GOVERNOR’S ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON MOTORCYCLE SAFETY DRAFT Thursday, July 9, 2020, Meeting Minutes Transportation Safety Division Teleconference Meeting Public Access: 503-934-3605 Pin: 637306

Members Present: Chris Henry, Don Hamon, CJ Strauss, Cathy Steele, Graham Munsell (via phone only), Ethan Lodwig (via phone only), Debbie Weber Members Absent: Peter Russell Staff: Jeff Greiner, Troy Costales, Traci Pearl, Alycen Ozawa Liaisons/Guests: Cassie Bay (ODOT Driver and Motor Vehicles), Sgt. Jason Lindland ( State Police), Sgt. Bret Barnum (Portland Police Bureau), Aria Minu-Sepehr (Team Oregon)

I. Welcome and Introductions Chair Chris Henry called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. Chair Henry introduced Troy Costales. Mr. Costales announced meeting instructions for members, liaisons, and guests. Roll call of introductions.

II. Approval of Minutes for Previous Meetings (February and April) Chair Henry called for a review of the February 6, 2020 meeting minutes.

MOTION: Mr. Munsell moved to approve the GAC-MS meeting minutes of February 6, 2020 as presented. Ms. Weber seconded. Call for vote; unanimous. Motion passed.

Chair Henry called for a review of the April 16, 2020 meeting minutes.

Mr. Hamon moved to approve the GAC-MS meeting minutes of April 16, 2020 as presented. Ms. Weber seconded. Call for vote; unanimous. Motion passed.

III. Chair and Committee Member Reports Chair Report Chair Henry attended the OTSC meeting on July 8, 2020. The Team Oregon tuition increase recommendations by the GAC-MS and Transportation Safety Division (TSD) were presented to the members. The OTSC had unanimous approval of the Team Oregon tuition increase. There were questions as to why there were dissenting votes and an explanation was given that they do not write opposition reports. Chair Henry reported at the meeting that Team Oregon and are exploring options to address the equity issues. Chair Henry stated that during his experience riding in South East Oregon deserts, he has had time to contemplate what contributes to the death of motorcycle riders. There are diverse individuals that ride. The conversations with other riders all point to impaired driving and excessive speeding as the largest contributing factors for rider deaths. The Committee is working to improve the safety outcomes of these riders and other users of the transportation system. Chair Henry reported that the new BMW motorcycles have adaptive cruise control technology that maintains safe following distances. This is promising for riders. Chair Henry stated that his new vehicle has such a robust detection system that the car will come to a complete stop on its own. There are promising technological advances that are coming out for rider safety.

Member Reports Ms. Strauss shared that she was at a North Plains ethanol-free gas station and flagged another rider for a fill up who happened to be her inspirational female rider. This incident made her realize how small, precious, and prominent our community is and felt blessed to have that encounter. There are beautiful experiences to be had on two-wheels.

Mr. Hamon stated that all of his plan for the summer have been cancelled due to COVID-19. Mr. Hamon reported almost getting his motorcycle wheel caught in a lane patch and realized that they do not have engineering standards. Although lane patches are efficient, there should be standards to avoid causing safety issues. Mr. Hamon reported that everything is safe and life is good.

Mr. Munsell reported that COVID-19 is interfering with all of his riding plans and contact in the community. Hopefully, that will change soon. Mr. Munsell stated he was really looking forward to the ride this year but it does not look that will happen.

Mr. Lodwig wanted to pointed out two observations: (1) motorcycle sales have increased significantly (20%); and (2) the appreciation of the discussion in the minutes regarding the teen driving course in preventing teen crashes. Mr. Lodwig stated he would like to see data that compares the crash rates of teens who have taken and not taken the teen driving course.

Ms. Weber noticed that her accessory sales was one of the best Springs ever and that the new riders are very anxious in taking the endorsement course. Ms. Weber has been riding on the weekends and having fun.

Ms. Steele did not have a report at this time.

Chair Henry asked that the TSD staff members introduce themselves. Mr. Costales, Ms. Pearl, Mr. Greiner, and Ms. Ozawa reported being present.

