With the advent of the new year, a variety of new laws are in effect in Oregon.
They range from restrictions on exotic pets to safety restraint requirements for ATVs, new workplace laws and a ban on hand-held cell phones while driving.
Following are some of the new laws that may particularly affect Sweet Home residents:
Cell Phone Restrictions: As of Jan. 1, Oregon police can pull you over for talking on your cell phone without a hands-free device and you could get hit with a $90 ticket.
The new law makes the violation a primary offense, which means that a driver can be pulled over or ticketed if spotted texting or talking on a cell phone without a hands-free device. Drivers don’t have to be doing anything else wrong, like speeding, in order to get pulled over.
Drivers who want to talk on their cell phone need a hands-free device, which is a wired or wireless way of talking without having your phone pressed against your ear.
The speaker phone function available on most phones is not a viable hands-free option because you still have to hold the phone instead of the steering wheel.
Sweet Home Police Chief Bob Burford said that his department will issue some warnings early on, while people get used to the new law.
“We fully realize this is a whole new restriction on what’s become very routine for people and we may make some educational stops to warn people and educate them about the law, but I don’t see us initially issuing any citations, unless in some extreme circumstance,” he said.
The law provides some exceptions for emergencies. It allows drivers (even minors) to use cell phones while driving to contact medical or emergency service assistance if no one else in the car can do it for them.
If you have to use your cell phone while driving in order to do your job €“ such as ambulance drivers or truck drivers €“ you may be exempt.
ATV Safety Restraints: Changes in state law require youths under age 16 to be secured by proper restraints while riding in class I and class II vehicles mandated to have seatbelts.
Class II vehicles include Jeep-type vehicles, trucks, or side-by-side vehicles used for off-highway riding. Class I vehicles that are affected include youth-sized, side-by-side all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) that weigh 800 pounds or less and have seatbelts.
Riders in class I quads and three-wheelers€”ATVs weighing less than 800 pounds€”are exempt from the law.
“Basically, laws governing the use of safety restraints by anyone 16 years of age or under in vehicles on roads and highways will now apply to off-road vehicle riding,” said John Lane, the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s ATV safety education coordinator.
The helmet requirement mandates that youth under 18 must wear fastened helmets approved by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) while riding in any class of off-highway vehicle not registered by DMV. Anyone riding in a registered, street-legal class II ATV that leaves the highway is exempt.
Sweet Home Fire and Ambulance District Chief Mike Beaver said his department personnel “are firm believers” in helmets and seatbelts.
“We’ve seen the positive and negative impacts of people wearing and not wearing helmets on motorcycles, ATVs and while skiing,” he said. “I don’t know what the statistics are on severe injuries from people not wearing helmets, but we’ve definitely seen a better outcome with patients wearing helmets on ATVs.”
Beaver said his department has seen “a big decline in serious injuries” since seatbelts became mandatory for vehicles on the roads.
“I know people have been complaining bout ATV laws, but when it comes to people’s safety, the matter of wearing a helmet or seatbelt should be a no-brainer,” he said.
For more information on the new ATV laws, call the state ATV toll-free hotline at 877-7SAFELY (877-772-3359), e-mail [email protected], or visit http://www.oregonOHV.org.
Stiffer fines for unlicensed motorcyclists: A new law increases the penalty for riding a motorcycle without an endorsement from $360 to $720.
The fine can be suspended, however, if the rider completes training and earns an endorsement within 120 days of sentencing.
Similarly, the state is also slowly stiffening requirements for motorcycle safety training. As of Jan. 1, 2011, all riders under 31 must complete basic rider training unless they have a valid motorcycle-endorsed license from another state.
The knowledge test and on-motorcycle drive test option, as well as the intermediate rider course and knowledge test option, won’t be available to riders under 31.
By 2015 all new riders will be required to have taken safety training.
Burford said he’s supportive of the law to the extent that “it is used to where people get extra education as opposed to hitting people in their pocketbooks.
“Strictly hitting people in their pocketbooks is not something I think is wise. I’m not aware, at least in this area, of unlicensed motorcycle operation being a huge problem. It’s not a huge safety issue here.”
Penalties for Drunken Driving: A new law increases the minimum fine for a person convicted of a DUII with a blood alcohol level of .15 or higher to $2,000. Prior to Jan. 1, there was no difference in the blood alcohol level in relation to the amount a violator could be fined.
Burford said that DUIIs are “a true public safety hazard, but I don’t think the answer is higher fines. I think the answer is streamlining the process that we currently have.
“Raising the fines higher, based on how high your blood alcohol is, it seems to me either you’re breaking the law or you’re not.
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Move over, or else: As of Jan. 1, motorists approaching not only a police car on the side of the road, but any “roadside
assistance vehicle” or tow truck must slow down to at least 5 miles below the speed limit and move over as far as possible.
Failure to obey can cost drivers up to $400 and offenders would also have a violation for “failure to maintain a safe distance from an emergency vehicle” on their record.
Basically, any vehicle on the side of the road with amber, red or blue lights flashing is one motorists are required to slow down for.
Exotic Pets: The new law is designed to phase out potentially dangerous exotic animals kept as pets.
Essentially, the law means the Oregon Department of Agriculture will not issue any new permits for exotic animals kept as pets after Jan. 1, 2011.
It modifies existing law regarding private ownership of primates, large exotic cats, canines that aren’t domestic dogs, bears and crocodilians.
The law allows exemptions for a range of scenarios: service monkeys used by people with certain disabilities, research facilities, wildlife rehabilitation centers and others. The new law means that private ownership for the sole purpose of keeping one of these animals as pets will become increasingly rare as exotics that die can’t be replaced.
The law does not affect ownership of common exotic pets, such as parrots, rodents, snakes or other reptiles. It also makes an exception for exotic felines under 50 pounds, several kinds of which are used to breed hybrid cats, such as Bengal or Savannah cats.
Breeders and others who work with exotics in a professional setting are licensed by the United States Department of Agriculture. This law does not affect their ability to do business, and they will be allowed to keep animals that are too old to breed, for example, as pets.