[Source: Tucson Citizen] — When is three greater than 37? When the Legislature starts counting votes. A bill with wide bipartisan support in the Legislature and broad backing from groups that traditionally don’t get along with each other was killed this week. The bill, which would have required that all-terrain vehicles be registered and owners pay a user fee, was co-sponsored by 37 legislators, more than one-third of the total.
HB 2573 easily passed the House 43-13, with four members not voting. It was sent to the Senate and assigned to the Natural Resources and Rural Affairs Committee. The bill died Wednesday on a 3-3 vote. The only southern Arizona senator on the committee, Marsha Arzberger, a Democrat from Willcox, voted to support the bill.
ATV safety and control legislation is a definite need in Arizona, and the bill had support on the basis of widespread concurrence on that point. Off-road vehicle use has risen sharply, by 350 percent since 1998, the Arizona Game & Fish Department reports. That has exacerbated the issues of rider safety and environmental damage. [Note: To read the full article, click here.]