from the state police, testified that checking for the EPA stamp would put officers at risk since it is often located on the underside of the motorcycle's exhaust pipes.
Local legislators have been trying for years to find a way to lessen the noise coming from motorcycles passing through Seacoast towns.
North Hampton's previous state representative, Judith Day, tried unsuccessfully to turn the EPA standard into state law twice — in 2009 and 2010. The opposition to Peckham's original bill during the House hearings was also substantial.
Day's husband, current North Hampton Selectman Larry Miller, was instrumental in crafting a town ordinance that codified the EPA standard and made it illegal for motorcycles sold in, parked in or passing through that town to exceed that limit. A Rockingham Superior Court judge subsequently ruled that ordinance unconstitutional for attempting to regulate something over which the state has sole jurisdiction.
“The court agrees with the plaintiff and finds that the subject of motorcycle noise is preempted by the state and that, since the state has not authorized the town to regulate motorcycle noise, the town has no legal authority to adopt or enforce the ordinance,” Judge Kenneth McHugh wrote in his Dec. 9, 2011 decision in the case brought by Seacoast Motorcycles Inc., a Harley-Davidson dealer in North Hampton.
If Lynch signs the bill, all motorcycles will have to comply with the new noise standards by Jan. 1.
