Youth Motorcycle Ban 

The Motorcycle Industry Council says now is the time to push for a Congressional solution to permanently end the ban on youth motorcycles and ATVs in a video call-to-action. At this year's Dealernews International Powersports Dealer Expo, the MIC is hosting a variety of multi-media communication tools and activities so that dealers, MIC members, and Expo exhibitors can voice their concerns, show their support, and urge Congress to take action to permanently end the ban on youth vehicles.

"There is tremendous momentum for Congress to amend the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act's lead content provisions to exclude youth vehicles," said MIC general counsel Paul Vitrano. "We need our voices to be heard now, and by making all these different multi-media tools available here at Indy, every MIC member, every exhibitor, and every Expo attendee can be part of this massive grassroots effort to finally Stop the Ban."

Enthusiasts and other stakeholders should reinforce three key reasons why youth ATVs and motorcycles should be excluded from the CPSIA's lead content provisions:

1. The lead content poses no risk to kids. Experts estimate that the lead intake from kids' interaction with metal parts is less than the lead intake from drinking a glass of water.

2. The key to keeping youth safe is having them ride the right size vehicle. Kids are now at risk because the availability of youth ATVs and motorcycles is limited due to the lead ban.

3. The lead ban hurts the economy for no good reason when everyone is trying to grow the economy and create jobs. MIC estimates that a complete ban on youth model vehicles would result in about $1 billion in lost economic value in the retail marketplace every year.

The MIC supports the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's request to Congress to give the agency more flexibility to grant exclusions from the lead content limit to address ATVS and motorcycles. The CPSC requested this flexibility in its January 15 report to Congress containing recommendations to improve the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA).

"MIC calls on Congress to draft legislation as soon as possible to either grant a categorical exemption for these products, as would be provided by H.R. 1587, a pending bill with 56 bi-partisan co-sponsors, or to give the CPSC the flexibility to do so," Vitrano said.

Visit www.stopthebannow.com for background information, FAQs, and public outreach tools for the Stop The Ban campaign.