Committee backs resolve to reconvene 2019 ATV trail task force with added advisors

The Inland Fisheries & Wildlife Committee voted to pass, as amended, a resolve directing the landowners and land users relations advisory board to reconvene and take up all‑terrain vehicle (ATV) trail and registration issues, with temporary non‑voting participation from manufacturers, dealers and an individual who had an oversized ATV registration rescinded.

Ann Davidson, the committee analyst, told members the amendment converts the original LD 350 concept into a resolve that would reconvene the 2019 ATV trail task force “possibly with different and/or expanded membership” and that the public hearing on March 9 produced testimony from ATV clubs, the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife and multiple stakeholder groups, while some landowners opposed the proposal as duplicative of the advisory board’s work.

Representative Bill Bridgio moved the amended resolve, saying the committee should “direct the land owners and land users relations advisory board . . . to include representatives of the ATV world” on an ad hoc basis and to “review the issues related to vehicle weights, sizes, classifications and report back” so that the committee could “initiate legislation in response to the recommendations.” The motion was seconded and debated before a roll call.

Colonel Dan Scott, who oversees related field efforts, described the advisory board’s function: it convenes land owners and user groups to resolve conflicts and may invite experts to participate in discussions but typically reserves voting membership for statutorily listed members. “It basically gets the user groups and the land owners together . . . and report back to the commissioner,” he said.

Under the adopted amendment the invited manufacturers, dealers and the person who had an oversized registration rescinded would participate as non‑voting members for the ATV discussion only; the committee also specified a report‑back deadline so it could consider statutory action. The committee chair read the roll and reported the motion “ought to pass as amended,” with the final tally reported in the transcript as six in favor and two opposed.

The hearing on LD 350 was closed after the vote. The committee indicated it would follow up with language review and any needed drafting to reflect who makes appointments and the exact report date.

Next steps: the advisory board is to take up the issue, include the invited non‑voting participants for the ATV discussion, and report its findings to the committee by the specified deadline so the committee can determine whether to initiate legislation.