Senate passes bill on securing car speakers
Published 9:00 pm Tuesday, April 5, 2005
OLYMPIA – Legislation requiring that stereo equipment be bolted down in motor vehicles cleared the state Senate Tuesday.
Senators passed House Bill 1246 on a 30-18 vote. It is referred to as “Courtney’s Law,” named for Courtney Amisson, a Snohomish High School sophomore killed in 2002 when a 56-pound stereo speaker struck her in the back of the head in a car accident.
Under the law, the Traffic Safety Commission will put out educational materials on the danger of not securing items inside vehicles.
Rep. Hans Dunshee, D-Snohomish, introduced the measure and the House of Representatives approved it March 7. It will be sent to Gov. Christine Gregoire for signing.
Senate makes orca state’s marine mammal
Oak Harbor second graders wanted the orca given special recognition by the state and lawmakers agreed.
On Tuesday, the state Senate voted 46-1 for legislation designating the Orcinus orca as the official marine mammal of Washington. The House of Representatives passed the same bill 90-7 on March 8.
It now goes to Gov. Christine Gregoire for action.
Students at Crescent Harbor Elementary School lobbied for the bill, arguing that the orca deserved the title given its popularity.
House OKs bill for lighthouse license plates
A bill to support historic lighthouses through the sale of a special license plate won approval Tuesday in the House of Representatives and is headed to the governor’s desk for action.
The House voted 81-13 to pass Senate Bill 5424. The measure, authored by Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, previously cleared the Senate on a 47-0 vote.
If it becomes law, drivers can pay $40 for a special new plate featuring lighthouses. The voluntary fee would be in addition to the state’s regular license fees.
The primary beneficiary would be Admiralty Head Lighthouse’s nonprofit education and restoration programs. The 102-year-old lighthouse is at Fort Casey on Whidbey Island.
Brier: Two injured in two-car accident
Two people were hurt in a head-on crash Tuesday afternoon at the intersection of Atlas Road and 23rd Place W., firefighters said.
Snohomish County Fire District 1 firefighters freed one man trapped inside his car. He was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The other driver was taken to a Snohomish County hospital.
From Herald staff reports
