National Motorists Association
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The National Motorists Association (NMA) is a political advocacy group in the United States and Canada representing the interests of motorists.
The primary focus of the NMA is to advocate for rational and fair traffic laws that reflect the desires and concerns of motorists, rather than governments, auto manufactureres, or insurance companies.
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[edit] History
The organization was incorporated in 1982 as a standard "C" corporation. It was originally called the Citizens Coalition for Rational Traffic Laws (CCRTL), and was founded to repeal the 55 mph National Maximum Speed Law which was imposed in 1974[1]. The National Motorists Association name was adopted in the late 1980s. The CCRTL/NMA's efforts were responsible for the partial repeal of the 55 mph speed limit in 1987 (which allowed 65 mph limits on Interstate Highways only) and the complete repeal of the National Maximum Speed Law in 1995.
[edit] Positions and issues
Today the NMA attempts to educate the public about sound traffic engineering principles, courteous driving practices, illegitimate traffic enforcement while working to influence local governments to establish rational traffic laws, including reasonable speed limits, and to direct police resources to more constructive purposes.
The NMA supports motorists' choice in areas such as air bag installations, seat belt and motorcycle helmet usage, and daytime headlight use. The NMA also supports enforcement of inattentive driving laws, rather than simplistic bans on cell phone use. The organization opposes traffic calming on residential streets and similar strategies to obstruct and divert traffic. The NMA also opposes toll roads, racial profiling, revenue driven traffic enforcement, and excessive penalties and arbitrary blood alcohol content limits for drunk driving.
Current legislative priorities of the NMA include lobbying for federal legislation that gives motorists the ability to deactivate Event Data Recorders, "black boxes," and lobbying for the elimination of camera based automated enforcement programs.
[edit] Traffic Justice Program
The NMA encourages people to challenge the use of traffic enforcement for revenue gathering purposes by challenging every traffic ticket in court. To promote this, the NMA Traffic Justice Program offers to pay the fines for those NMA members who challenge their speeding tickets in court and are subsequently found guilty. This offer is limited to US$300, once a membership year and to those who have been active NMA members when receiving the tickets, while fighting the ticket, and when requesting payment. [2] Previously, the NMA Traffic Justice Program was limited to members for a year or more, but having been active members for a year is no longer required. The NMA also sends the CD or cassette tape "Guerrilla Ticket Fighter," free of charge to all new NMA members, and provides many additional resources on their website for those interested in fighting their traffic tickets in court.
[edit] Premium Membership Option
In addition to the Traffic Justice Program, the NMA also offers the Premium Membership Option for 10 USD per month in addition to the regular membership price. Premium Membership subscribers keep their Traffic Justice Program and are eligible to be granted up to 300 USD for each moving traffic violation ticket with demerit points against their driver licenses. Receiving a ticket of such a kind is sufficient to receive the grant to prepare one's own defense or to pay the fine or the lawyer's fee, unlike the Traffic Justice Program which requires the conclusion of a trial to claim payment. [3]
[edit] Other activities
In the past the NMA has organized "civil obedience days" where members actually drove at the posted speed limit, which generally lead to gridlock. It has also issued a "Highway Robbery Award" to entities that have excelled at abusing motorists. Most recently the organization has issued a $10,000 challengeto communities that plan on installing Red Light Cameras. The NMA wagers that simple traffic engineering changes will do more to reduce violations and improve safety than can the installation of ticket cameras.
The NMA operates speedtrap.org and roadblock.org where people can post the locations of known speedtraps and roadblocks so that motorists planning to travel can be aware of them. Typical of the NMA's positions is the statement that can be found on their roadblock.org site: "We oppose the use of roadblocks, period. The only justification for stopping citizens under a roadblock scenario is to warn them of an unseen peril that could cause injury or death to an unsuspecting motorist. So-called "sobriety check points," or seat belt checks, or the myriad of other excuses the government concocts to harass and intimidate its citizens through the use of roadblocks are, in our opinion unconstitutional and in direct contradiction to any honest definition of freedom. A free and open society that champions individual liberty and personal responsibility---the kind of society we try to tell the world the USA represents, cannot condone the arbitrary stopping, interrogating, intimidation and searching of citizens whose only crime is to be peacefully traveling a public highway. Roadblocks, as used in the US, are designed and intended to use fear, intimidation, and inconvenience to expedite a government edict or a political agenda. They have a net zero influence on public safety."
The NMA, in cooperation with GetMADD, is offering a $20,000 reward to anyone who can verify the claims of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) regarding the number of people killed by drunk drivers.
[edit] Corporate status
The NMA is a closely-held, for-profit corporation which thereby allows it to engage in a full range of political activities. As such, it is not a non-profit organization Members do not have voting status, but they are directly involved in grass roots activities to advance the NMA legislative agenda. Members can also volunteer for the positions of State Chapter Coordinator or State Activist, if they desire a more responsible role in NMA activities. The NMA also employs a lobbyist to advance its members'interests at the national level.
The NMA is affiliated with the National Motorists Association Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, founded in 1999, for the purposes of carrying out research, education and litigation that advances and enhances individual mobility. National Motorists Association Foundation. The latest available financial report dates from 2003[4].
[edit] Previous usage
The National Motorists Association was also the name of an older automobile club in the United States, which merged with the American Automobile Association in 1923.
