No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section applies the definitions in 49 U.S.C. 30102(a) to this Act and defines additional terms used in the Act, including "Administration" and "Administrator" (i.e., National Highway Traffic Safety Administration); "ADS-equipped vehicle" (i.e., a motor vehicle with an automated driving system); "automated driving system" (i.e., hardware and software capable of performing the entire dynamic driving task on a sustained basis, limited to SAE Levels 3, 4, or 5 automation); "dynamic driving task" (i.e., real-time operational and tactical driving functions, including steering, acceleration, monitoring, and maneuver planning); "New Car Assessment Program (NCAP)"; "passenger motor vehicle" (as defined in 49 U.S.C. 32101); "relevant congressional committees" (i.e., House Energy and Commerce Committee and Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee); and "Secretary" (i.e., of Transportation). It incorporates SAE International's April 2021 J3016 definitions for automation Levels 1-5.
This section requires the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to develop and regularly update a comprehensive motor vehicle safety rulemaking and research priority plan. The plan must identify (1) all planned motor vehicle safety rulemakings over the subsequent 36 months, including statutory authority or deadlines, research status with public links, relevance to the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), available performance test criteria, and rulemaking milestones; (2) anticipated research priorities over the subsequent 36 months, including objectives (and supported rulemakings), NCAP data, and milestones; (3) except for the initial plan, a comparison to the prior plan; and (4) any congressional mandates for rulemakings not included in the plan, with completion timelines. Not later than two years after enactment of this Act and every two years thereafter, NHTSA must submit the plan to relevant congressional committees and publish it on its website. If NHTSA fails to meet a submission or publication deadline, it must submit a report to the committees within 30 days explaining the reasons and providing an updated timeline.
This section establishes the Office of the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP Office) within the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), led by an Associate Administrator with motor vehicle safety expertise. The Associate Administrator must (1) advise the NHTSA Administrator on NCAP functions; (2) administer NCAP; (3) establish roadmaps for NCAP implementation; (4) create a process for reporting voluntary manufacturer performance test results; (5) conduct consumer education activities; (6) engage stakeholders including the NCAP Advisory Committee; (7) evaluate and determine inclusion of new passenger motor vehicle safety technologies in NCAP; and (8) perform other duties as directed. This section amends 49 U.S.C. 32310, which governs NCAP planning and ratings (i.e., NHTSA's crash testing program that provides 5-star safety ratings to inform consumer vehicle purchases), as follows: (1) requires NCAP roadmaps every 3 years (from every 4 years); (2) transfers responsibilities from the Secretary of Transportation to the Associate Administrator, in consultation with the NCAP Advisory Committee; and (3) adds definitions for Associate Administrator and NCAP Advisory Committee. This section directs the Associate Administrator to establish, not later than 1 year after enactment, a voluntary process for manufacturers to test and report passenger motor vehicle performance results. It further requires consumer education activities to promote NCAP information and vehicle safety technologies, including through media campaigns, websites, and partnerships, with biennial reports to congressional committees on expenditures, audiences, and metrics beginning 2 years after enactment. This section establishes a 18-member NCAP Advisory Committee not later than 180 days after enactment to advise on NCAP Office functions, with members appointed by the NHTSA Administrator including representatives from consumer safety organizations, institutions of higher education (as defined in 20 U.S.C. 1002) with motor vehicle safety expertise, passenger motor vehicle and equipment manufacturers, technology providers, insurers, state highway safety offices, public health/data science/human factors experts, disability advocates, and motor vehicle crash victim representatives. Committee members serve initial terms of 4 years (or until a successor is appointed).
This section requires the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to review all motor vehicle safety standards under 49 U.S.C. chapter 301—which prescribe minimum safety performance requirements for motor vehicles and equipment—not later than one year after enactment and every four years thereafter, to determine whether any should be revised or eliminated. In conducting each review, the Administrator must consider (1) the standard's effectiveness in achieving the purposes of chapter 301 (i.e., reducing traffic accidents, deaths, and injuries), (2) related safety data and evidence, (3) advances in motor vehicle technology, (4) manufacturer costs, (5) changes in related technical standards, and (6) international policy developments; solicit public feedback through a request for information and public comments on responses; and ensure any revision or elimination is consistent with motor vehicle safety. Upon completing each review, the Administrator must submit a report on the results to relevant congressional committees and incorporate any recommendations into the first NHTSA priority plan under section 3(c) submitted thereafter.
