Item 4K Attachment
ORDINANCE NO. _________
AN ORDINANCE AMENDING
18 OF THE CODE OF ORDINANCES OF THE CITY OF SOUTHLAKE,
TEXAS, AS AMENDED; PROVIDING THAT THIS ORDINANCE SHALL
BE CUMULATIVE OF ALL ORDINANCES; PROVIDING A
SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING A PENALTY FOR VIOLATIONS;
PROVIDING A SAVINGS CLAUSE; PROVIDING FOR PUBLICATION IN
THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER; AND PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE.
WHEREAS
, the City of Southlake is a home rule city acting under its charter
adopted by the electorate pursuant to Article XI, Section 5 of the Texas Constitution and
Chapter 9 of the Texas Local Government Code; and
WHEREAS
, the City Council has determined that the current regulations
contained in Sections 18-96,18-97 and 18-100 of the Code of Ordinances requiring a
child to wear a bicycle helmet should be revised to require any child under 18 years of age
to wear a bicycle helmet; and
WHEREAS
, the City Council desires to incorporate the state law regulations
governing the operation of bicycles on roadways and required safety equipment; and
WHEREAS
, the City Council finds that regulations addressing all these concerns
are in the best interest of the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Southlake, and
amended in its entirety.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF
SOUTHLAKE, TEXAS:
SECTION 1.
That Article IIIA, Bicycles, of Chapter 18, Traffic and Vehicles, of the Code
A@A@
of Ordinances of the City of Southlake, Texas, is hereby amended in its entirety to read as
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follows:
ARTICLE IIIA. - BICYCLES
Sec. 18-95. - Purpose.
The purpose of this article is to protect children who operate or ride upon a bicycle or
any side car, trailer, child carrier, seat, or other device attached to a bicycle.
Sec. 18-96. - Definitions
In this article:
Bicycle means a human powered vehicle with two wheels in tandem designed to
transport by a pedaling action a person seated on a saddle seat.
Child means any person under 158 years of age.
City means the City of Southlake, Texas.
Dealer means a commercial establishment that sells or leases new or used bicycles,
whether its principal business activity, or in connection with the selling or leasing of other
merchandise, from a place of business within the city.
Helmet means a properly fitted bicycle helmet that is not structurally damaged and
that conforms to the standards of the American National Standards Institute, the
American Society for Testing and Materials, the Snell Memorial Foundation or another
federal agency having regulatory jurisdiction over bicycle helmets, as applicable, at the
time of the manufacture of the helmet.
Parent means the natural or adoptive parent or court-appointed guardian or
conservator of a child.
Public way means property that is publicly owned or maintained, including, but not
limited to, a street or highway, a sidewalk, a publicly maintained trail, and a public park
facility.
Wearing a helmet means that the person has a helmet fastened securely to the
person's head with the straps of the helmet securely tightened.
Sec. 18-97. - Helmet required.
(a) A child ten years of age or older commits an offense if the child operates or rides
a bicycle or rides in a side car, trailer, child carrier, seat, or other device attached
to a bicycle unless the child is wearing a helmet.
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(b) A parent commits an offense if the parent allows a child under ten years of age to
operate or ride a bicycle or rides in a side car, trailer, carrier, seat, or other
device attached to a bicycle unless the child is wearing a helmet.
(c) It is presumed that a parent allowed a child under ten years of age to operate or
ride a bicycle or rides in a side car, trailer, carrier, seat, or other device attached
to a bicycle without wearing a helmet.
(d) It is a defense to prosecution that the bicycle was not being operated upon a
public way at the time of the alleged offense.
Sec. 18-98. - Passengers.
(a) A person commits an offense if the person operates a bicycle on a public way
carrying on the bicycle more persons at one time than the number of persons for
which the bicycle was originally designed and equipped.
(b) It is a defense to prosecution under this section that the person was in a child
carrier, side car, or trailer specifically designed and manufactured for the
purpose of carrying or pulling a passenger on, beside, or behind a bicycle and
that the carrier, side car, or trailer was equipped with a harness to hold the
person securely in the seat and that protection was provided to keep the feet or
hands of the person from hitting the spokes of the wheel of the bicycle.
(c) A person commits an offense if the person operates a bicycle on a public way
while transporting a child under the age of one year on the bicycle.
Sec. 18-99. - Sale or lease of a bicycle by dealers.
(a) A dealer commits an offense if the dealer sells a bicycle, bicycle side car, trailer,
or child carrier without providing a written statement to the purchaser advising of
the terms of this section. The statement shall be in a form promulgated by the
director of public safety Chief of Police or his designee. Upon request, the
director of public safety Chief of Police or his designee shall provide a sample
of the required form to the dealer. However, printing and distribution of copies
shall be at the dealer's expense.
