Lawmaker hopes to revive bill for OHV fee

Phoenix - A state representative pushing for legislation that would make off-highway vehicle owners pay a registration fee says he can still prevail despite the bill's defeat in a Senate committee.

"It's not over until the fat guy shaves his beard, and I'm growing my beard back," said Rep. Jerry Weiers, R-Glendale, who was clean-shaven after sporting a beard.

HB 2573 would create a $20-25 fee for each off-highway vehicle to maintain and build trails, restore damaged areas, educate riders and provide more law enforcement. It also would make certain activities misdemeanors, including driving off paths in a manner that damages wildlife, property or natural resources.

A bipartisan group of co-sponsors, including Democratic Yuma Rep. Lynne Pancrazi, and a diverse coalition ranging from off-roading groups to environmental organizations supported the bill, saying it would help protect landscapes and preserve the pastime in Arizona.

The bill failed this week in the Senate Natural Resources and Rural Affairs Committee on a 3-3 vote.

Sen. Leah Landrum Taylor, D-Phoenix, was out sick. Weiers said he believes her vote would have made the difference.

He hopes to revive the bill through a strike-everything amendment to another piece of legislation.

Weiers said that without the bill, off-highway vehicles will continue to scar the landscape until the state and federal governments are forced to close areas to them, costing Arizona one of its biggest recreation and tourism draws.

"I think we're going to kill a market that brings in millions of dollars in tax revenue to the state, and we're killing our tourism industry," Weiers said.

A 2002 Arizona State University study found that 20 percent Arizonans considered themselves off-highway vehicle enthusiasts. The Arizona Game and Fish Department estimates that off-highway vehicle use has more than tripled since 1998.

The proposed fee would raise an estimated $4 million to $6 million a year, which would be provided to Arizona State Parks and Game and Fish to carry out the bill's provisions.

Leading the opposition in Wednesday's hearing was Sen. Robert Blendu, R-Litchfield Park, who said Arizona State Parks already receives $1 million a year from a state gas tax to pay for trail maintenance and isn't using it for its designated purpose.

Amy Racki, off-highway vehicle coordinator for Arizona State Parks, said the Legislature in 2003 decreed that that money, which actually is $692,000, be put toward the department's operating budget.

"We can't change policy; we can't change the law," she said.

Weiers sponsored a bill with the same provisions last session only to see it fail by one vote in the Senate. A similar bill failed in 2006.

Based on the support he's received from other lawmakers and the public, Weiers said he expects the bill to return soon.

"I'm not willing to let this thing sleep, and we're going to bring it back."