This section revises the rulemaking accountability report required under Section 24210 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act by (1) expanding the definition of covered rulemakings to those associated with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) that are carried out pursuant to MAP-21, the FAST Act, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, or the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026, or included in the most recent Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions if required by an Act of Congress; and (2) modifying report contents to require an explanation for a missed rulemaking deadline only if such deadline has passed and to include a description of substantive activities conducted, including relevant research and rulemaking milestones completed with respect to the covered rulemaking.
This section directs the Administrator to update agency procedures for (1) rulemakings and (2) reporting requirements related to motor vehicle safety to ensure the use of recognized project schedule management practices and adherence to applicable federal standards for such practices. The section further requires the Comptroller General of the United States to conduct a study assessing the Administrator's implementation of these requirements and submit a report on the study to the relevant congressional committees not later than five years after the date of enactment.
This section revises the process for temporary exemptions from federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS) and bumper standards under 49 U.S.C. 30113, which allows the Secretary of Transportation to exempt vehicles for manufacturers facing economic hardship, developing new safety features, producing low-emission vehicles, or offering equivalent overall safety, as follows: (1) directs the Administrator to issue guidance within one year of enactment on processes, including performance-based or risk-based assessments, for demonstrating equivalent safety levels under exemption criteria for new safety features or overall equivalent safety; (2) increases the maximum number of exempt vehicles in any 12-month period to 90,000 (from 2,500); (3) revises the maximum period for an exemption or renewal to 5 years; and (4) requires a decision on complete applications within one year, with the application deemed approved if no decision issues without written justification identifying incompleteness.
This section expands a prohibition on failing to comply with the Secretary of Transportation's regulations or orders for testing and evaluation to include motor vehicle equipment (previously limited to motor vehicles).
This section directs the Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to (1) conduct a study identifying factors that result in motor vehicles subject to recalls not receiving necessary remedial service; (2) use existing authorities to address those factors and improve recall completion efforts by NHTSA, manufacturers, and third parties; and (3) submit to congressional committees an initial report on the study within one year of enactment and a final report on actions taken within four years of enactment.
This section revises motor vehicle safety recall notification procedures by (1) expanding permissible registered owner contact information provided to manufacturers beyond mailing address to include other forms; and (2) authorizing manufacturers to send required recall notices by certified mail, electronic mail, or other electronic means prescribed by regulation, except that a manufacturer must use certified mail if requested by the owner through reasonable means (as determined by the manufacturer). (Thus, these changes enable faster electronic notifications while preserving owner opt-out for certified mail.)
This section adds subsection (g) to 49 U.S.C. § 30118 to clarify manufacturer notification requirements for motor vehicle defects and noncompliance under subsection (c), as follows: (1) the notification duty applies only after the manufacturer makes the relevant good faith decision under subsection (c)(1) or (2); (2) a supplier's defect notification for original equipment is not determinative of a defect in the vehicle as delivered to the first purchaser (thus, vehicle manufacturers must independently assess vehicle-level defects); and (3) this clarification does not relieve manufacturers of their good faith decision obligation.
This section requires the Administrator to establish a working group, not later than 180 days after enactment, to facilitate consumer education efforts on automation in motor vehicles, including differences between vehicles equipped with Level 1 or Level 2 partial automation systems (i.e., driver assistance features) and automated driving system (ADS)-equipped vehicles. The working group must (1) recommend education and marketing strategies—including voluntary industry strategies—to inform the public, vehicle owners, and operators; and (2) submit a report with such recommendations to relevant congressional committees and the public not later than three years after the working group's establishment. In developing recommendations, the working group must consider vehicle capabilities and limitations, driver engagement and disengagement methods, human-machine interfaces, crash and failure responses, consistent nomenclature for automation features, and the role of the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). Membership includes representatives from manufacturers, dealers, vehicle owners and operators (e.g., fleet managers, rental companies, transportation network companies), consumers and advocacy groups, marketing professionals, consumer education entities, safety organizations, and national disability and older adults organizations; the Administrator must consult the Federal Trade Commission as appropriate and solicit public input (e.g., via requests for information); members serve without compensation; and the working group terminates upon report submission and is exempt from the Federal Advisory Committee Act.
