U.S. Legislative Issues
Senators Push for Expanded Takata Airbag Recall
In light of an incident involving a 2015 model year Volkswagen Tiguan in which the side airbag ruptured in a way that could have been lethal, Sens. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) and Ed Markey (D-MA) are insisting that every vehicle with a Takata airbag be subject to recall. This latest incident highlights two troubling developments – first, it involved a new model car; and second, it involved a side airbag. Previously, recalls mostly impacted older model vehicles with prolonged exposure to extremely humid conditions. They also mostly involved driver front airbags.
In a letter sent to Takata, the maker of the airbags, the Senators stressed their concerns over what they call the "obfuscation and delay that the company has engaged in while searching for a root cause of these defects." In addition to asking that Takata voluntarily recall all vehicles containing their airbags, the lawmakers also urged the company to immediately make public, on an ongoing basis, "any and all data related to the testing of Takata’s airbags, so that it can be reviewed by independent experts and analysts." Blumenthal and Markey also expressed their disappointment over Takata’s refusal to establish a victim’s compensation fund, arguing that in doing so, the company is "apparently unwilling to acknowledge its responsibility for these tragic deaths and injuries or do justice for victims and their loved ones."
Takata’s defective airbags have been linked to at least eight deaths and more than one-hundred injuries in the U.S. Earlier this year, NHTSA announced the recall of over 30 million vehicles due to the faulty airbags, representing the largest recall in U.S. history.
States Ask NHTSA for Increased Assistance for Inspection Programs
According to a new report released by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), state officials say they would like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to provide more information about new vehicle technologies so they can operate better inspection programs. Currently, there is no designated communication channel for NHTSA to share information with state officials who run inspection programs. State officials told GAO that inspections help identify vehicles with safety problems and result in repair or removal of unsafe vehicles from the roads. Specifically, state officials said they would like more information on technologies such as light-emitting diode (LED) brake lights and tire pressure monitoring systems required by NHTSA for new vehicles.
Without information, states have implemented different inspection pass-fail criteria or chosen not to include new technologies in their inspections which could potentially jeopardize the safety benefit of their programs. NHTSA officials said they have adopted a hands-off approach to state vehicle inspections because the agency had opted to devote its resources to areas that contribute more heavily to crashes, such as driver behavior. Upon review of this report, however, NHTSA agreed with the GAO’s recommendation to improve communication with state officials on vehicle safety issues to improve the effectiveness of their inspection programs.
NAFA Presents Testimony on Truck Emissions at EPA-NHTSA Field Hearing
In June 2015, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released their proposal for a second round of regulations to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve fuel efficiency for medium- and heavy-duty trucks. Separate standards have been proposed for engines and trucks, much to the dismay of some OEMs which had been pushing for a single vehicle standard they say would better reward integration.
The proposed rules, which call for reductions of up to 24 percent in CO2 emissions and fuel consumption for trucks starting in 2021 and 8 percent for trailers in 2018, will involve significant upfront costs in new equipment and technology. They are expected to result in an overall fuel economy improvement of about 35 percent over the Phase 1 rules, though states and environmentalists say this falls short of what is achievable by some currently available technologies.
On August 18, 2015, NHTSA and the EPA held a field hearing in Long Beach, California to solicit feedback on the proposal from a host of stakeholders, including fleet managers, transportation industry groups, environmental advocates, air quality regulators, and community leaders.
A majority of the speakers voiced support for the new standards in their testimony, with several industry leaders praising the long-term effects of reduced fuel costs. Speakers differed, however, on the details and over how the standards should be implemented. Some called for the inclusion of financial incentives and an achievable timeline for reaching the new standards, while asking for some technical clarifications and emphasizing the need for a consistent approach to the rules nationwide.
Environmental advocates and regulators called for earlier deadlines, more ambitious goals for reducing fuel consumption and emissions, as well as a stronger emphasis on cleaner, hybrid or fuel cell technologies. Conversely, commercial fleet operators and truck and engines manufacturers urged the EPA to retain the proposed emissions reductions and implementation schedule. A General Motors representative said that while the EPA's proposal will drive technological innovation, it is also in effect more stringent that it appears, and warned that attempting to accelerate the implementation schedule would be economically harmful. Dan Kieffer, on behalf of truck maker PACCAR and other integrated manufacturers, also criticized EPA's "unrealistic" technology penetration rates, and said these companies cannot support an accelerated implementation schedule. An "unnecessarily stringent engine standard will only exacerbate today's trend of delaying new vehicle purchases," Kieffer said.
NAFA member and Fleet Manager for Gothic Landscape, Chris Williams, attended the hearing and presented testimony on behalf of NAFA. In his comments, Williams acknowledged that despite NAFA’s reservations, the Phase 2 Standards are consistent with NAFA’s support for federal policies that promote vehicle efficiency, while reducing emissions and fuel use. While supportive, NAFA’s testimony requested that EPA and NHTSA consider the following three requests - the proposed Phase 2 standards must be affordable, must not compromise performance, and must recognize the diverse needs of companies and agencies that depend on vocational vehicles and heavy duty pickups.
Written comments on the proposed new rules are due to the EPA and NHTSA by September 17. NAFA is currently in the process of finalizing its comments for submission.
