Leslie Luciano isn't letting the Safe Passing Bill go quietly into the night...

Early early early (as in 2am) this morning Jason Embry, a local legislative blogger mentioned Leslie Luciano's one-woman crusade to obtain any information as to why the governor chose to veto such a well-supported (from both sides of the aisle) bill. Hell, even the American Automobile Association supported the bill! Check out what Jason has to say about Leslie's actions:

Leslie Luciano, community relations manager at Bicycle Sport Shop in Austin, has filed a public-information request with Perry’s office to see how much support and opposition came in for a bill that would have provided penalties for operating a car too close to a cyclist. Perry vetoed the measure. Luciano said in an e-mail, “What he underestimated was the cycling community. We are diverse, organized, we are united, and we vote. When he clearly is heading into a close race, we are confident we can make a difference in that election with our numbers. Surveys show that 55 percent of the 30,000 active Texas cyclists who belong to a cyclist organization participate in GOP primaries. Surveys also indicate an estimated 4 million Texans are, at least, casual bike riders.”

Perry said about the bill in his veto message, “While I am in favor of measures that make our roads safer for everyone, this bill contradicts much of the current statute and places the liability and responsibility on the operator of a motor vehicle when encountering one of these vulnerable road users. In addition, an operator of a motor vehicle is already subject to penalties when he or she is at fault for causing a collision or operating recklessly, whether it is against a ‘vulnerable user’ or not.”

And here's a bit of what Leslie told me yesterday when she submitted the Open Records Request:

...Attached is an Open Records Request that I hand delivered to the Gov’s general council this morning. He has ten days to respond. Several veteran reporters are “intrigued”, and curious as hell as to why this veto on SB 488 happened, as we all agree that it makes absolutely no sense, and serves no purpose for the Governor. With the answers to this request, I believe we should then hold a press conference/rally when session is back in, and call Perry out on it. We can invite Kay Bailey, and other vested politicians to attend, and definitely get the press out there. I’ll keep you posted. I am determined to keep the momentum, and demonstrate to these elected officials that the cycling community is united, and well organized, and we WILL tilt the votes in the upcoming primary.

This morning walking into work, I heard from a lot of disillusioned mechanics, some who have jumped into advocacy and participated in our civil process for the first time. Their instinct is to retreat back to the “why vote-it makes no difference” mentality. I do not want to lose those guys. They provide a perspective that only adds to our cycling community.

I’m angry as hell, and I’m not going to sit back and let this veto leave our memories.

Leslie, you're my hero! Seriously, I already have a wall of shame, but now you're making me want to put together a hall of bicycle superheroes or something to feature all the excellent bicycle advocates we're lucky enough to count amongst our ranks. You're one of them, Leslie, and I really appreciate all the work you do.

Thanks for covering this Jason, and thanks for the heads-up Glenn! The fact that Leslie's actions are already getting some recognition on the interwebz is encouraging; I eagerly await her findings. The ten day clock started ticking yesterday so we shouldn't have to wait long. Stay tuned here or on the Bicycle Sport Shop blog (Leslie's home turf) for all the latest on this still-developing story.