Nebraska Motorcycle Laws and Information

Legislature | State Motorcyclists Rights Organization (SMRO)

Motorcycle helmet law:

Section 60-6,279 Protective helmets; required; when.

A person shall not operate or be a passenger on a motorcycle or moped on any highway in this state unless such person is wearing a protective helmet of the type and design manufactured for use by operators of such vehicles and unless such helmet is secured properly on his or her head with a chin strap while the vehicle is in motion. All such protective helmets shall be designed to reduce injuries to the user resulting from head impacts and shall be designed to protect the user by remaining on the user's head, deflecting blows, resisting penetration, and spreading the force of impact. Each such helmet shall consist of lining, padding, and chin strap and shall meet or exceed the standards established in the United States Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 218, 49 C.F.R. 571.218, for motorcycle helmets.

Annotations:

The list required by section 39-6,212 (transferred to section 60-6,280) acts as a limiting construction of this section by enumerating some of those helmets which meet the criteria of this section; when taken together, the helmet law and list are not vague. Claims that this section violates constitutional rights to due process and equal protection are without merit, since the helmet law implicates neither a fundamental right nor a suspect classification and is rationally related to a legitimate legislative aim. Although the State may promulgate and enforce motorcycle helmet standards only if the

state standards are identical to those promulgated by the federal Department of Transportation, the helmet law is constitutional, since the visor requirement is properly severable from the remainder of this section. Robotham v. State, 241 Neb. 379, 488 N.W.2d 533 (1992).

Section 60-6,280 Approved protective helmets.

The Department of Motor Vehicles shall publish a list of approved protective helmets which meet the requirements of section 60-6,279. Such list shall not be inclusive. Any person wearing a protective helmet which meets the requirements established pursuant to such section shall be deemed to be in compliance with such section.

Section 60-6,281 Protective helmets; conformance with federal standards; effect.

Any person using a protective helmet purchased prior to July 9, 1988, which is labeled to show that it conforms with applicable federal motor vehicle safety standards shall be deemed to be in compliance with section 60-6,279.

Other motorcycle laws:

Section 60-6,307 Restrictions on operating motorcycles.

(1) Any person who operates a motorcycle shall ride only upon a permanent and regular seat attached to the motorcycle. A person operating a motorcycle shall not carry any other person nor shall any other person ride on a motorcycle unless such motorcycle is designed to carry more than one person, in which event a passenger may ride upon the permanent and regular seat, if designed for two persons, or upon another seat firmly attached to the motorcycle to the rear or side of the operator.

(2) A person shall ride upon a motorcycle only while sitting astride the seat, facing forward.

(3) No person shall operate a motorcycle while carrying any package, bundle, or other article which prevents him or her from keeping both hands on the handlebars.

(4) No operator shall carry any person, nor shall any person ride, in a position that interferes with the operation or control of the motorcycle or the view of the operator.

(5) Any motorcycle which carries a passenger, other than in a sidecar or enclosed cab, shall be equipped with footrests for such passenger.

(6) No person shall operate any motorcycle with handlebars more than fifteen inches above the mounting point of the handlebars.

Section 60-4,182 Point system; offenses enumerated.

In order to prevent and eliminate successive traffic violations, there is hereby provided a point system dealing with traffic violations as disclosed by the files of the director. The following point system shall be adopted:

(1) Conviction of motor vehicle homicide - 12 points;

(2) Third offense drunken driving in violation of any city or village ordinance or of section 60-6,196, as disclosed by the records of the director, regardless of whether the trial court found the same to be a third offense - 12 points;

(3) Failure to stop and render aid as required under section 60-697 in the event of involvement in a motor vehicle accident resulting in the death or personal injury of another - 6 points;

(4) Failure to stop and report as required under section 60-696 or any city or village ordinance in the event of a motor vehicle accident resulting in property damage - 6 points;

(5) Driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcoholic liquor or any drug or when such person has a concentration of eight-hundredths of one gram or more by weight of alcohol per one hundred milliliters of his or her blood or per two hundred ten liters of his or her breath in violation of any city or village ordinance or of section 60-6,196 - 6 points;

(6) Willful reckless driving in violation of any city or village ordinance or of section 60-6,214 or 60-6,217 - 6 points;

(7) Careless driving in violation of any city or village ordinance or of section 60-6,212 - 4 points;

(8) Negligent driving in violation of any city or village ordinance - 3 points;

(9) Reckless driving in violation of any city or village ordinance or of section 60-6,213 - 5 points;

(10) Speeding in violation of any city or village ordinance or any of sections 60-6,185 to 60-6,190 and 60-6,313:

(a) Not more than five miles per hour over the speed limit - 1 point;

(b) More than five miles per hour but not more than ten miles per hour over the speed limit - 2 points; and

(c) More than ten miles per hour over the speed limit - 3 points, except that one point shall be assessed upon conviction of exceeding by not more than ten miles per hour, two points shall be assessed upon conviction of exceeding by more than ten miles per hour but not more than fifteen miles per hour, and three points shall be assessed upon conviction of exceeding by more than fifteen miles per hour the speed limits provided for in subdivision (1)(e), (f), (g), or (h) of section 60-6,186;

(11) Failure to yield to a pedestrian not resulting in bodily injury to a pedestrian - 2 points;

(12) Failure to yield to a pedestrian resulting in bodily injury to a pedestrian - 4 points; and

(13) All other traffic violations involving the operation of motor vehicles by the operator for which reports to the Department of Motor Vehicles are required under sections 60-497.01 and 60-497.02, not including violations involving an occupant protection system pursuant to section 60-6,270, parking violations, violations for operating a motor vehicle without a valid operator's license in the operator's possession, muffler violations, overwidth, overheight, or overlength violations, motorcycle or moped protective helmet violations, or overloading of trucks - 1 point.

All such points shall be assessed against the driving record of the operator as of the date of the violation for which conviction was had. Points may be reduced by the department under section 60-4,188.

In all cases, the forfeiture of bail not vacated shall be regarded as equivalent to the conviction of the offense with which the operator was charged.

The point system shall not apply to persons convicted of traffic violations committed while operating a bicycle or an electric personal assistive mobility device as defined in section 60-618.02.