Roadway Safety Bills Introduced

Gov. John Carney joined lawmakers, transportation, and law enforcement officials last Wednesday to announce a new legislative package that will seek to increase safety on Delaware’s highway and roads. It appears that only one bill, House Bill 92, has so far been introduced.

This bill would require drivers to change lanes or reduce their speed while approaching a stationary vehicle that is on the right or left shoulders that has its blinking double hazard lights on, or has road flares displayed or has traffic ones deployed, or any other caution or warning signs.

House Bill 92 – Changing Lanes to avoid disabled vehicles and other hazards	Currrent Status – House Passed 33-1-1-6. Out of Committee in Senate.
House Sponsors – Carson, Cooke, Gray, Heffernan, Osienski, Williams // Short	Senate Sponsors – Hansen, Lockman, Sokola, Sturgeon, Walsh // Hocker, Richardson
House Yes Votes – Baumbach Bolden Bush Carson Cooke Dorsey-Walker Griffith Harris Johnson Lambert Longhurst Matthews Minor-Brown Morrison Osienski Parker-Selby Phillips Romer Schwartzkopf Williams // Briggs King Collins Dukes Hensley Hilovsky Morris Postles Ramone Short Smith Spiegelman Vanderwende Yearick	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes – Lynn	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting – Chukwuocha, Gray, Heffernan, Wilson-Anton, Neal, Moore, Shupe	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

Other bills that will be introduced will address the following areas of highway safety:

House Bill 120 – Reckless Driving:	Currrent Status – House Passed 40-0-1. Senate Environment, Energy & Transportation 5/2/23
House Sponsors – Cooke, Griffith, Johnson, Osienski, Parker Selby, Williams // Briggs King, Dukes, Short	Senate Sponsors – Hoffner, Hansen, Lockman, Sokola, Walsh // Buckson, Lawson, Richardson, Wilson
House Yes Votes – Baumbach Bolden Bush Carson Chukwuocha Cooke Dorsey-Walker Griffith Harris Johnson Lambert Longhurst Lynn Matthews Minor-Brown Moore Morrison Neal Osienski Parker-Selby Phillips Romer Schwartzkopf Williams Wilson-Anton // Briggs King Collins Dukes Gray Hensley Hilovsky Morris Postles Ramone Short Shupe Smith Spiegelman Vanderwende Yearick	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes –	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting – Heffernan	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

House Bill 120 – Reckless Driving: The bill would establish any speeding violation of 90 miles per hour or more as a Reckless Driving offense.

House Bill 119 – Prohibit Open Containers of Alcohol in Most Vehicles	Currrent Status – Out of Committee 4/26/23
House Sponsors – Longhurst, Baumbach, Bolden, Cooke, Johnson, Osienski // Dukes, Hensley, Shupe	Senate Sponsors – Hocker, Lawson, Wilson
House Yes Votes –	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes –	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting –	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

House Bill 119 – Prohibit Open Containers of Alcohol in Most Vehicles: Open container legislation, which will be introduced by State Rep. Tim Dukes and House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst, would ban open containers in passenger vehicles. The legislation would not affect buses, taxis, limousines, or the living quarters of motor homes or trailers. Uber and Lyft rules do not allow open containers in their vehicles already. Delaware is one of just five states that has not prohibited open containers of alcohol in the passenger area of a vehicle.

Senate Bill 86 – Require New Motorcycle Riders to Wear a Helmet	Currrent Status – Out of Committee 5/3/23
House Sponsors – Lynn, Baumbach, Griffith, Johnson, Osienski // Short, Briggs King, Dukes, Gray, Hilovsky	Senate Sponsors – Sokola, Gay, Hoffner, Townsend // Wilson
House Yes Votes –	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes –	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting –	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

Senate Bill 86 – Require New Motorcycle Riders to Wear a Helmet: Graduated motorcycle helmet legislation will be introduced by Senate President Pro Tempore David Sokola and Reps. Sean Lynn & Danny Short. It would require all riders to wear a helmet in their first two years of having a motorcycle endorsement. It would also extend the graduated helmet requirements to mopeds and tripeds. Delaware Department of Transportation data shows that 25% of severe injury and fatal accidents occurred among Delaware licensed motorcycle riders within their first two years of obtaining a license. Over the last five years, there have been 35 deaths and 143 serious injuries among motorcyclists who were not wearing helmets.

Senate Bill 68 – Strengthen Child Safety Seat Requirements	Currrent Status – Out of Committee 5/3/23
House Sponsors – Griffith, Heffernan, Cooke, Johnson // Dukes, Gray	Senate Sponsors – Gay, Townsend, Hoffner
House Yes Votes –	Senate Yes Votes –
House No Votes –	Senate No Votes –
House Absents or Not Voting –	Senate Absent or Not Voting –

Senate Bill 68 – Strengthen Child Safety Seat Requirements: This proposed law would require children under two years of age or less than 30 pounds to be in a rear-facing seat with a 5-point harness. Those under four years old and less than 40 pounds would need to be in a front- or rear-facing seat with a 5-point harness. From age 4 to 16, using a booster to the maximum height and weight limits would be required. Enforcement would only take place after a year-long awareness campaign. The bill would refine Delaware’s present child safety seat statute, which only requires an “appropriate” car seat or booster.