U.S. Legislative Issues

 

Four major players in the right to repair debate have reached an agreement on terms that will have the effect of expanding a recently passed Massachusetts law across the country. The Memorandum of Understanding is signed by the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, the Association of Global Automakers, the Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA), and the Coalition for Automotive Repair Equality (CARE). The MOU is intended to give independent and private repair shops the same access to the "information, tools and software needed to service late model computer controlled vehicles" that franchised dealerships currently receive from automakers. In return, the AAIA and CARE agree not to support right to repair legislation in any other states until at least 2018.


The automobile manufacturing industry is raising concerns about strict fuel economy and greenhouse gas emission standards established by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Auto makers claim that the falling price of gasoline is causing consumer demand for more fuel efficient models to fall, and as a result they will be unable to meet their targets on costlier zero emission vehicles (ZEVs), hybrids, and more fuel efficient vehicles. In 2012, auto makers agreed with government regulators to produce fleets that average 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025. Environmentalists claim that the auto makers are trying to lay the groundwork to have the standards reversed.


A report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) criticizes the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program. The report claims that CSA is not an instructive predictor of crash risk, and is not effective in assessing the safety performance of individual motor carriers. The American Trucking Association echoed these criticisms, saying that the Safety Measurement System (SMS) scores produced by the CSA program are often unreliable. The FMCSA shot back, releasing a study of their own that demonstrates the CSA program is much more accurate than the system it replaced in 2010, and that the agency "uses a strategic, data-driven approach to identify and prioritize high-risk carriers for investigations."


The Department of Transportation has announced plans to expand the use of vehicle-to-vehicle technology that the Department claims would reduce 4 out of 5 crashes that do not involve an impaired driver. These features include warning drivers to slow down, to break, and not to change lanes. Auto makers are largely on board, and have said that the technology would only add between $100 and $300 to the cost of a new vehicle. In the coming weeks, NHTSA will release a report based on a yearlong pilot program in Ann Arbor, MI that includes several key areas of the technology, including feasibility, privacy, and security, and the Department plans to enact a final rule before the current administration leaves office in January 2017.


Congressman Bill Shuster, the chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, rejected the idea of raising the nation’s gasoline tax to support the Highway Trust Fund at an event hosted by the group Building America’s Future. Chairman Shuster expressed concern that a gas tax increase at this time was not an economically sound idea, adding that there did not currently appear to be enough support for the idea in Congress. The Highway Trust Fund, which uses the money collected from the gasoline and diesel tax to pay for highway infrastructure across the country, is set to run dry this fall. Chairman Shuster went on to say that he supports the idea of other user fees to return the Highway Trust Fund to solvency, including a vehicle miles travelled (VMT) tax. While Chairman Shuster will be a major force in shaping the transportation bill expected to be produced by Congress this summer, deciding which mechanisms to use in funding the bill are the responsibility of the House Ways and Means Committee.


Two Congressmen, Jared Huffman of California and Gerald E. Connolly of Virginia, have introduced a bill that aims to modernize the fleet of the United States Postal Service. The Bill, HR 3963, would allow the use of Energy Savings Performance Contracts, or ESPCs, in the purchasing of new, more fuel efficient vehicles. These specialized contracts, which are already utilized by other federal agencies for infrastructure improvements, would allow the repayment of a loan over a longer period of time, using the anticipated savings from lower energy expenditures. HR 3963 has been referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, as well as the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.


On February 12, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released a proposal to create a national clearinghouse of all commercial truck and bus drivers who violate federal drug and alcohol regulations. The proposal would require employers to check the database before hiring a new driver, and check all employed drivers annually. In a statement, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said "proposal will help ensure dangerous drivers stay off the road, while encouraging the employment of the many safe drivers who follow our drug and alcohol requirements."