Bill > H4566

This bill establishes detailed regulations for golf cart operation in rural municipalities with populations under 10,000 and population densities below 500 people per square mile. The bill allows these municipalities to authorize golf cart use on public ways, provided the vehicles meet specific safety and equipment standards comparable to low-speed vehicles. Golf cart operators must obtain a town clerk recording, display a valid annual decal, have a slow-moving vehicle emblem, pass an annual safety inspection, and maintain appropriate insurance. Operators must have a valid driver's license, with 16-year-olds allowed to drive with a licensed 21-year-old supervisor. The bill prohibits modifications that enhance speed, limits golf cart operation to 20 miles per hour, bans alcohol consumption while driving, restricts nighttime operation, and requires operators and passengers to wear seat belts. Golf carts must stay to the right of the roadway and not impede traffic, and they are restricted to operation only within the municipality where they are recorded. The bill also gives rural municipalities the authority to establish fines for violations and requires the Registrar of Motor Vehicles to develop specific regulations for golf cart recording and inspection within 90 days of the act's passage.

Budget and Finance, Transportation and Infrastructure

https://malegislature.gov/Bills/194/H4566