After a year of record recalls and a number of well-publicized fatalities, federal regulators and lawmakers alike apparently are ready to commit to what the head of the U.S. Department of Transportation is calling “much more muscular” enforcement.
And in a politically polarized Washington getting ready for a long presidential campaign, the issue of auto safety is spurring some unusual agreement across the aisle. That said, proposals from the Democratic and Republican camps appear to be taking very different approaches to solving the problem.
Calling for “much more muscular” enforcement, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx this week said that under new leadership, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is “going to be pretty rigorous,” emphasizing that “If companies fall short, they are going to hear from us.”
NHTSA’s new Administrator Mark Rosekind made that clear in a hearing on July 3rd called to examine a series of safety lapses by Fiat Chrysler. The maker could be facing fines reaching into the $100s of millions due to its handling of nearly two dozen recalls.
NHTSA itself has taken heat, however, for its own lapses, including its failure to uncover both the deadly Takata airbag problem and the General Motors ignition switch defect now linked to at least 120 deaths. A federal audit of the agency found problems that “resulted in significant safety concerns being overlooked.”
“If the recent rash of recalls tells us anything, it’s that we must do a much better job of protecting the driving public while holding automakers and regulators more accountable,” said Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., the ranking member of the Commerce Committee. “As we try to find a way forward on a comprehensive highway bill, enacting these critical safety reforms should be a top priority.”
But how to specifically respond to the safety problem is where the two parties diverge. The GOP on Thursday introduced a new surface transportation reauthorization bill with what has been described as “modest” auto safety reforms. Democrats went significantly further with their own new auto safety reform bill also unveiled on Thursday.
That measure would not only provide more money for NHTSA but set out heftier fines for safety lapses. And it would set new mandates in place, as well, among other things requiring the use of advanced crash avoidance technologies, and even the installation of warning lights on dashboards that would be triggered if a vehicle were to be subject to a recall.
Both bills propose steps meant to boost recall compliance rates. The Republicans want both dealers and rental car companies to notify consumers when a vehicle is brought in for service or when it is being rented. Democrats want to require that dealers automatically make repairs when a vehicle is brought in for even routine service.
To see the original article go to The Detroit Bureau.
