MRF State Rep Report
One of the most important bills for us motorcyclists this year is H.R. 8870, the “BUILD America 250 Act”. Commonly known simply as “the highway bill”, this authorization for transportation funding is renewed every five years and must be passed by the end of September to avoid running out of money for highway projects. The bill as introduced contains several provisions that are beneficial to motorcycling, and the Motorcycle Riders Foundation will continue to monitor this bill as it passes through the legislative process to ensure those provisions remain intact in the final bill.
There was a recent proposal that may interest many of us. H.R. 10067 & S. 5274, the “Ride in Freedom Act”, was introduced and if passed would eliminate the mandatory helmet law in Washington DC. Although this would have little impact on most of us here in Tennessee, it is a movement in the right direction of restoring the freedom, to choose whether to wear a helmet or not to those who ride in our nation’s capital.
The biggest event that The Motorcycle Riders Foundation conducts every year is in just a few weeks. The Meeting of the Minds is being held on September 24-27 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Those few days are packed with information regarding the issues facing motorcyclists, contacts to be made throughout the motorcycling community, and decisions to be made regarding the future direction of our legislative efforts.
Your participation in this event is could be the key to unlocking the future of our fight to… ...Ride Free,
Ed Domine
MRF State Rep - Tennesseeed.d@juno.com
Join The MRF: https://mrf.org/join-the-mrf/
Meeting Of The Minds 2026
The People Who Show Up
Not every rider helps protect those freedoms.
For nearly forty years, the Motorcycle Riders Foundation has fought the battles that most riders never see.
Battles over:
Access to our roads.
The right to modify our motorcycles.
Ethanol fuel policies.
Autonomous vehicle safety.
Overreaching regulations.
The future of internal combustion engines.
Profiling
Those victories didn't happen by accident.
They happened because dedicated motorcyclists showed up.
They attended meetings.
They learned the issues.
They built relationships.
They took the fight home.
Meeting of the Minds is where that process begins.
For four days in Milwaukee, riders, activists, SMRO leaders, industry representatives, and freedom-minded motorcyclists will gather to discuss the challenges facing our community and develop the strategies needed to meet them.
The future of motorcycling will be shaped by the people who show up.
The question is simple: Will you be one of them?
September 24-27, 2026 -- Milwaukee, Wisconsin - Meeting of the Minds
Register now and join the conversation.
Register for Meeting of the Minds 2026
IIHS Releases Statement On Waymo Safety Record
July 24, 2026
A new study from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) is likely to become a major talking point on the issue of autonomous vehicles. According to the report, Waymo's driverless vehicles operating in Phoenix, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Austin were involved in 68% fewer police-reportable crashes per mile traveled than human drivers.
The Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF) is aware of the study. It expects it to receive significant attention from the media, policymakers and advocates seeking to expand the deployment of autonomous vehicles on America's roads. The findings will undoubtedly add momentum to the national conversation surrounding automated driving systems. As more studies like this emerge, pressure will increase on lawmakers and regulators to accelerate the adoption of driverless technology.
However, one critical question remains for motorcyclists: Can these vehicles consistently detect, recognize and safely respond to motorcycles in every driving situation?
While the IIHS report presents encouraging results for Waymo's operations, it also acknowledges shortcomings in the federal data collection system used to monitor crashes involving automated vehicles. Researchers noted that current reporting requirements make it difficult to compare autonomous vehicle performance across companies and emphasized the need for better data as these vehicles become more common.
For the MRF, that need for better data extends beyond overall crash numbers. Motorcycle riders represent a unique challenge for automated driving systems due to our smaller profile and different operating characteristics. Before autonomous vehicles become commonplace, riders deserve confidence that these systems can reliably identify motorcycles and react appropriately.
The MRF has consistently advocated that federal regulators, manufacturers and developers ensure motorcycles are fully considered during the design, testing and deployment of automated driving technologies. As these vehicles expand into more communities, interactions between automated vehicles and motorcycles will become increasingly common.
The MRF remains vigilant in monitoring developments involving autonomous vehicles and will continue working with Congress, the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to ensure motorcyclists are not overlooked as this technology advances. Studies like this one will continue to shape the public debate. The MRF will continue to advocate for a simple principle, any technology sharing America's roads must be capable of safely recognizing and responding to motorcycles.
Read the IIHS Release
https://www.iihs.org/news/detail/waymos-driverless-cars-crash-less-often-than-people