This afternoon, Jay Jackson, Motorcycle Riders Foundation Vice President and appointee to the U.S. Motorcyclist Advisory Council (MAC), was notified by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that his appointment has been terminated. We are shocked and disappointed by this decision and are still gathering information. It appears the other appointees have received similar notifications.
The MAC was created by an act of Congress in November 2021. Yet despite a requirement in the law to establish the MAC within 90 days, it took until 2023 for the nomination process to begin. It wasn’t until the summer of 2024 that the members of the MAC were selected.
The inability of NHTSA to convene the 13-member board is a slap in the face to the nearly 10 million motorcyclists in this country. The mandate of the MAC was to advise the Secretary of Transportation, the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and the Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration regarding transportation safety issues of concern to motorcyclists, including — motorcycle and motorcyclist safety, barrier and road design, construction and maintenance practices, as well as the architecture and implementation of intelligent transportation system technologies.
MRF President, Kirk “Hardtail” Willard, said of the decision, “This is a striking example of how the concerns of motorcyclists are ignored. If you aren’t upset, you aren’t paying attention.”
The MRF has already contacted members of Congress, including those on the Congressional Motorcycle Caucus, to alert them of this unacceptable action by bureaucrats in D.C.
This fight is just beginning. Be alert for upcoming messages from the MRF on how you can voice your displeasure with actions that threaten the safety of bikers.
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