Goverment oversight

Do you think that Markey will win his bill, why

what would you think

he probrably will seeing that the Superman crash happened in his state. the news in New England the day after was about the bill and Markey was saying if there is no state inspections, that this accident might occur again and again.

At this time I doubt it. I don't think that the current mood in the house is toward more regulation. Also, I supspect that congressmen might be concerned about the possibility of being ridiculed for authorizing new regulation of "rollercoasters" since no passenger has died in a rollercoaster accident died since August of 1999. However, congress has done stranger things, especially when driven by a sensationalistic press.

By the way, Markey's bill would do far more than just require reporting of amusement ride accidents. It would bring fixed amusement rides fully into the realm of the CPSC. This would allow the CPSC to get a court order forcing the closure of a ride, though this type of thing is seldom done. I need to check further, but I think that it would also allow the CPSC to set design standards. I know that Markey would love to see a limit on G forces.

Are there any lawyers out there who can comment on the CPSC's ability to set standards? *** This post was edited by Jim Fisher on 8/10/2001. ***

Money money money money money. I doubt the bill will be passed, because the very arguments that we've brought up here and that are in the USA today article this weekend will be used to defeat it. Why spend the money on regulating amusement parks when you could spend it regulating something that acutally harms a greater portion of the population? Who knows. Either way, I don't see it affecting the amusement industry in a grave way, simply because it really is safe, considering the statistics on how many people don't get injured, etc. Sheesh.

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Po!nt of View: A different look at Roller Coasters.
http://www.crosswinds.net/~justmayntz/thrills/

A lot depends on the rules created by the CPSC, but the cost of regulation to an industry can be enormous. If they are spending money on paperwork and other compliance issues, they won't be spending it on new rides.