(b) A dealer may not lease a bicycle to a person for use by a child unless the dealer:
(1) Provides a helmet for the use of each child who will operate or ride on the
bicycle; or
(2) Determines that each child who will operate or ride on the bicycle has a
helmet available.
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(c) Dealer may impose an additional fee for use of a helmet if the dealer sells or
leases a helmet to a bicycle lessee.
Sec. 18-100. - Penalty.
(a) A person who violates a provision of this article shall be guilty of a Class C
misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined an amount not more than
$25.00 upon the first conviction and an amount not more than $50.00 upon the
second and each subsequent conviction.
(b) The municipal court shall dismiss a charge against a person for a first offense
under section 18-97 upon receiving proof that:
(1) The defendant acquired a helmet for the child who was operating or riding
in violation of section 18-97; and
(2) The defendant acquired the helmet on or before the tenth day after
receiving the citation for the violation.
(c) Upon the appearance of a person for violation of section 18-97 for the second
offense, the municipal court shall dismiss the charge if:
(1) The defendant attends a bicycle safety course approved by the court; and
(2) Not later than the 90th day after the date of the plea, the defendant
presents to the court, in the manner required by the court, evidence of
satisfactory completion of the bicycle safety course.
(d) If the charge against a person is dismissed under subsection (b), a later
conviction under section 18-97 shall be considered a second or subsequent
conviction for purposes of subsection (a) of this section.
(e) The purpose of this article is to encourage the use of helmets. In keeping with
that purpose, the municipal courts are urged to consider deferred dispositions
under Article 45.54 of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, whenever the
circumstances warrant deferred dispositions.
Any person, firm or corporation violating any term or provision of this Article shall
be subject to a fine in accordance with Section 1-7 of the Code of Ordinances of the City
Sec. 18-101. Operation of Bicycles.
The operation of bicycles in the City is subject to the state law rules and regulations
governing the operation of bicycles as contained in Subchapter B of Chapter 551, Texas
Transportation Code, including but not limited to the required safety equipment, which
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subchapter is incorporated herein by reference.
Secs. 18-101218-110. - Reserved.
SECTION 2.
CUMULATIVE
This ordinance shall be cumulative of all provisions of ordinances of the City of
Southlake, Texas except where the provisions of this ordinance are in direct conflict with
the provisions of such ordinance, in which event the conflicting provisions of such
ordinances are hereby repealed.
SECTION 3.
SEVERABILITY
It is hereby declared to be the intention of the City Council that the phrases,
clauses, sentences, paragraphs and section of this ordinance are severable, and if any
phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section of this ordinance shall be declared
unconstitutional by the valid judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction,
such unconstitutionality shall not affect any of the remaining phrases, clauses, sentences,
paragraphs and sections of this ordinance, since the same would have been enacted by
the City Council without the incorporation in this ordinance of any such unconstitutional
phrase, clause, sentence, paragraph or section.
SECTION 4.
PENALTY
Any person, firm or corporation who violates, disobeys, omits, neglects or refuses
to comply with or who resists the enforcement of any of the provisions of this ordinance
shall be fined not more than Five Hundred Dollars ($500.00) for each offense. Each day
that a violation is permitted to exist shall constitute a separate offense.
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SECTION 5.
SAVINGS
All rights and remedies of the City of Southlake are expressly saved as to any and
all violations of the provision of any other ordinances regulating solicitation activities,
canvassing activities, or handbill distribution, that have accrued at the time of the effective
date of this ordinance; and, as to such accrued violations and all pending litigation, both
civil and criminal, whether pending in court or not, under such ordinances, same shall not
be affected by this ordinance but may be prosecuted until final disposition by the courts.
SECTION 6.
PUBLICATION
The City Secretary of the City of Southlake is hereby directed to publish the
ordinance or its caption and penalty in the official City newspaper one time within ten days
after passage of this ordinance, as required by Section 3.13 of the Charter of the City of
Southlake.
SECTION 7.
EFFECTIVE DATE
This ordinance shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage and
publication as required by law, and it is so ordained.
PASSED AND APPROVED ON FIRST READING ON THIS ______ DAY OF
__________________, 2015
.
___________________________________
MAYOR
ATTEST:
___________________________________
CITY SECRETARY
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PASSED AND APPROVED ON SECOND READING ON THIS ______ DAY OF
____________________, 2015.
___________________________________
MAYOR
ATTEST:
___________________________________
CITY SECRETARY
EFFECTIVE: ____________________
APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY:
________________________________________
City Attorney
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