Idaho

Recent Legislative Action

2009

SB1098: Removes license plate requirement for ORVs not used on paved roads, but creates a new fund to pay for ORV law enforcement and restoration of damaged areas. (4/9/09: Enacted)

2008

H602: Requires license plates for ORVs (4/14/08: Signed into law)

Community Voices Demand Action in Idaho

Idahoans are increasingly voicing their concerns about a growing contingent of reckless riders who break the law, damage public and private land, injure themselves and others, and ruin hunting, fishing and hiking experiences for the rest of us.

• "The explosion in use of off-road vehicles, both two-wheeled and four-wheeled, in recent years has led to great damage to landscapes that can no longer be considered natural. Vehicles have been driven off existing roads and trails to the point that some areas are now webbed with what often begin as single-track ruts and later become double-track lanes on which nothing grows and which erosion further damages." -- Lewiston Morning Tribune Editorial, "Forest travel plans a response to real damage", Lewiston Morning Tribune (1/31/09)

• "...increased use is also causing challenges for more than just land managers. Beyond dealing with conflicts between users, local law enforcement budgets are stretched thin whenever they have to rescue a lost or stuck ATV rider." -- Deanna Dar, "Motoring On", Boise Weekly (10/15/08)

• “When we see illegal ATV use like this, we want to both help users understand the environmental damage caused by their actions and correct the behavior. Then we turn to restoring function on the damaged land. In this case, the perpetrators’ actions were so egregious they were required to pay substantial fines, providing the agency with the means to begin restoration work.” -- Steve Bryant, Law Enforcement Officer for the Palouse Ranger District, "ATVs tear up meadow, now those responsible are paying for the cleanup", KLEW-TV (5/2/10)

• "The impetus for all of this on our part came from hunters themselves. Hunters who don't use them, or used them limitedly, find their experience in the hunt is compromised by other people using [OHVs] there." -- Ed Mitchell, Fish and Game spokesman on the department’s ORV rules, "Motoring On", Boise Weekly (10/15/08)

• "Our organization believes there is a place for off-road vehicles onpublic land but in the end we need to protect the resources, that isreally what we are doing there. Everyone has the right to use publiclands, but no one has the right to abuse them the way they have abusedat Meadow Creek." -- Brad Smith, Idaho Conservation League, "ATV damage leads to closure", Lewiston Morning Tribune (9/11/08)

• "Multiple times I have been in a non-motorized area when ATVs come rolling by. It is not fair to those who pour blood, sweat and tears into a backpack hunt only for it to be ruined by illegal ATV use." -- BiJay Adams, hunter, "Speaking Up", Eastman's Hunting Journal (Feb.-Mar. '10)

• "There just aren't enough hours in the day to deal with all of this...Those user-made trails are showing up all over the place. They lead to a lot of resource damage." -- Officer Mike Mumford, "Direct destructive recreation down a dead end", Lewiston Morning Tribune (6/16/08)

• "Everyone has a right to enjoy our national forests, but no one has the right to abuse them. ATV's are a legitimate way to enjoy our national forests but should not be allowed to damage the clean water and natural beauty that belongs to all of us." -- Brad Smith, Idaho Conservation League, "Lawsuit challenges forest's motorized vehicle plan", Associated Press (1/23/10)

• "During my aerial monitoring flights I have observed the trails created by ATV's, and they have increased at an alarming rate over the past decade." -- Ted Howard, Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation, "House Resources Committee Hearing," US House of Representatives Committee on Natural Resources (3/13/08)

• "There's nothing like finding a trail n a map, driving 300 miles to scout, just to find out it's been turned into an ATV highway!" -- Joey Logue, sportsman, "Speaking Up", Eastman's Hunting Journal (Feb.-Mar. '10)

Examples of Recent ORV-Related Law Enforcement Activity

Source: United States Forest Service

2008

• Caribou-Targhee NF - On 5/18, an LEO observed ATV tracks on a closed and gated road up Mink Creek on the Westside RD. The LEO unlocked the gate to follow the tracks and closed it behind him. While escorting the ATV drivers out of the area, the LEO observed the gate was open and a pickup was preparing to drive on the closed road. Upon learning an LEO was coming, the driver of the pickup turned around and sped away. The LEO stopped the vehicle approximately two miles later. The driver was under the influence of alcohol, but was just under the legal limit an hour later when the Bannock County SD arrived to conduct a test. The driver was issued a violation notice and the female passenger was arrested on an outstanding warrant.

• Clearwater NF - On 3/16, two snowmobilers were caught in an avalanche on the North Fork RD. The two men from Idaho were high marking in a remote clear-cut when the avalanche carried them 1/4 mile down the hill and off a 20-foot cliff. One man was pronounced dead at the scene. The other man was flown via helicopter to a hospital in Orofino, ID, and has recovered from his injuries. The incident is under investigation by Clearwater County SD and LEI.

• Clearwater NF - A man from Stevensville, MT recently agreed to plead guilty to a misdemeanor charge of disturbing the peace after allegedly operating his motorcycle in a roadless area and assaulting a group of Sierra Club backpackers on 7/30/06. The Clearwater County Deputy Prosecutor confirmed during a preliminary hearing that a felony aggravated assault charge against the man had been canceled after he agreed to plead guilty to the lesser charge. The incident occurred when the backpackers spotted the motorcycles on a trail in an unauthorized area in the North Fork RD. When three of the hikers stepped out on the trail to photograph the motorcycles and riders, the lead rider accelerated down the trail and deliberately struck one of the hikers. The charges were the result of an SA's investigation of the incident.

• Clearwater NF - On 6/22, a back-country ranger/FPO contacting visitors near Fish Lake on the Northfork RD encountered five ATV riders on a trail closed to ATV's. The FPO safely collected identification from the five individuals and forwarded the information to an LEO. The FPO also discovered resource damage off the trail that was apparently caused by the five riders.

Recent ORV-Related Media Coverage