Images: SEMA

Every month, we take a look at the SEMA Law & Order update to get the latest news on the organization’s fight against unfair legislation relating to the off-road industry. However, with the majority of legislative assembly adjourning for the year, there are very few updates to report this month.

Wanting to make the best of our monthly feature, however, we decided to dive deeper into the amazing resources the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) provides off-road enthusiasts, and found a ton of great information vital to keeping your rig on and off the road in the future.

The SEMA Action Network (SAN) is a branch of the Specialty Equipment Market Association dedicated to protecting the automotive hobby. Whether it’s hot rod legislation or off-roading rules and regulations, SAN is there to help squash unfair legislation as well as promote the passing of fair automotive laws.

As a group, SAN also fights for causes like the Save the Salt Coalition and maintaining Johnson Valley Off Highway recreation area for responsible off-road use.

Anyone who is an enthusiast, club member, vehicle owner, or member of the specialty auto parts industry can join SAN for free and help fight for their hobby.

While SEMA represents people and businesses from all walks of the automotive life, a good portion of SEMA members market or produce equipment for off-road vehicles. Not only does this mean improved parts and performance, but also a wider variety of automotive hobbies.

For off-road enthusiasts, the continuation of their hobby relies on the availability of public land for off-highway recreation. Unfortunately, threats to such land are common in legislation these days as off-road parks, open land areas and designated trails are continuously being considered for closure across the country.

SEMA and the SEMA Action Network both support off-road enthusiasts and the choice for legislatures to keep public land open for responsible off-road use. In doing so, the organizations offer a guide to off-road recreation and land use policies on the SAN website to clarify any confusing policies and report on the latest legislative changes to public land use decrees and closures/openings.

In this toolbox of sorts, SAN lays out five distinct sections for consideration. These include Major Federal Laws/Regulations, Government Agencies Managing Federal Lands, Pending Issues, Major Groups Involved in Land Use Issues, and SEMA Position on Regulating Motorized Recreation of Federal Lands.

Under each category, you’ll find information related to the main topic you clicked on, from major federal considerations affecting land use, such as the Endangered Species Act, to details on entities of the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service.

Under the SEMA Position topic, you’ll also find vital information disclosing exactly what SEMA believes to be appropriate use of federal lands when it comes to off highway recreation. This includes definitions of off-road vehicle classes and different types of authorizations, a call for public involvement and an explanation of why off highway recreation is important.

Under the Pending Issues topic, you’ll find details on pending legislative, regulatory and court issues that are currently changing, or could change, the quality of the off-road hobby in the future.

As we say all the time, it’s important to stay informed, especially when it comes to rules, regulations and laws that involve your off-road hobby. Be sure to check out the off-road specific guide on SAN’s website and join SAN to get the latest off-road legislative updates!