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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR:	Silva		DATE TYPED:	01/31/02		HB	298/aHJC
SHORT TITLE:		Electric Personal Assistive Mobility Devices				SB
					ANALYST:		Wilson

APPROPRIATION

Appropriation Contained

Estimated Additional Impact

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY02

FY03

FY02

FY03

See Narrative

$0.1

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Revenue Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC files

SUMMARY

Synopsis of HJC Amendment

The House Judiciary Committee amendment exempts persons with disabilities who use electronic mobility devices from liability under HB 298.

Synopsis of Original Bill

House Bill 298 amends the Motor Vehicle Code to regulate electric personal assistive mobility devices.

An electric personal assistive mobility devices is defined in HB 298 as a self-balancing device having two nontandem wheels designed to transport a single person by means of an electric propulsion system with an average power of one horsepower and with a maximum speed on a paved level surface of less than twenty miles per hour when powered solely by its propulsion system and while being ridden by an operator who weighs one hundred seventy pounds.

HB 298 requires that electric personal assistive mobility devices be equipped with the following:

front, rear and side reflectors, a braking system that enables the operator to bring the device to a

controlled stop and if operated at any time from one-half hour after sunset to one-half hour before sunrise, a lamp that emits a white light that sufficiently illuminates the area in front of the device.

HB 298 requires that the operator of an electric personal assistive mobility device shall yield the right of way to pedestrians.

HB 298 sets out the punishment for violation of the provisions of this bill. A warning will be issued for the first offense. The operator will be fined $10.00 for a second offense and for a third or subsequent offense in addition to the fine, the electric personal assistive mobility device shall be impounded for up to thirty days.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

The cost of enforcing the provisions of HB 298 is unknown.

QUESTION

1. Why is the operator to weigh 170 pounds?

DW/prr/njw