Heads up New Hampshire riders…. we need your feedback! There’s pending legislation that needs your support! The alcohol commission is attempting to "force" bar owners to initiate a "NO COLORS, NO TRIBAL WORK, NO TATTOOS, etc." policy for bars in New Hampshire!! Rep Sherm Packard and Jenn Coffey are working to stop this.
Please take a moment to respond to the poll below. Copy and paste your responses and email back to:
Attention NH Residents what do you think your government should do in this situation:
A bar has a lot of fights, almost every night they wake the neighbors the police come and rival gangs hang there. The liquor commission comes in and says something has to be done, what do you think is the right answer?
1. The commission should fine the place and shut ’em down for a few days or longer if needed
2. the commission should force the owner to put up a sign that says no one can work there or come in if they have on colors, tribal marking, clothing, sign, symbol, logo, letter, physical marking, or tattoo
3. The owner should take responsibility and work to shut down the violence on his own or with help from the cops, i.e. hire bouncers (though he may face a fine or temp. shut down because he has already gotten into trouble with the law)
4. The owner should have prevented it from the start and never had to deal with the commission so he gets what he deserves
Right now NH allows for number 1 or you can take door number 2 to avoid the high fines and shut down. The question becomes, should government be able to force a business to put up a sign saying what kind of employees and or patrons a business can have based on appearance?
vote:
# yes
# noRep. Jenn Coffey, NREMT-IMerrimack District 6Vice-Chairman Commerce and Consumer AffairsChairman Business and Banking Divisionwww.jenncoffey.com
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Sound and the fury: Lawmaker’s bill will target loud motorcycle pipes . 
Please voice your opinion on this as well!
They rev. They roar. But if one New Hampshire legislator has her way, they could soon be relegated to a lesser rumble.
State Rep. Michele Peckham, R-North Hampton, said she will submit a bill in the next legislative session to limit the amount of noise motorcycles can produce.
The current state law allows up to 106 decibels, and Peckham has proposed cutting that to 84 decibels, the level approved by the Environmental Protection Agency.
Under the bill, motorcycles would have to meet the new noise standard as part of their annual inspection. Police could stop a motorcyclist whose bike they suspect is above 84 decibels, and if the motorcyclist can’t prove the bike passed inspection, he or she would be fined.
He or she would then have 15 days to meet the standard and have the fine waived.
The Legislature has tried — and failed — to regulate motorcycle noise before.
Peckham said her bill differs from the failed attempts in that it grandfathers in all bikes on the road today that meet the current 106-decibel standard. But any motorcycle brought into a repair shop after January 2013 — when the law would take effect — would be required to have EPA-compliant mufflers put on.
And dealers would have until then to sell their bikes that don’t meet the new standard, she said.
But all that sound isn’t just for show, said Jason W. Peate, the general manager of Monadnock Harley-Davidson in Swanzey. It’s to let other drivers know where the motorcycle is on the road.
“We don’t consider it loud. It’s about sound, feel and safety,” Peate said. As for the 84-decibels standard, he said: “I would consider that unsafe.”
Peckham disputes that idea, saying “If that were true, wouldn’t everyone have super-loud pipes?”
Chad A. Frazier, who owns Chad’s Cycle Works in Marlborough, said the bill goes too far: “106 decibels is a lot of noise, obviously, but 80 decibels is pretty quiet,” he said. “They should find a happy medium.”
According to the American Speech-Hearing-Language Association, it’s the difference between a gas lawnmower (106 decibels) and a kitchen blender (80 to 90).
“If you have to do 80 decibels, nobody’s going to own a Harley,” Frazier said. (Peate said Harleys start at 80 decibels.)
Frazier said he has no problem with towns having their own noise ordinances. “Let them have it, (but) when you’re on the highway, it shouldn’t matter as much.”
Keene has a motor vehicle noise ordinance that covers motorcycles, but police Lt. Eliezer Rivera says it’s seldom enforced.
The measure bans “any loud, unusual, or unnecessary noise” including those caused by rapid acceleration or deceleration, peeling tires and racing of engines.
“There are so many things going on, we have to prioritize what we’re going to enforce,” Rivera said.
But, he added, “some of these motorcycles you can hear a couple of miles away. They’re definitely violating (the ordinance).”
Residents of the area surveyed on Main Street in Keene Monday said they liked the idea of Peckham’s bill.
“It can be really loud,” said Edward A. Coppola of Keene.
“Some of them rev their motors up to make them louder,” said Thelma Godreau of Walpole, who said she is for the bill.
But others questioned why legislators would take aim at motorcycle noise — this is, after all, a state with no helmet or seat belt laws.
“It’s tough. It’s New Hampshire…” said Kary R. Shumway of Hancock.
Back at Monadnock Harley-Davidson, Peake said with a riding season of six or seven months, motorcycles are unfairly targeted. Cars and trucks can roar year round, he said.
“Who’s making the sound most of the time? It’s not the bikes.”
By Abby Spegman Sentinel Staff SentinelSource.com
