Members of Congress Propose a New Bill to Regulate Autonomous Vehicles
This week, U.S. Representatives Bob Latta and Debbie Dingell released the discussion draft of a new bill: the Safely Ensuring Lives Future Deployment and Research in Vehicle Evolution (SELF DRIVE) Act of 2026. This legislation, if enacted, would be the first federal statute dedicated to the safety of autonomous vehicles. It would have major implications for not only federal, but also state and local regulation. It would also raise some key legal questions and require federal regulators to promulgate a new federal motor vehicle safety standard very different from any of its predecessors. (more…)
The State of Play in California for Autonomous Vehicles
More autonomous vehicles are operating in California than anywhere else in America. And yet California has some of the most extensive autonomous regulations in the country. While some other states have taken a relatively laissez-faire approach to autonomous vehicles, California’s rules are lengthy and elaborate. Even as various operators have been able to work through the requirements to operate in the state, they have been a major lift. And autonomous heavy trucking has been entirely prohibited. (more…)
NHTSA Delays Implementing Updates to the Five-Star Safety Ratings Program (NCAP)
On September 22, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a notice delaying by one year the upcoming implementation date for two recent updates to the agency’s New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). This change illustrates NCAP’s continuing importance to manufacturers and NHTSA’s recent willingness to push back the compliance dates of completed rulemakings. (more…)
Deregulatory Announcements at the U.S. Department of Transportation: A Sign of Bigger Things to Come?
On May 29, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced more than 50 deregulatory actions at the three operating administrations of the department that focus on road transportation: the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The Secretary of Transportation was quoted as saying, “my department is slashing duplicative and outdated regulations that are unnecessarily burdensome, waste taxpayer dollars, and fail to ensure safety.”
NHTSA Adopts Rule Requiring Automatic Emergency Braking on Light Vehicles
On May 9, 2024, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) published a final rule adopting a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) that requires automatic emergency braking (AEB) systems in U.S. light vehicles and trucks by September 2029. The rule is required under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021 (BIL), in which Congress directed NHTSA to establish FMVSS requirements for AEB systems as well as three other Level 2 advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS): lane departure warnings, lane-keeping assist, and forward collision warnings (FCW).
