House File 664 - Introduced



                                       HOUSE FILE       
                                       BY  WHITAKER


    Passed House, Date               Passed Senate, Date             
    Vote:  Ayes        Nays           Vote:  Ayes        Nays         
                 Approved                            

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act allowing the use of a siren on the personal vehicles of
  2    certain volunteer fire fighters and making a penalty
  3    applicable.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
  5 TLSB 2627YH 82
  6 dea/gg/14

PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  Section 321.433, Code 2007, is amended to read
  1  2 as follows:
  1  3    321.433  SIRENS, WHISTLES, AND BELLS PROHIBITED.
  1  4    A vehicle shall not be equipped with and a person shall not
  1  5 use upon a vehicle any siren, whistle, or bell, except as
  1  6 otherwise permitted in this section.  It is permissible but
  1  7 not required that any commercial vehicle be equipped with a
  1  8 theft alarm signal device which is so arranged that it cannot
  1  9 be used by the driver as an ordinary warning signal.  Any
  1 10 authorized emergency vehicle may be equipped with a siren,
  1 11 whistle, or bell capable of emitting sound audible under
  1 12 normal conditions from a distance of not less than five
  1 13 hundred feet, but the siren, whistle, or bell shall not be
  1 14 used except when the vehicle is operated in response to an
  1 15 emergency call or in the immediate pursuit of an actual or
  1 16 suspected violator of the law, and the driver of the vehicle
  1 17 shall sound the siren, whistle, or bell when necessary to warn
  1 18 pedestrians and other drivers of the approach of the vehicle.
  1 19 A person who is a member of a volunteer fire department, who
  1 20 has completed an emergency vehicle operators course approved
  1 21 by the department, may equip a personal motor vehicle with a
  1 22 siren, as provided for an authorized emergency vehicle, which
  1 23 shall not be used except when the vehicle is operated by the
  1 24 member of the volunteer fire department in response to an
  1 25 emergency call and the use of the siren is necessary to warn
  1 26 pedestrians and other drivers of the approach of the vehicle.
  1 27                           EXPLANATION
  1 28    This bill allows a member of a volunteer fire department
  1 29 who has completed an approved emergency vehicle operators
  1 30 course to equip a personal motor vehicle with a siren.  The
  1 31 bill specifies that the siren may only be used when the
  1 32 vehicle is driven by the volunteer fire fighter in response to
  1 33 an emergency call, and only as necessary to warn pedestrians
  1 34 and motorists of the approach of the vehicle.
  1 35    A violation of a provision restricting the use of a siren
  2  1 on a motor vehicle is punishable by a scheduled fine of $20.
  2  2 LSB 2627YH 82
  2  3 dea:nh/gg/14