The History of Helmet Laws
As research emerged in the early 60’s about the effectiveness and enhanced safety of helmet usage, the American government took major steps to lower the number of motorcycle deaths. In 1966, The Highway Safety Act was passed. This required all states to mandate the use of helmets if they wanted to receive federal funding for highways. That same year marked the formation of the American National Safety Standard for Motorcycle Helmets, an organization that led the way for standards in helmet manufacturing.
In 1968, the great helmet debate officially began when Michigan repealed its helmet law. This started a domino effect that led to the states lobbying congress to stop financially penalizing states with no helmet laws in 1976.
Helmet laws are still controversial, but only three states have no laws governing the use of helmets while riding: Illinois, Iowa, and New Hampshire.