IV. TSD Report Mr. Greiner stated what Chair Henry reiterated that if we can reduce impaired driving, we can reduce fatal crashes. Mr. Dan Estes of the DUII program and Mr. Greiner are looking forward to presenting the results of the listening session to the Committee. Mr. Greiner also reported Jody Raska started this week as the new driver education (DE) program manager. Ms. Raska was the executive assistant for this Committee for a very long time and has three family members who are riders, therefore, she has an interest in the program. With her experience, Ms. Raska will be a great addition to the DE program. Mr. Greiner addressed Mr. Logwig’s request on DE data by stating that at one point, DE drivers represented only 12% of the total fatalities of all vehicles. Historically, driver education drivers are involved in fewer crashes. Mr. Greiner reported losing 12 riders compared to 15 in 2019. The problem is that we lost a number of riders since July 1st. Some of the crashes may be familiar with the crash in Sisters, Borne, and the Coast making the official fatality count to at least 15 riders. The 2021 Highway Safety Plan was sent to NHTSA for approval with the requested review of program goals with COVID-19 impacts and law enforcement (LE) availability. Mr. Greiner stated that the program target goals have been adjusted

2

down to reflect these impacts to the budget and LE availability. Mr. Greiner also reported working closely with Team Oregon dealing with factors such as counties with limited public openings and site- owner venues that have discontinued public openings. Mr. Greiner asked all those listening to pay attention to posted speed limits and road signs, especially the curve advisory signs. Riding in a compliant manner provides less risk. The agreement with the DMV and the law enforcement (LE) agencies only covers those individuals who already have a permit or endorsement that expires. The extension was provided for the renewal process and not for new riders. There has been incorrect messaging out there that new riders can ride unendorsed. In Oregon, all new moped and motorcycle riders must complete the mandatory motorcycle safety training course and complete the requirements of the DMV. Mr. Greiner asked to spread the awareness. Due to COVID-19 the State Motorcycle Safety Administrators (SMSA) 2020 Summit has been postponed to October 13-16, 2021 in Boise, . Lastly, Mr. Greiner shared information from Paula Leslie of BikePac and American Bikers Advocating Training & Education (ABATE) of Oregon are beginning the process of creating a custom vehicle license plate to increase motorist awareness of motorcycle riders and the proceeds could be directed to the Team Oregon motorcycle safety program. Any interest in being part of this project may contact Jeff Greiner or Alycen Ozawa of TSD to forward to Ms. Leslie.

V. Team Oregon Update – Restart of training programs; Staffing Changes; eRider End of Course Test; DMV Student Data Entry Mr. Minu-Sepehr stated that OSU approved operations as of June 20, 2020. Some sites were prepared and opened the same day, for example, Clackamas Community College. Some sites are approved to reopen on future dates such as July 12 for Chemeketa Community College in Salem; but others are still closed such as Portland Community College campuses. There are 25 sites across the state, with 6 sites offline and the other half with delayed openings until mid-July. Team Oregon reduced 3.5 full time positions. Three full time positions and half of a management position were eliminated. Overall, there are four less positions of the original thirteen. This represents a 30% reduction in staff. Team Oregon discussed the operational plan. The salaried staff are working more than 8 hours per day and there is concern of the impact on company morale. All efficiencies have been examined and identified, and processes have been streamlined. Team Oregon has been working with TSD and DMV on being able to offer the online eRider end of course knowledge test. Team Oregon is now able to electronically upload and send completions of rider training courses to DMV in real time. Cassie Bay of DMV was the person who helped developed this process. The first transmissions will occur this week. This will eliminate printing physical completion cards providing cost savings and efficiency for the program. Chair Henry asked if there have been conversations with OSU about the low to no income subsidies. Mr. Minu- Sepehr stated that OSU financial aid is only for students seeking degrees or certificates. There are two other options. The OSU Foundation governs a donation and offers assistance. Specific departments also offer assistance. The other considerations are the source and size of the funding. Team Oregon does not know what the anticipated need may be and is working on this data. Some of the difficulties are deciding the amount of funding to cover the requests for low to no income needs and the selection process needs to offer funds to those that need assistance the most. Ms. Steele asked if Team Oregon could follow the driver education program. Mr. Greiner stated that they are already looking into the DE program. Driver education provides a fixed subsidy to those students that complete the course. The driver education fund pays an additional subsidy amount for any person who qualifies for the SNAP program. There is discussion on whether the funds could come from the subaccount. The issue comes

3

down to the availability of funds to be able to offer the subsidy program on an already reduced budget. Ms. Weber asked if there would be a set dollar amount or a full scholarship grant. Mr. Greiner stated this is part of the discussion. One option would have a separate grant to provide these subsidies and offer a lower rate for the course. Ms. Weber stated that Mr. Minu-Sepehr stated in the past only one or two students were interested in a low or no income option. Ms. Weber asked if this was going to be part of the application. Mr. Greiner stated that she is bringing up all good topics that are going to be addressed. The goal is to provide an equity program by the 2021 grant year. Mr. Greiner is working with Ms. Pearl and Mr. Minu-Sepehr to provide the Committee something to review and comment on by this Fall.

