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Council advances first reading of ordinance to regulate off-highway motorcycles
Summary
Police Captain Hefty presented a first-reading ordinance to create municipal rules for off-highway motorcycles so officers can issue municipal citations instead of referring violations to circuit court; council directed the city manager to prepare a second reading for Aug. 18 and the motion carried.
Police Captain Hefty said the city currently lacks a municipal ordinance for off-highway motorcycles (OHMs) and that enforcement now would require criminal traffic referrals to circuit court. He described the proposed first-reading ordinance as defining OHMs using Wisconsin statutory language and giving local officers authority to issue municipal citations, which Hefty said will allow local education and enforcement that is easier for residents to navigate.
"When we enforce this, we can enforce it the way we want and have our judge rule on it the way that what he or she wants," Captain Hefty said, adding that municipal citations would be preferable to more serious state-level traffic charges. He told council the draft borrows language from jurisdictions such as Douglas County, Colorado, and that the city attorney reviewed the ordinance for legal sufficiency.
Councilmember questions focused on whether OHMs have pedals (they do not) and outreach to parents and schools about equipment legality. The council voted to perform the first reading and directed the city manager to prepare the ordinance for a second reading on Aug. 18; the motion carried by voice vote.
Next step: second reading scheduled for Aug. 18.
