According to the North Platte Telegraph, the state of Nebraska may be on the cusp of reaching an agreement with motorcyclists on the repeal of their current helmet law. Currently, it’s illegal to ride a motorcycle in Nebraska without a helmet. Under the new agreement, if it is passed, the state’s helmet law will be repealed.

The bill was sponsored by State Senator Janssen of Fremont, Nebraska. He introduced this bill along with insurance requirement for motorcycle riders that choose not to wear a helmet. One of the biggest criticisms of repealing helmet laws has to do with the overall cost to society and to the taxpayers for motorcycle accidents involving drivers who aren’t helmeted.

Specifically, the amendment would require bike riders to have $1 million in medical coverage. In addition, they have to carry long-term care insurance, too. It is thought that this motorcycle insurance requirement would offset the kinds of costs that often wind up in society’s hands.

One of the amendments to the bill is designed to offer specific protection to riders that are not yet 21. Under this bill as it stands, riders younger than that would still need to wear a helmet while on a motorcycle.

One of the more controversial provisions is that the bill would reinstate the helmet law five years from now. It would be up to a future legislature to either extend the allowance, make it permanent, or allow the law to go back into effect.

There is always the chance, under this bill, that motorcyclists could face the new insurance requirements and, in five years, still be required to wear a helmet.

Currently, 30 other states offer riders the freedom to choose whether or not they will wear a helmet. In some cases, the state may be losing tourism and business dollars, as riders from the nearby Sturgis motorcycle rally each summer may intentionally bypass the state because of its helmet laws.

This isn’t the first time that there’s been an effort to repeal the helmet law. There have been many attempts over the years, beginning right after the ban was instituted back in 1989.

Opponents of the ban argue that motorcycle accidents, which are usually much worse without a helmet, cost taxpayers money. In addition, they suggest that the state has a duty to protect those motorcyclists from themselves, much in the same way that the state requires seatbelts for passenger vehicles.

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