National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 2022 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This document grants in full the Mazda Motor Corporation (Mazda) petition for exemption from the Federal Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention Standard (theft prevention standard) for its confidential vehicle line beginning in model year (MY) 2024. The petition is granted because the agency has determined that the antitheft device to be placed on the line as standard equipment is likely to be as effective in reducing and deterring motor vehicle theft as compliance with the parts-marking requirements of the theft prevention standard. Mazda also requested confidential treatment for specific information in its petition. Therefore, no confidential information provided for purposes of this notice has been disclosed.

Hercules Tire & Rubber Company, (Hercules), has determined that certain Hercules Power ST2 radial trailer tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 119, New Pneumatic Tires for Motor Vehicles with a GVWR of More Than 4,536 Kilograms (10,000 Pounds), Specialty Tires, and Tires for Motorcycles. Hercules filed an original noncompliance report dated December 9, 2021, and amended the report on December 14, 2021, and March 9, 2022. Hercules petitioned NHTSA on December 16, 2021, and amended the petition on March 9, 2022, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document announces receipt of Hercules's petition.

Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) has determined that certain model year (MY) 2011-2021 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner HDX school buses do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 222, School Bus Passenger Seating and Crash Protection. DTNA filed a noncompliance report dated December 17, 2019, and later amended the report on January 16, 2020. DTNA subsequently petitioned NHTSA on January 16, 2020, (DTNA incorrectly dated their petition January 16, 2019) for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document announces and explains the denial of DTNA's petition.

This final rule amends the occupant protection Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSSs) to account for future vehicles that do not have the traditional manual controls associated with a human driver because they are equipped with Automated Driving Systems (ADS). This final rule makes clear that, despite their innovative designs, vehicles with ADS technology must continue to provide the same high levels of occupant protection that current passenger vehicles provide. The occupant protection standards are currently written for traditionally designed vehicles and use terms such as ``driver's seat'' and ``steering wheel,'' that are not meaningful to vehicle designs that, for example, lack a steering wheel or other driver controls. This final rule updates the standards in a manner that clarifies existing terminology while avoiding unnecessary terminology, and, in doing so, resolves ambiguities in applying the standards to ADS-equipped vehicles without traditional manual controls. In addition, this final rule amends the standards in a manner that maintains the existing regulatory text whenever possible, to make clear that this rule maintains the level of crash protection currently provided occupants in more traditionally designed vehicles. This final rule is limited to the crashworthiness standards to provide a unified set of regulatory text applicable to vehicles with and without ADS functionality.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) invites public comments about our intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a new information collection. Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatement of previously approved collections. This document describes a collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval on an evaluation of the Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC) program.

This notice sets forth the reasons for the denial of a petition submitted on August 7, 2018, by Mr. Gary Weinreich (the petitioner) to NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). The petition requests that the Agency investigate alleged ``premature and excessive frame corrosion'' in model year (MY) 2002 through 2006 Toyota 4Runner vehicles. The petitioner bases his request upon his own experience with a MY 2005 Toyota 4Runner, a class action lawsuit settlement involving other Toyota products, and other complaints of underbody corrosion in Toyota 4Runner vehicles that he found in NHTSA's online complaint database. After reviewing the information provided by the petitioner regarding his vehicle, facts related to the class action lawsuit cited by the petitioner, and field data regarding underbody corrosion in Toyota 4Runner vehicles, NHTSA has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to pursue further action. Accordingly, the Agency has denied the petition.

This final rule provides the statutorily-prescribed 2022 adjustment to civil penalty amounts that may be imposed for violations of certain DOT regulations. In addition, this rule notes new DOT civil penalties authority provided in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL, enacted as the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act).

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) summarized below has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of the information collections and their expected burden. The Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period for approval of a reinstatement of this previously approved information collection was published on August 20, 2020. The agency received no comments.

This final rule amends NHTSA's regulations regarding exemptions to the make inoperative prohibition to accommodate disabilities to include new exemptions relating to the Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS) for roof crush resistance, rear visibility, and air bags. The air bag provision permits rental car companies to make inoperative a knee bolster air bag, on a temporary basis, to permit the temporary installation of hand controls to accommodate persons with physical disabilities seeking to rent the vehicle. We have drafted this rule to facilitate the mobility of drivers and passengers with physical disabilities in a manner that balances safety and accessibility. This rulemaking responds to a petition for rulemaking from the National Mobility Equipment Dealers Association and from Bruno Independent Living Aids, Inc., and to an inquiry from Enterprise Holdings Co.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), this notice announces the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below has been forwarded to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden. The proposed new collection of information supports research addressing safety-related aspects of drivers' use of camera-based rear visibility systems intended to serve as a replacement for traditional outside rearview mirrors. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on August 28, 2019. NHTSA received 22 public comments submitted online and one additional comment submitted via email. A second Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on May 24, 2021. NHTSA received 1,891 unique public comments. A summary of the comments and the changes NHTSA made in response to those comments is provided below.

