PIERRE - State Sen. Bill Napoli, R-Rapid City, concedes his legislation to repeal a requirement for motorcycle mufflers in South Dakota will get some attention at first.

"It is going to raise some red flags," he says.

But the record needs to be set straight before anyone jumps to conclusions, Napoli says.

Yes, he has introduced legislation that would repeal a state law forcing people to have mufflers on their motorcycles.

No, it won't mean that motorcycles can go barreling down the road with straight pipes so loud they'll make you deaf.

It turns out there are two state laws requiring motorcycles to have mufflers, and Napoli said Monday that SB68 would repeal one of them to eliminate the duplicity.

"The one that I'm repealing was put in 1967," he said. "It says no motorcycle should run without a muffler, and then in the '70s another statute was passed that says no motor vehicle would run without a muffler."

Motorcycles are motor vehicles, and there's no need to have a separate muffler law for them, Napoli explained.

"The cops don't even use it," he said.

The law Napoli wants to repeal makes it a petty offense to operate a motorcycle without a muffler, punishable by up to a $20 fine.

The other law covering mufflers for all motor vehicles provides fines up to $500 and 30 days in jail.

Another bill introduced Monday, SB70, would allow certain motorcycles to be driven without the need to get a motorcycle endorsement on a driver's license. It would apply only to bikes built before 1950 that are incapable of going more than 30 mph.