VI. DMV Reciprocity Discussion for the Legislative Concept Ms. Bay clarified that the agreement between DMV and the LE agencies on expired credentials is intended for those who previously had driving privileges and not for those who need to get privileges for the first time. Ms. Bay reported the history of DMV endorsements for military person out of state. In the 1980s, DMV offered granted an exception for training requirements of military persons out of state. There have been letters from other states indicating completion of training courses out of state accepted. These were accepted on a case-by-case basis through the driver issuance manager. For a short time in the 1990s, there were times the DMV did not make any exceptions for military personnel. When mandatory rider education was enacted, the DMV accepted completion cards from the Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF). MSF was the testing standard for DMV at the time. The annual statistical reports show that 50,000 motorcycle endorsements to military personnel out of state each year. The 2021 legislative concept seeks for the authority to allow ODOT to issue motorcycle endorsements for any Oregon resident that is temporarily out of state that completes a motorcycle endorsement course accepted by rule. This is to grant the authority for DMV and TSD to collaborate on the types of accepted curriculums. DMV would like the GAC to be involved in the legislative process and the evaluation of courses from other states. Mr. Greiner stated that DMV is asking for the authority to write rules that would allow DMV reciprocity and the ability to access the curriculum content. The current standard is Team Oregon’s curriculum. Chair Henry clarified this will be DMV reciprocity for those seeking to add the endorsement. Ms. Bay stated that the DMV already offers reciprocity for out of state endorsements. This request would be to allow any Oregon resident who is seeking to receive an endorsement taken out of state. Ms. Bay stated any legislation dealing with motorcycle safety is usually discussed with the Committee. There was discussion of what the Committee’s role will be for this legislative concept. Ms. Bay provided the explanation that this concept was an example of an exception DMV provided and it is now time to put it into statute. Mr. Lodwig stated that Oregon’s program is rigorous and it would be interesting to see if this concept would elevate other states’ programs as an unintended consequence. Mr. Costales there are two scenarios on the reciprocity issue: (1) anyone taking the endorsement out of state will be accepted at face value; or (2) provide a programmatic review of the out of state curriculum before accepting the endorsement. Ms. Bay stated that DMV would be coming to the Committee to identify the curriculum reviews. Ms. Munsell stated that this is a positive step. Chair Henry stated that he looks forward to hearing more at the October or January 2021 meeting.

VII. Liaison Roles and Engagement Chair Henry wanted to revisit the relationships with our liaisons and asked how the liaisons would be more helpful to the Committee. Ms. Bay stated that she would provide any DMV information that the

4

Committee requests in advance. Sgt. Lindland stated that he is at the Committee’s disposal and can provide information as requested such as OSP crash information. Mr. Minu-Sepehr stated that there is a lot of student data that can be used to provide statistical trends. Chair Henry stated that Team Oregon may find value in providing statistics using data of those taking the endorsement course. Half of all of endorsements issued in Oregon are from out of state conversions. Sgt. Barnum stated some of the items that PPB can provide are insight and information on enforcement and support training topics that may be useful to the GAC. Currently, as law enforcement resources are scarce it is important to keep items efficient as possible in order for the department to find value in participating in the Committee meetings. Chair Henry thanked Sgt. Barnum on his honesty and noted that he intends on keeping the Committee meetings to two hours. Sgt. Barnum stated that he misses the in-person engagement at the meetings and find them more beneficial. Ms. Bay expressed that she likes the virtual meetings. Ms. Strauss expressed gratitude to the liaisons for their expertise and time in the forms of research, crash data, DMV records, and helping the members of the Committee understand the transportation system. Mr. Hamon stated he echoes what Ms. Strauss stated and likes that he can turn to our liaisons as essential resources. Keeping an efficient meeting schedule is understandable. Mr. Lodwig agrees with Ms. Strauss’ comment especially about liaisons’ expertise. Mr. Munsell looks forward to meetings in person but agrees on the time management piece. Each liaisons’ participation is critical. Ms. Weber agrees that the liaisons provide access to information. She prefers having in person meetings but when the Committee returns to monthly meetings, it may explore switching between in person and virtual meetings. Ms. Steele stated that it would be worth exploring all meeting types. As a new member, she does not have the experience with in person meeting but feels that having them is important.

