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Committee approves bill adding 90‑day motorcycle endorsement suspension for lane splitting, wheelies, hidden plates
Summary
House Bill 190 (first substitute) was favorably recommended by the House Transportation Committee after testimony about a 15‑year high in motorcycle fatalities and law‑enforcement support for added administrative penalties tied to existing infractions.
The House Transportation Committee favorably recommended the first substitute to House Bill 190, which creates an administrative mechanism to suspend a rider's motorcycle endorsement for 90 days for specified dangerous behaviors: lane splitting at speed, performing a wheelie, and intentionally hiding a license plate.
Elizabeth McMillan, director of communications at UDOT, told the committee that motorcycle fatalities reached a 15‑year high last year with 53 deaths and that a high share of fatal motorcycle crashes involve riders not wearing protective gear and younger riders. "The concentration of motorcycle fatalities is during the warmer months," McMillan said, and she added that in the most recent year the motorcycle was the at‑fault vehicle in 67% of fatal motorcycle crashes.
Sponsor Representative Thurston told the committee the penalty is intended to add enforcement "teeth" beyond citations: the driver's license division would suspend only the motorcycle endorsement for 90 days while leaving the driver's license for other vehicles intact. The bill also allows revocation in repeat or aggravated cases, subject to established revocation and restoration processes.
Chris Karas, director of the Driver License Division, said the division posts a yearly summary of law changes on its website and described how convictions recorded by the courts feed into license actions. Major Jeff of the Utah Highway Patrol (speaking in enforcement context) said education strategies used previously for lane filtering could be reactivated and coordinated with the Utah Highway Safety Office.
Public commenters included a long‑time motorcycle rider who urged stronger enforcement tools and Jeff Acerson, who recounted observing a motorcyclist crash after speeding past traffic on I‑15.
Committee action: Representative Sawyer moved to favorably recommend HB 190; members adopted and then favorably recommended the first substitute. The committee approved the substitute and gave a favorable recommendation to the bill (substitute 1) by voice vote; the chair ruled the motion passed unanimously.
The first substitute clarified implementation details and alignment with the Driver License Division and Department of Public Safety enforcement practices, but committee members emphasized education and outreach as part of the response to rising motorcycle fatalities.
