STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2105

                                   Honolulu, Hawaii
                                                     , 2000

                                   RE:  S.B. No. 2031
                                        S.D. 1




Honorable Norman Mizuguchi
President of the Senate
Twentieth State Legislature
Regular Session of 2000
State of Hawaii

Sir:

     Your Committee on Transportation and Intergovernmental
Affairs, to which was referred S.B. No. 2031 entitled: 

     "A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO BICYCLES,"

begs leave to report as follows:

     The purpose of this measure is to require bicycle riders
under eighteen years of age to wear a bicycle helmet.

     Testimony in support of this measure was received from the
Department of Transportation, State Advisory Board for Traumatic
Injury, Honolulu Police Department, Keiki Injury Prevention
Coalition (KIPC), American Medical Response Hawaii, Peoples
Advocacy for Trails Hawaii (PATH), Hawaii Bicycling League, and a
concerned citizen.
     
     The testimony received by your Committee indicated that
about one third of the injuries from bicycle incidents have
involved children under the age of eighteen.  Over a recent three
year period in Hawaii, 126 children under the age of eighteen
were injured seriously enough to require ambulance transport to a
hospital, with the average cost $10,000 per injury.
     
      Your Committee is aware that there is legislation in
twenty-four states requiring helmet use and there is firm
evidence that the legislation is saving lives and preventing
injury.  Your Committee believes that requiring the use of a
bicycle helmet by persons under eighteen years of age will reduce
the number of accidents substantially. 

 
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                                   STAND. COM. REP. NO. 2105
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     Your Committee has amended this measure by:

     (1)  Requiring that the National Safety Council, rather than
          the highway safety coordinator, be the entity to
          determine whether an agency is nationally recognized
          for purposes of testing bicycle helmets;

     (2)  Deleting the words "or in a trailer towed by the
          bicycle", as unnecessary, because section 291C-144,
          Hawaii Revised Statutes, prohibits bicycles from towing
          anything;

     (3)  Changing the effective date to January 1, 2001, to
          allow time for education and promotion; and

     (4)  Making technical, nonsubstantive amendments.

     As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your
Committee on Transportation and Intergovernmental Affairs that is
attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the
intent and purpose of S.B. No. 2031, as amended herein, and
recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the
Committee on Ways and Means, in the form attached hereto as S.B.
No. 2031, S.D. 1.

                                   Respectfully submitted on
                                   behalf of the members of the
                                   Committee on Transportation
                                   and Intergovernmental Affairs,



                                   ______________________________
                                   CAL KAWAMOTO, Chair

 
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