Success In Colorado

SUCCESS IN COLORADO

Colorado repealed its helmet law in 1977 after Congress took away the Department of Transportation's authority to coerce states into enacting helmet laws. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), that arm of the DOT that campaigns for helmet laws, 55 mph speed limits and air bags in cars, didn't like what Colorado had done. Colorado, the NHTSA figured, was one state that wouldn't rescind a helmet law and so, before the helmet law was repealed, the NHTSA put out a contract for a helmet safety study in Colorado to prove that the helmet law there was saving lives.

But then the helmet law was abandoned in Colorado and NHTSA’s study had to be changed to show how the repealed helmet law was costing lives and that didn’t exactly fit in NHTSA’s plans. As a result there’s been a big push in Colorado by the Colorado Medical Society and assisted by the NHTSA to get a helmet law' reinacted.

Originally the medical society proposed a ballot measure that would require helmet use by motorcyclists if the measure could be qualified for the ballot and if the voters of Colorado approved it. NHTSA was going to spend federal money promoting the campaign and advertising in support of the measure. That brought protests by Colorado motorcyclists, the AMA and others.

Eventually the NHTSA backed out of funding an advertising campaign and the medical society carried on efforts at qualifying the measure for the ballot. The effort failed. To qualify at least 62,200 signatures were required and the society didn’t even submit petitions to the state, claiming between 40,000 and 50,000 signatures were collected.

Of course the pro helmet law forces are claiming some kind of victory because they say they have so many signatures.