VIII. Liaison Reporting Mr. Minu-Sepehr referred to the Team Oregon update document. Team Oregon resumed operations on June 20, 2020. There are a number of providers that still remain closed. They are looking at ways to add capacity. Most of their staff continues to work remotely. There currently remains 7,000 students on the waiting list for the endorsement course. They have communicated with 3,000 students and now there are only 4,000. Bookkeeping is being tracked and contact being made for the individuals who have paid for courses in the prior fiscal year. Team Oregon has used the time to locate new venues and upgrade existing venues. There is a new social media initiative released this year. Team Oregon currently has Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn accounts. Using technology to make a greater impact during the pandemic has been successful.

Sgt. Lindland reported three recent motorcycle fatalities: (1) on July 4th on Highway 197 in Wasco County, a 46-year old male failed to stop with this MC group, veering off the highway, and passed away as a result of his injuries; (2) on July 8th at 7:11 p.m. on Highway 101 in Gearhart, Clatsop County a 53- year male ran into the back of a vehicle; and (3) on July 8th on Highway 20 in Deschutes County, a 70- year old male ran into the back of a 2018 Ford F250. It is still too early to determine if impairment was a factor in these crashes. There was an off-road fatality on Forrest Service Road 950 in Deschutes County where a 43-year old male passed his riding partners on an uneven road, lost control, and thrown to the ground and died from his injuries. Traffic is still light but the motorcycle community has increased in the Portland area.

5

Sgt. Barnum reported on receiving a TSD grant funded motorcycle training using the State Academy track to teach curve negotiations, trail breaking, effective cornering, collision avoidance, cone pattern work, and practical application practice. This will help further officers’ skill sets. There were 21 new students who have just completed this training. The student evaluations of the training are favorable and are received well. Sgt. Barnum stated they are fortunate to have TSD provide funding to support additional officer training. This is a privilege for PPB to have this training offered to them. The traffic in the Portland areas have started to pick up with no significant motorcycle crashes. In the beginning of COVID-19 things were pretty mellow. The department was asked to step back the first week to see what was going to happen. After a few weeks of shut down in March, the officers began seeing triple-digit speeding violations. The enforcement was increased in Multnomah and Washington Counties. Clackamas County placed all of their motorcycle officers in vehicles and began a slow integration of getting the motor unit back to enforcement. Officers are writing 30-40 citations and warnings with citations for speeds greater than 75 MPH and in the triple digits. The empty roads provided motorists free reign for a while making it dangerous for those that obey the traffic laws. Traffic volumes are still light since the reopening occurred. At this time, everyone is well aware that Portland is trying to protect their city from the nightly protests. Portland is on day 42 of protests and hopefully have a plan in place to stop the violence. The officers are still staying strong, putting in many hours with complete dedication. Chair Henry asked if it would be valuable for GAC members to observe the motor unit training in the future. Sgt. Barnum stated that if anyone was interested in observing training to get a hold of Jeff Greiner for next year’s session. Chair Henry asked if there was an opportunity to have officers take the Team Oregon training. Mr. Minu-Sepehr stated that they love collaborating as they focus on street skills and is currently working with Bend Police Department. Mr. Lodwig asked if the number of motor officers increasing or decreasing. Sgt. Barnum stated that many agencies have pulled back their motor units due to staffing needs but Jackson County has an officer that is pro-traffic safety who increased their unit to five officers. Clackamas County is looking to possibly eliminate their motor unit, which is unfortunate as PPB relies on them for mutual aid, escorts of dignitary visits, and crowd control which would make six less officers to rely on. In Portland, there was a hard time to stimulating interest for motor unit school but the latest interest has tripled with interested nine officers. There will be five officers put through training in September. There are about 70 – 80 motor officers throughout the State of Oregon. Mr. Lodwig stated that he appreciates the work the motor officers do especially through the Eugene and Springfield areas.

Ms. Bay reported on the new DMV online system upgrade that went live on July 6, 2020. The system will allows customers online services such as making appointments, ordering driving records, and renewing licenses. Endorsement test completions will be electronically submitted as stated by Mr. Minu-Sepehr. Ms. Bay reported that Team Oregon was able be part of the DMV roll out in the first phase as they were able to get all of their requirements in order. Today was the first day of transmitting endorsement completions and everything is going well so far.

Chair Henry solicited any public comments and questions to Jeff Greiner via email.

IX. Next Meeting The next meeting is scheduled for October 15, 2020 at a location to be determined. Topics for discussion could include:

6

• Status of Meeting – In-person or Virtual • 2021 Meeting Schedule • TSD MS/DUII Listening Session Report • TEAM Oregon Equity Program • GARD Mass Media Effectiveness and Performance

X. Adjournment There being no further business before the Committee, Chair Henry adjourned the meeting at 6:34 p.m.

7