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Utah Senate rejects proposal to allow helmet-mounted flags as substitute for vehicle-mounted safety flags
Summary
After debate over off-highway vehicle safety, the Utah Senate defeated Senate Bill 19, a measure that would have allowed a helmet-mounted flag as an alternative to vehicle-mounted flags on sand dunes; the amendment clarifying flag mounting language passed earlier, but final passage failed 13–10 (6 absent).
The Utah Senate voted down Senate Bill 19 on final passage after a contentious debate over whether a helmet-mounted flag could safely substitute for the standard vehicle-mounted safety flag on sand-dune riding areas.
Senators voted 13 in favor and 10 opposed, with six members absent; the presiding officer announced the bill "will be filed," signaling it will not move forward from the Senate. The measure had been amended on the floor to clarify that the flag must "be attached to the vehicle" and that the top of the flag should be 8 feet from the ground.
Sponsor Senator Goodfellow characterized the amendment and the bill as providing an "option" rather than replacing the existing requirement for vehicle-mounted flags. "This is just an option," Goodfellow said, arguing a helmet-mounted flag could provide "additional protection when on the sand dunes." He said the change was intended to clarify ambiguous language in the existing statute and to give riders an alternate safety choice.
Senator Greiner strongly opposed allowing a helmet-mounted device as a substitute. He told colleagues the commonly used vehicle-mounted flag "is the safety device that, for a few dollars, people attach to the vehicle" and warned that a helmet-mounted flag "will not be on the vehicle when that person walks away from the vehicle" and thus could jeopardize others' safety.
The Senate had approved the technical amendment to clarify flag placement earlier in the same debate, but after extended argument the body rejected final passage of the bill. The clerk recorded the final vote as 13 yay, 10 nay, with 6 absent.
The bill will be filed and not forwarded to the House from this floor action. That completes the Senate’s action on SB19 for this session.
