PICKERINGTON, Ohio -- California and Illinois are the latest states to take stands against motorcycle-only checkpoints, the American Motorcyclist Association reports.

California's governor signed a bill into law on July 13 to ban motorcycle-only checkpoints, while Illinois' governor recently signed a bill into law that prohibits the use of federal funding for law enforcement to set up motorcycle-only traffic checkpoints.

Virginia and North Carolina also recently put laws on the books banning motorcycle-only checkpoints, and New Hampshire prohibits the use of federal dollars for them.

"Officials say they set up these motorcycle-only checkpoints to pull over motorcyclists to check for safety violations," said Wayne Allard, AMA vice president for government relations. "But if officials are really concerned about motorcyclists' safety, then they need to stop discriminating against motorcyclists with these checkpoints and start supporting programs that prevent motorcycle crashes, such as rider safety training and driver awareness programs."

The AMA opposes motorcycle-only checkpoints and has been tracking the discriminatory practice since it first appeared in New York several years ago.

For more information on the issue, go to http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/rights/motorcycleonlycheckpoints.aspx.