Absolutely not! This bill does not require mandatory registration. SB 1997 solely creates a new, strictly voluntary, option for on-line bicycle registration.

How come no one heard about this bill earlier in the legislative season? What’s the rush?

This bill arose later than we would have liked because of the difficulty of convincing legislators that the problem of bicycle theft is IMPORTANT. We contacted bicycle advocates within hours of learning that Senator Perata would carry the bill. It is necessary, however, to move quickly to enact regulation of Bicycle Security Providers (BSPs) this legislative session because:

• The longer we wait to begin combating bicycle theft the greater the number of children and other bicycle owners who will suffer at the hands of thieves;

• There are already many companies doing on-line bicycle registration which meet no guidelines, follow no law, and are out-of-sync with California’s current registration system. The longer we wait to act, the more consumers are at risk from unscrupulous "fly-by-night" registration companies that collect money and provide little or no benefit;

• Whether or not legislation is enacted, companies will attempt Internet bicycle registration. If legislation is not passed now, the exigencies of market competition will take over and regulation will be too little, too late.

Judge for yourself - go to the Centric Media’s website, Bicyclelink.com, and read the article posted there, "Crime and No Punishment." This in-depth article about bicycle theft covers the problem and the systemic solutions that are necessary to stop theft.

Eddie Orton, a bicycle theft victim, is the owner of Centric Media. He authored the article, and is an avid cyclist and a successful entrepreneur. He has participated in AIDS rides, ridden the entire West Coast of the United States, commuted by bicycle, and remains an enthusiast. He is available to talk to anyone about SB1997. Send an email to eorton@centricmedia.com with a telephone number and a time for him to call you or call him at Centric Media’s offices at 510-665-0280 to discuss your concerns.

The registration system is designed as a level playing field that on which any financially responsible party can participate. Also, the computer architecture is open, and the system is designed to allow maximum inter-connectivity.

As a member of the bicycle community, Eddie was exposed to the widespread problem of bicycle theft and the public apathy surrounding this criminal enterprise (which costs the public over $1 billion annually). SB 1997 and the idea of creating a nationwide system of a regulated nationwide on-line registration sprang from his determination to do something about this problem.

Additionally, SB 1997 has been written with the intent of accomplishing another long-term goal of bicycle advocates, to create individual bicycle identification numbers (BIN) for each bicycle manufactured and sold. The task force created by SB 1997 would allow the Director of the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Attorney General to design a method of achieving this goal. Potentially, the identification system could possibly use embedded electronic chips implanted in the bicycle, as some bicyclist advocates have suggested, or a VIN style unique identification system.

Why would anyone register?

Only those bike owners who believe that registration will increase the chance of having a stolen bicycle returned to them will register. Therefore, to attract customers, BSPs must offer:

• A database that is easily searchable by local law enforcement agencies (who recover many stolen bicycles).

• A large database of registered bicycles that would build customer confidence and encourage law enforcement agents to search it when they locate a stolen bicycle.

• Customer confidence based on strict adherence to rigorous privacy safeguards and licensing requirements.

• Reasonable cost.

Additionally, in order for people to voluntarily register it must be convenient for them to do so. Inconvenient systems don’t work because no one registers. This has been demonstrated by a plethora of local government bike registration programs that rely on people taking their bicycles down to the fire or police station, usually only on Saturday mornings.

BSPs are able to offer bike owners the convenience of registering on-line from their own home. Or, alternately, bicycle shop owners, police departments, or fire departments may offer or inter-connect with the on-line registration service.

Again, no one is forced to register. Centric Media, however, charges only $10 for ten years of registration. Very few people can’t afford $1 per year to register a bike. Currently, most local government registration systems charge a minimum of $3.00 to register initially and then charge renewal fees.

Additionally, AB 134 (Thomson), which is moving through the legislature this year, would allow registration fees to increase by almost one hundred percent.

SB1997 offers a more reasonably priced, compatible, alternative registration system. As a cost-effective method to recover a stolen bicycle, nothing beats it.

