Does Congress Need to Hit the Gas on Self-Driving Car Legislation?

What’s the story?

• Representatives from the auto and tech industry are saying it’s “critically important” for Congress to pass federal legislation on autonomous vehicles. The clarion call comes a year after the House approved the Self Drive Act and with the Senate yet to pass legislation.
• As Axios reported, “this delay is set against a growing fear in Washington, Silicon Valley, and the auto industry that the U.S. will fall dangerously behind in autonomous vehicle standards and policies while China and Europe leap ahead.”

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:

• The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (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 when the bill was first introduced.

• 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. “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.

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

(Photo Credit: iStockphoto.com / metamorworks)