Civic Register
| 11.24.17

The Future Is Soon: Is Self-Driving Car Legislation Moving at the Right Speed?

Join us and tell your reps how you feel!

What’s the story?

For several years, Google, Apple, and various automakers have been developing driverless cars. Last May, a Florida man died after an accident in his self-driving Tesla Model S. Earlier this month, on its first day on the job, a driverless shuttle in Las Vegas was involved in a crash – the human driver of the semi that hit it got ticketed.

There are issues which once seemed like science fiction that we, and the government, will soon have to confront — and legislate. The colonization of Mars. Cryptocurrency taxation. AI rights. Some issues are barreling down on us faster than others. And one of these issues has robots behind the wheel. Is it about time for self-driving cars? Or should we pump the brakes?

It depends on who you ask.

The History of the Future

Though Silicon Valley has been testing self-driving vehicles on public roads since 2010, Washington had remained largely quiet about software-operated autos. It wasn’t until September 2016 that the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released a set of guidelines for autonomous vehicles. These non-binding recommendations included a 15-point safety assessment and a request for states to develop a uniform policy.

But then, in the autumn of 2017, Congress seemed to shift from zero to sixty.

The SELF DRIVE Act

In September 2017, the House passed the Safely Ensuring Lives Future Deployment and Research In Vehicle Evolution (SELF DRIVE) Act. This bill – which passed by a two-thirds majority – would clarify the federal role in ensuring the safety of "highly automated vehicles" (HAVs aka self-driving cars). Some of these include:

  • NHTSA would be responsible for regulating the safety of the design, construction, and performance of self-driving cars

  • NHTSA would also have expanded access to safety data for future updates

  • Manufacturers would be required to comply with cybersecurity plans or face civil penalties

  • States would continue to control vehicle registration, licensing, driving education and training, insurance, crash investigations, safety & emissions inspections, and traffic laws & regulations.

  • The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would cost $10 million over the 2018-2022 period.

The AV START Act

At the same time the House was passing its bill, the Senate was introducing the American Vision for Safer Transportation through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies (AV START) Act. Building on the SELF DRIVE Act, some highlights of the Senate’s AV Start Act include:

  • Prior to testing or deployment of a self-driving vehicle, manufacturers would be required to submit safety evaluation reports to the Secretary of Transportation with information on safety, crashworthiness, and cybersecurity through documented testing

  • Requires manufacturers ensure all self-driving vehicles account for state and local traffic laws

  • Maintains existing Department of Transportation authority for advancing automated commercial truck and bus technology in the future.

  • Advances guidelines on responsible consumer education and marketing — including the capabilities and limitations of advanced driver assistance systems and self-driving vehicles

  • Improves mobility for Americans with disabilities by preventing the denial of a license to operate a self-driving vehicle on the basis of a disability

  • The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated that the legislation would cost the federal government $22 million to implement over the 2018-2022 period

Head To Head Collision

Representatives of the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Consumers Union, the Consumer Federation of America and other groups have criticized the Senate bill, saying it was written to benefit the car industry over consumers.

"These vehicles will be equipped with unproven technologies and sold to unsuspecting consumers," Jackie Gillan, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, told reporters.

As the Washington Post explained, safety advocates are concerned that the AV Start Act "would allow manufacturers to sell thousands of vehicles that would be exempt from current safety standards, including…crashworthiness." These advocates also expressed concerns that the bill “shields manufacturers from civil liability” and “fails to address issues such as cybersecurity to keep autonomous vehicles safe from hackers.”

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers (AAM) – which represents a number of the automakers developing self-driving cars – pushed back. They issued a statement saying the AV Start Act in no way diminishes the regulatory oversight of the NHTSA.

"Given that human error contributes to nine out of ten crashes, taking steps to further advance self-driving technologies right now is critical to enhancing future roadway safety and expanding mobility to under-served populations," AAM spokesman Wade Newton said in an email. “Not taking action now could potentially delay life-saving technologies.”

State or Federal Issue?

Safety advocates also expressed concerns that the Senate bill "preempts states from taking independent regulatory action."

Presently, driverless cars are a state issue: California, Nevada, Michigan, and fifteen other states have passed their own, unique, legislation. Arizona, for instance, only requires standard vehicle registration; New York requires all robocars to have police escorts.

Taken together, Congress’ proposals prioritize "preemption" – basically, Washington wants to dismantle the patchwork of state laws and create federal legislation.

Silicon Valley would experience the worst whiplash. Since Google began experimenting with driverless cars seven years ago, The Golden State has been passing and reworking robocar legislation. Working with companies like Apple and Tesla, California has crafted policies that ensure public safety but also allow for innovation.

For example, under current law, California robocar companies are required to submit public data on what their cars are up to, including reports about accidents. If Washington takes over, this data would instead go to federal regulators, and it’s unknown whether they’d release it to the public.

In 1936, Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis observed that each state "may, if its citizens choose, serve as a laboratory" of democracy. Should each state also be allowed to serve as a laboratory of technology?

Dept. of…

There’s also the question of which department would do the regulating. Currently, the Dept. of Transportation regulates how vehicles are built (seat belts, airbags, etc.), but states regulate the cars’ operation (like insurance and traffic laws).

When it comes to self-driving cars, however, how the car is designed governs how it’s operated. (Where’s the steering wheel? Does it still need to be a wheel? Could it be a joystick? Is a steering wheel needed at all?)

States – and the companies within them - want the freedom to test which designs, and operations, are ideal. The present regulatory structure may not work for a future technology.

What do you think?

Do you support the AV START Act? What about the SELF DRIVE Act? Should driverless cars be a state or federal issue? Do new technologies require new departments? Hit Take Action, tell your reps, then share your thoughts below.

— Josh Herman

Related Reading

(Photo Credit: Who Should Regulate…, Would you feel safe…: chombosan / iStockphoto)

(Photo Credit: When self-driving cars become sentient… : Menno van Dijk / iStockphoto)