Assembly Bill No. 77–Assemblymen Angle, Gustavson, Andonov, Beers, Brown, Claborn, Collins, Geddes, Gibbons, Goicoechea, Grady, Griffin, Hardy, Hettrick, Knecht, Mabey, McCleary, Mortenson, Ohrenschall, Sherer and Weber

 

February 11, 2003

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Joint Sponsor: Senator Shaffer

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Referred to Committee on Transportation

 

SUMMARY—Authorizes certain inserts in tail lamps on motorcycles. (BDR 43‑220)

 

FISCAL NOTE:  Effect on Local Government: No.

                           Effect on the State: No.

 

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EXPLANATION – Matter in bolded italics is new; matter between brackets [omitted material] is material to be omitted.

 

AN ACT relating to motorcycles; authorizing certain inserts in tail lamps; and providing other matters properly relating thereto.

 

THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEVADA, REPRESENTED IN

SENATE AND ASSEMBLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

 

    Section 1.  NRS 484.551 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    484.551  1.  Except as otherwise provided in this chapter[,] and NRS 486.261, every motor vehicle, trailer, semitrailer and any vehicle which is being drawn at the end of a train of vehicles must be equipped with at least two tail lamps mounted on the rear, which, when lighted as required by this chapter, emit a red light plainly visible from a distance of 500 feet to the rear, except that vehicles manufactured before July 1, 1969, must have at least one tail lamp if they were originally equipped with only one tail lamp.

    2.  Only the tail lamp on the rearmost vehicle of a train of vehicles need actually be seen from the distance specified.

    3.  On vehicles equipped with more than one tail lamp, the lamps must be mounted on the same level, as widely spaced laterally as practicable and at a height of not more than 72 inches nor less than 15 inches.

    4.  Every passenger car, bus and truck under 80 inches in overall width must be equipped with a lamp so constructed and placed as to illuminate with a white light the rear registration or license plate and render it clearly legible from a distance of 50 feet to the rear.

    5.  All such lamps must be wired to be lighted whenever the head lamps or auxiliary driving lamps are lighted.

    6.  The provisions of this section do not apply to towable tools or equipment which is being towed during the hours of daylight.

    Sec. 2.  NRS 484.563 is hereby amended to read as follows:

    484.563  1.  Front clearance lamps, identification lamps and those marker lamps and reflectors mounted on the front or on the side near the front of a vehicle [shall] must display or reflect an amber color.

    2.  Rear clearance lamps, identification lamps and those marker lamps and reflectors mounted on the rear or on the sides near the rear of a vehicle [shall] must display or reflect a red color.

    3.  All lighting devices and reflectors mounted on the rear of any vehicle [shall] must display or reflect a red color, except that:

    (a) The stoplight or other signal device may be red, amber or yellow.

    (b) The light illuminating the license plate [shall] must be white.

    (c) The light emitted by a backup lamp [shall] must be white or amber.

    (d) The tail lamp on a motorcycle may contain a blue or purple insert as authorized in NRS 486.261.

1-1  Sec. 3.  NRS 484.787 is hereby amended to read as follows:

1-2  484.787  1.  Except as otherwise provided in NRS 484.789,

1-3  authorized emergency vehicles are vehicles publicly owned and

1-4  operated in the performance of the duty of:

1-5  (a) A police or fire department.

1-6  (b) A sheriff’s office.

1-7  (c) The Nevada Highway Patrol.

1-8  (d) The Division of Forestry of the State Department of

1-9  Conservation and Natural Resources in responding to a fire.

1-10      (e) A public ambulance agency.

1-11      (f) A public lifeguard or lifesaving agency.

1-12      2.  A vehicle publicly maintained in whole or in part by the

1-13  State, or by a city or county, and privately owned and operated by a

1-14  regularly salaried member of a police department, sheriff’s office or

2-1  traffic law enforcement department, is an authorized emergency

2-2  vehicle if:

2-3  (a) The vehicle has a permit, pursuant to NRS 484.789, from the

2-4  Department;

2-5  (b) The person operates the vehicle in responding to emergency

2-6  calls or fire alarms, or at the request of the Nevada Highway Patrol

2-7  or in the pursuit of actual or suspected violators of the law; and

2-8  (c) The State, county or city does not furnish a publicly owned

2-9  vehicle for the purposes stated in paragraph (b).

2-10      3.  Every authorized emergency vehicle must be equipped with

2-11  at least one flashing red warning lamp visible from the front and a

2-12  siren for use as provided in this chapter, which lamp and siren must

2-13  be in compliance with standards approved by the Department. In

2-14  addition, an authorized emergency vehicle may display revolving,

2-15  flashing or steady red or blue warning lights to the front, sides or

2-16  rear of the vehicle.

2-17      4.  An authorized emergency vehicle may be equipped with a

2-18  system or device that causes the upper-beam head lamps of the

2-19  vehicle to continue to flash alternately while the system or device is

2-20  activated. The driver of a vehicle that is so equipped may use the

2-21  system or device when responding to an emergency call or fire

2-22  alarm, while escorting a funeral procession, or when in pursuit of an

2-23  actual or suspected violator of the law. As used in this subsection,

2-24  “upper-beam head lamp” means a head lamp or that part of a head

2-25  lamp which projects a distribution of light or composite beam

2-26  meeting the requirements of subsection 1 of NRS 484.587.

2-27      5.  Except as otherwise provided in subsection 4, a person shall

2-28  not operate a motor vehicle with any system or device that causes

2-29  the head lamps of the vehicle to continue to flash alternately or

2-30  simultaneously while the system or device is activated. This

2-31  subsection does not prohibit the operation of a motorcycle equipped

2-32  with any system or device that modulates the intensity of light

2-33  produced by the head lamp of the motorcycle, if the system or

2-34  device is used only during daylight hours and conforms to the

2-35  requirements of 49 C.F.R. § 571.108.

2-36      6.  A person shall not operate a vehicle with any lamp or device

2-37  displaying a red light visible from directly in front of the center of

2-38  the vehicle except an authorized emergency vehicle, a school bus or

2-39  an official vehicle of a regulatory agency.

2-40      7.  A person shall not operate a vehicle with any lamp or device

2-41  displaying a blue light, except a motorcycle pursuant to NRS

2-42  486.261 or an authorized emergency vehicle.

2-43      Sec. 4.  NRS 486.261 is hereby amended to read as follows:

2-44      486.261  1.  [Every] Except as otherwise provided in

2-45  subsection 3, every motorcycle or moped must be equipped with at

3-1  least one tail lamp mounted on the rear, which, when lighted as

3-2  required by NRS 486.011 to 486.381, inclusive, emits a red light

3-3  plainly visible from a distance of 500 feet to the rear.

3-4  2.  The tail lamp must be wired to be lighted whenever the head

3-5  lamp is lighted.

3-6  3.  The tail lamp on a motorcycle may contain a blue or

3-7  purple insert that does not exceed 1 inch in diameter.

 

3-8  H