(a)(1) No person shall be required to register a bicycle in the District of Columbia.

(2) A person wishing to register a bicycle to permit the Metropolitan Police Department to track or locate the bicycle if it becomes lost or stolen may do so through the National Bike Registry or a District bicycle registry established by the Mayor in accordance with this section.

(b)(1) The Mayor may establish, through rulemaking, another bicycle registry to serve as a supplement to or replacement for the National Bike Registry.

(2) Any bicycle registry established by the Mayor shall be web-based and easily utilized by any bicycle purchaser or owner, or law enforcement official.

(c)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the Metropolitan Police Department shall check the identification number of any bicycle recovered by the Metropolitan Police Department against the National Bike Registry and any other bicycle registry established by the Mayor, and shall notify the registered owner of a recovered bicycle.

(2) If the Mayor replaces the National Bike Registry with another bicycle registry pursuant to subsection (b)(1) of this section, the Metropolitan Police Department shall be required to check the identification number of any bicycle recovered by the Metropolitan Police only against the registry established by the Mayor.

(d) As of June 1, 2008, a person regularly engaged in the business of selling bicycles shall inform each purchaser, in writing, how to voluntarily register the purchaser’s bicycle in accordance with this section. For the purposes of this subsection, the term “bicycle” shall exclude tricycles.

(e) The Mayor, pursuant to subchapter I of Chapter 5 of Title 2, may issue rules to implement the provisions of this section.

(Mar. 16, 1985, D.C. Law 5-179, § 201; as added May 1, 2008, D.C. Law 17-149, § 2(c), 55 DCR 1272.)