Congress moves to strip D.C. of motorcycle helmet safety rules
H.R. 10067 — Ride in Freedom Act · Filed by Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) · Introduced Aug 6, 2026 · Referred to committee
Your members of Congress
Enter a ZIP to see where your representative and both senators stood on this bill.
Looked up on this device — your ZIP is never stored on our servers.
What it does
This bill prohibits Washington, D.C. from requiring motorcycle riders to wear protective helmets. It repeals D.C.'s existing helmet mandate and amends the Home Rule Act to prevent the D.C. Council or Mayor from enacting or enforcing any helmet requirement for motorcycle operators or passengers.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is the removal of a motorcycle safety mandate. It is straightforward deregulation of a public-health requirement, not a hidden rider or complex carve-out. The title accurately describes what the bill does.
What the text implies
- Removal of helmet mandate will likely increase motorcycle fatality and serious injury rates in D.C., shifting healthcare costs to emergency departments and trauma centers.
- The bill applies only to D.C., creating a patchwork of helmet laws across the region and potentially incentivizing riders to travel to D.C. to ride without helmets.
The full analysis lists 3 implications of this text.
Who it affects
Motorcycle riders gain personal choice but lose a public-health protection. Helmet use reduces motorcycle fatality risk by ~37% and serious injury risk by ~69% (per NHTSA data); removing the mandate will predictably increase preventable deaths and severe injuries among riders and their families.