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Helmet Laws |
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Agricultural
Protection Acts |
This area consists of helmet laws that require the wearing of approved helmets for horseback riding. There were only two such laws in the United States at the time this segment was created on October 17, 1999. New York enacted a statute, signed into law on September 7, 1999 and going into effect on January 5, 2000, requiring the wearing of approved helmets by riders under 14 years of age and requiring horse providers to provide approved helmets to all riders under 14 and to all beginning riders. The City of Plantation, Florida enacted a municipal ordinance that became effective April 1, 1999 that contains similar requirements for riders under the age of 16. On June 29, 2001, the Canadian
Province of Ontario enacted a helmet law that requires
approved helmets and proper footwear (or safety stirrups) for persons
under the age of 18
in most situations except horse shows. Penalty for violation is a
fine of up to
$5,000. (Scroll
down to view state statutes.)
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Law Cases for Horsemen |
In addition to equestrian helmet laws, this segment contains statutes that require the wearing of approved helmets when riding bicycles or that establish bicycle helmet education programs. Those statutes are included because they offer convenient models for the drafting of equestrian helmet laws.
There is a HorseLaw article available on
this web site, Enacting
a Helmet Ordinance, that analyzes
the process of enacting a helmet ordinance into law.
The equestrian helmet statutes and ordinances were reviewed and updated
by AAHS
in April 2003 and posted in August 2003.
New York
Equestrian Helmet Statute
City of Plantation,
Florida Equestrian Helmet Ordinance
Ontario, Canada Equestrian Helmet
Statute
Bainbridge Island, Washington
Equestrian Helmet
Ordinance
| Alabama California Connecticut Delaware |
Florida
Georgia Maryland Massachusetts |
New Jersey New York Rhode Island Tennessee |
Texas Virginia Washington West Virginia |