Registration of newly purchased bicycles (the bulk of registrations) will be incredibly simple. New bikes come with the registration number written on the sales receipt or manual as a matter of law. In the case of used bikes, in most instances the number can be easily located simply by turning the bicycle over and reading the serial number off the bottom bracket. On the rare bicycle which has multiple numbers that may cause confusion, a phone call to the manufacturer or to a dealer who sells that brand will enable the owner to find the location of the "true" number.

By the terms of SB1997, the information can only be used strictly for registration purposes. Misuse of the data will result in the loss of a $500,000 bond and loss of a license to operate. Well-designed and operated systems, such as the one introduced by Centric Media, have built-in firewalls between data banks so that data is compared but not transferred (except at the data holder’s option).

Without SB1997, registration companies currently can use the information for any purpose and are not required to offer any privacy protection.

The real purpose is to return stolen bicycles to their owners and to make stealing bicycles less lucrative. A widely used (voluntary) registration and recovery system will help crush the street value of stolen bicycles (because they can be identified as stolen).

The bill gives no additional regulatory powers to the police. It does give police a tool to find the owners of the bicycles that they do recover.

Currently, most bicycles have unique, though not standardized serial numbers. Therefore, with the manufacturers name and serial number most bicycles that are registered can be identified.

The long-term solution is, of course, developing a BIN. If California acts to require BINs on all bicycles, manufacturers will follow that standard.

Establishment of a BIN would only cover new bicycles being manufactured, not bicycles that were sold prior to the effective date. For that reason, it is contemplated that instituting the BIN would take several years.

Many bicycles without serial numbers can still be traced by manufacturer if the owner reports the bicycle as stolen. In rare cases, the system might identify multiple victims, and further inquiries would be necessary to identify the actual owner.

Of course, if the owner believes that the system will not be effective, the owner simply doesn’t register. The vast majority of bicycles, new and used, can be registered and traced.

Current law requires all bicycles to have serial numbers stamped in the frame. SB1997 does not affect that requirement. It simply calls for a study to create a systematic serial numbering system so that in the future each bike will have a unique number.

SB1997 does not require mandatory registration of bicycles, let alone any other product. All SB1997 does is allow owners and bicycles shops to register more easily and effectively.

Will law enforcement agencies cooperate?

No one bears the frustration of the current system more than law enforcement. SB1997 received support from law enforcement agencies around the State. Police have attended industry meetings for years requesting a unified bicycle identification number.

Identification of owners will help police recreate crimes. That information will help district attorneys and courts to identify dangerous thieves, and understand the relationship between receivers of stolen goods, bicycle theft, and the use of bicycles as a currency in the drug trade. That understanding will lead to greater involvement and interest on the part of judges and prosecutors.

The on-line registration provisions of SB 1997 (Perata) were removed in the Senate Business & Professions Committee so that the bill could move forward without missing legislative deadlines (thus requiring rule waivers) and to allow Senator Perata time to call an "all-hands" meeting between all stakeholders on this issue.

We are certain that when Senator Perata brings everyone (i.e. the sponsors, CBC, CABO, PCL, representatives of law enforcement, the Attorney General’s office, Bicycle Retailers, etc.) together face-to-face the misconceptions regarding the voluntarily on-line registration system will be dispelled and on-line registration language will again be inserted in the bill.

We expect that face-to-face meeting to take place shortly.

SB1997 does not require mandatory registration. The bill arrived late to the legislative session, because of the difficulty of convincing legislators of the importance of the issue. That reluctance makes it even more important that the bicycle community build on the work that has been done. SB1997 simply allows efficient registration for the return of lost and stolen bicycles. The value of registered bicycles that are stolen will plummet, making the crime much less lucrative. Police will have a much easier time locating owners. No additional police powers are created that will infringe bicyclists’ rights. Police and bicyclists have called for establishment of a BIN for years. This law authorizes a study that will incorporate the reasonable criteria developed by industry, law enforcement, and bicyclists.