Chapter 8.50
HELMET REQUIREMENTS
Sections:
8.50.010 Definitions.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated, unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
A. “Approved helmet” means a head covering designed for safety that shall meet or exceed the bicycle helmet safety standards adopted by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC), 16 CFR Part 1203, Standard 2-90.4 of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), the Snell Foundation, the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), or such subsequent nationally recognized standard for helmet performance as the city may adopt. The helmet must be equipped with either a neck or chin strap that shall be fastened securely while the wheeled vehicle is in motion.
B. “Bicycle” means every device propelled solely by human power upon which a person or persons may ride, having two tandem wheels either of which is 11 inches or more in diameter, or three wheels, any one of which is more than 20 inches in diameter. Within this chapter, the term “bicycle” shall include any attached trailers, side cars, and/or other device being towed by a bicycle.
C. “Electric-assisted bicycle” means a bicycle with two or three wheels, a saddle, fully operative pedals for human propulsion, and an electric motor.
D. “Guardian” means a parent, legal guardian, adult with custody, or temporary guardian, who maintains responsibility, whether voluntary or otherwise, for the safety and welfare of a person under the age of 16 years. (Ord. 1327 § 1, 2022).
8.50.020 Helmet required.
A. Any person under 16 years of age riding or otherwise operating any bicycle or electric-assisted bicycle, including any passenger thereon and/or person being towed thereby, on any public area in the city shall wear an approved helmet, and shall have either the neck or chin strap of the helmet fastened securely while the device is in motion.
B. No person shall transport another person on or tow another person on a device listed in subsection (A) of this section upon any area in the jurisdiction of the city, unless the passenger is wearing an approved helmet.
C. A guardian is responsible for requiring that a child under 16 years of age who is under the guardian’s care wears an approved helmet, the neck or chin strap of which is fastened securely, while upon a device listed in subsection (A) of this section in motion, or riding as a passenger on a device listed in subsection (A) of this section in any public area in the city.
D. It is an affirmative defense to a violation of this section that the guardian responsible for a child under 16 years of age did require the child to wear an approved helmet at all times that the child was in the guardian’s presence.
E. It is an affirmative defense to a violation of this section for a person wearing an unapproved helmet that the helmet was furnished in conjunction with his or her rental, lease, or use of a device listed in subsection (A) of this section by a person or organization engaged in the business of renting, leasing, or loaning such devices, and that the helmet was fastened securely while riding.
F. Provisions of this chapter shall not apply to any wheeled devices such as, but not limited to, electronic scooters or wheelchairs that are designed and being utilized for medically related reasons. (Ord. 1327 § 1, 2022).
8.50.030 Penalties.
A. Any person, including any parent or guardian, violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall have committed a class C-20 civil infraction.
B. The court may waive, reduce or suspend the civil penalty and clear the civil infraction as a warning for a person who has not been cited under this chapter within one year and provides proof that he or she has acquired an approved helmet at the time of appearance in court.
C. A guardian may be cited for a separate violation of this chapter for each child under 16 years of age riding on or in tow of a device listed in SLMC 8.50.020(A) not wearing an approved helmet. (Ord. 1327 § 1, 2022).