This section directs the Administrator to seek an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine for a study on trends in the average age of passenger motor vehicles and passenger motor vehicle ownership costs. The study must analyze (1) trends in average vehicle age; (2) trends in ownership costs, including total lifecycle costs and related factors such as initial purchase price, manufacturing and supply chain matters, financing, insurance, subscriptions, power requirements (e.g., electricity, gasoline, other fuels), repair and maintenance, depreciation, and optional safety and convenience features; and (3) legal, policy, economic, and regulatory factors affecting vehicle age, ownership costs, and consumer understanding of such costs. Not later than three years after the date of enactment, the Administrator must submit a report on the study to the relevant congressional committees.
This section directs the Administrator to conduct a study on the feasibility of incorporating automated wheelchair securement systems into motor vehicles to increase the safety of wheelchair users, consulting with university transportation centers established under 49 U.S.C. 5505 (i.e., grants to nonprofit institutions of higher education to advance multimodal transportation expertise through education, research, and technology transfer). Not later than three years after the date of enactment, the Administrator must submit to the relevant congressional committees, and make publicly available, a report on the study's findings that includes a feasibility analysis. The section defines an automated wheelchair securement system as an automated system that, using a universal docking interface geometry standard, secures a wheelchair within a motor vehicle utilizing a deployable anchor.
This section directs the Administrator to conduct a study on modernizing the vehicle identification number (VIN) system—including analysis of its uses by federal agencies, state and local governments, manufacturers, law enforcement, and the insurance industry; its limitations for motor vehicle safety and regulatory compliance; and recommendations to Congress and the Administration for improvements, including with respect to motor vehicle attributes (i.e., propulsion means, automation levels 1 through 5, driver assistance technology, electrification specifications, connectivity requirements, and over-the-air update capability). In conducting the study, the Administrator must consult state motor vehicle agencies, law enforcement, emergency responders, safety organizations, consumer groups, international standards organizations, manufacturers, dealers, the insurance industry, and other stakeholders as appropriate, and submit a report to the relevant congressional committees within two years of enactment.
This section establishes the Motor Vehicle Fire Rescue Working Group not later than 180 days after enactment of the Act to provide advice and recommendations to the Secretary and Administrator on safe and efficient post-crash extraction of motor vehicle occupants. The 15-member group, appointed by the Administrator, consists of (1) 4 representatives of passenger motor vehicle manufacturers, (2) 2 representatives of national consumer motor vehicle safety organizations, (3) 4 representatives of first responder organizations (including firefighters), (4) 2 representatives of institutions of higher education (as defined in 20 U.S.C. 1002) with expertise in motor vehicle and battery safety, (5) 2 representatives of motor vehicle battery manufacturers, and (6) 1 representative of fire rescue tool manufacturers; members serve without pay but receive travel expenses and staggered initial terms of 2 or 4 years, with one reappointment possible. The group must review factors including post-crash rescue tools, motor vehicle design modifications, fuel labeling, battery fire suppression, and battery designs to minimize thermal runaway; submit a report with recommendations to relevant congressional committees within 3 years of enactment; and terminate 60 days after report submission (exempt from the Federal Advisory Committee Act).
This section provides a Paperwork Reduction Act exemption (44 U.S.C. ch. 35, subch. I) for (1) research performed by the Administrator pursuant to 49 U.S.C. §§ 30181, 30182, 30183, and 32502(g)—which authorize aspects of the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP), vehicle safety ratings, and related consumer information—and (2) solicitation of information, data, research, and evidence by the NCAP Advisory Committee (established under section 4(b)(1)) pursuant to those provisions.