No practical need for moped regulations

Published June 23, 2014

Editorial by Rocky Mount Telegram, June 21, 2014.

A bill approved by the N.C. House last week takes the unusual step of requiring owners of mopeds to register their vehicles with the N.C. Department of Motor Vehicles.

Under the legislation, owners of mopeds would have to pay a $40 title fee and a $15 or $22 registration fee and fasten a license plate to the vehicle.

Supporters of the bill say the legislation is needed to help law enforcement identify mopeds when they are in an accident or used in a crime. The bill’s primary sponsor, N.C. Rep. Phillip Shepard, R-Onslow, even went so far as to incredulously say, “Many of these (vehicles) are used in illegal activities.”

Put aside the absurdity of the alleged worth of a moped as a getaway vehicle and consider that this bill paves the way for the state some day to require moped owners to obtain driver’s licenses and insurance in order to operate their vehicles. Shepard indeed has declared that the bill is just a starting point as more people use mopeds in the state. The legislation also directs a legislative committee to study whether more regulations are needed.

Critics of the measure correctly argue that the legislation would hurt low-income people who may be trying to get back on their feet after a drunken driving conviction or who cannot afford a car and rely instead on a moped to get back and forth from work.

The DMV estimates that 8,000 mopeds are sold each year in North Carolina and 17,000 mopeds currently are in use on state roads.

If 25,000 mopeds were registered in the first year of the law, that would equal at least $375,000 in registration fee revenue and another $1 million in title fee revenue for the state. That, critics say, is the reason for the bill, not to make roads safer, help law enforcement officers or fight crime.

This bill certainly flies in the face of all the lip service Republican lawmakers like to give to the idea that government already regulates too many facets of people’s lives. Hopefully, the N.C. Senate will take a more reasoned – and reasonable – approach to this legislation and keep it from coming to that chamber’s floor for a vote.

 

 http://www.rockymounttelegram.com/opinion/our-views/no-practical-need-moped-regulations-2515303

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June 23, 2014 at 6:56 pm
Norm Kelly says:

I don't know who Mr. Shepard is. I have no clue as to his political stance on ANY issue.

But I wonder if Mr. Shepard is a Republican or if he's a RINO. It is counter to everything Republicans should be standing for to suggest implementing more regulation and cost on citizens. It is typical for a lib or RINO to want more of both.

If Mr. Shepard is a Republican, someone needs to take him out behind the woodshed and fix him. If Mr. Shepard is a RINO, the voters need to take him out at the next opportunity.

Mopeds are a nuisance on the road. Or more correctly, moped drivers who have no idea what laws regulate them or who don't care about the law are a nuisance. Instead of adding even more cost and regulation, what Mr. Shepard should be doing is finding a way for local law enforcement to be more rigorous with moped drivers. But then again, too many moped drivers follow the lead of idiot bicycle riders. At least moped drivers tend NOT to ride multiple wide, like idiot bike riders do.

Perhaps instead of regulating moped drivers, we could find a kindly, loving, care-for-the-kids lib pol who would endorse new laws & regulations on bicycle drivers. Wouldn't it be nice if bicycles were required to have identification attached to their back end so we could report their stupidity to authorities? I'd also like to see some lib legislator propose legislation to require bicycle riders above the age of 16 to carry insurance. Perhaps this would encourage at least a few bicycle riders to be more responsible and think about taking over a lane where the vehicles they try to compete with are doing 45MPH and weigh around 2,000 pounds. I think the bicycle rider will be the loser every time. But that's just a guess.

And I suggest a lib pol take on these bills because it's always supposed to be lib pols who propose more costs and regulation on citizens. It's always supposed to be conservative and Republican pols who reduce cost to citizens and reduce regulation for all.

June 24, 2014 at 1:13 pm
Rip Arrowood says:

It should be quite obvious to anyone that this is not about registration, it's about revenue.

The current NCGA has put us into a 1/2 billion dollar budget deficit and they're searching for any and every source to recover it without taxing yachts and private jets.