Cooper Tire & Rubber Company (Cooper Tire) has determined that certain Cooper Discoverer AT3 tubeless radial light truck tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for Light Vehicles. Cooper Tire filed a noncompliance report dated July 6, 2020. Cooper subsequently petitioned NHTSA on July 31, 2020, and supplemented its petition on May 28, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces receipt of Cooper Tire's petition.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden. This is a request for approval for reinstatement of a previously-approved collection of information for NHTSA's Highway Grant Program, which includes State Highway Safety Program grants, the National Priority Safety Program grants, and a separate grant on racial profiling data collection. The purpose of the information collection is to collect information necessary for NHTSA to issue grants to States. To receive grants, a State must submit a Highway Safety Plan (HSP) that supports its qualifications for receiving grant funds. Specifically, the HSP consists of information on the highway safety planning process, performance report, performance plan, problem identification, highway safety countermeasure strategies, planned activities and funding amounts, certifications and assurances, and application materials that cover Section 405 grants and the reauthorized Section 1906 grant. A Federal Register Notice with a 60- day comment period soliciting comments on the following information collection was published on February 9, 2021. NHTSA received three comments. A summary of the comments and NHTSA's response to those comments is provided below.

This document grants in full the North American Subaru, Inc.'s (Subaru) petition for exemption from the Federal Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention Standard (theft prevention standard) for its BRZ vehicle line beginning in model year (MY) 2023. The petition is granted because the agency has determined that the antitheft device to be placed on the line as standard equipment is likely to be as effective in reducing and deterring motor vehicle theft as compliance with the parts-marking requirements of the theft prevention standard. Subaru also requested confidential treatment for specific information in its petition. Therefore, no confidential information provided for purposes of this notice has been disclosed.

NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) provides comparative information on the safety performance of new vehicles to assist consumers with vehicle purchasing decisions and to encourage safety improvements. In addition to star ratings for crash protection and rollover resistance, the NCAP program recommends particular advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) technologies and identifies the vehicles in the marketplace that offer the systems that pass NCAP performance test criteria for those systems. This notice proposes significant upgrades to NCAP, first, by proposing to add four more ADAS technologies to those NHTSA currently recommends. The new technologies are blind spot detection, blind spot intervention, lane keeping support, and pedestrian automatic emergency braking. Other plans on updating NCAP are discussed in the Supplementary Information.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) invites public comments about our intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a new information collection. Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatement of previously approved collections. This document describes a collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval to conduct an experiment to gather both objective and subjective data regarding occupant/passenger seat preference in Automated Driving System- Dedicated Vehicles (ADS-DVs).

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration invites public comments about our intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to reinstate a previously approved information collection with modification. Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatements of previously approved collections. This document describes a collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval on Vehicle Owner's Manual Requirements for Motor Vehicles and Motor Vehicle Equipment. NHTSA is requesting a modification of the information collection to include regulatory changes made by NHTSA's Adaptive Driving Beam Headlamps final rule. NHTSA is also requesting modification to include requirements for owner's manuals in NHTSA's existing regulations.

This document amends NHTSA's lighting standard to permit the certification of adaptive driving beam (ADB) headlamps. ADB headlamps utilize technology that actively modifies a vehicle's headlamp beams to provide more illumination while not glaring other vehicles. The requirements adopted today are intended to amend the lighting standard to permit this technology and establish performance requirements for these systems to ensure that they operate safely. ADB has the potential to reduce the risk of crashes by increasing visibility without increasing glare. The agency initiated this rulemaking in response to a petition for rulemaking from Toyota Motor North America, Inc.

This final rule amends the visual inspection labeling requirement in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 304, ``Compressed natural gas fuel container integrity,'' by modifying the periodic inspection interval for compressed natural gas (CNG) fuel containers installed on vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 4,536 kilograms (10,000 pounds). The inspection interval for these vehicles is modified from the currently-specified interval, ``at least every 36 months or 36,000 miles, whichever comes first,'' to ``at least every 12 months.'' For commercial operators of CNG heavy vehicles that often travel 100,000 miles per year or more, this change will eliminate the need to perform unnecessary multiple visual inspections of their vehicles' CNG fuel containers per year. NHTSA believes this final rule is equally protective of safety as the cadence of inspection required by the current rule. This rulemaking commenced in response to petitions for rulemaking from the American Trucking Associations and Natural Gas Vehicles for America.

This notice announces a meeting of the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council (NEMSAC).

Hankook Tire America Corp. (Hankook) has determined that certain Hankook Ventus S1 Noble2 passenger car tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for Light Vehicles, and part 574, Tire Identification and Recordkeeping. Hankook filed a noncompliance report dated April 23, 2020. Hankook subsequently petitioned NHTSA on May 19, 2020, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces the grant of Hankook's petition.

This notice announces that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) will be postponing the workshop originally scheduled for January 27, 2022. The workshop was intended to present three new compliance reporting templates for the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) Program. The workshop will be rescheduled for later this year.

Toyota Motor North America, Inc. (TMNA) on behalf of Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) (collectively referred to as ``Toyota'') has determined that certain replacement seat belt assemblies manufactured by Marutaka, Tokai Rika Japan, Autoliv, NSK, Joyson Safety Systems Acquisition, TRQSS, Key Safety Restraint Systems, Inc., Tokai Rika Czech, BMW Group Headquarters, Subaru Corporation, and Mazda North America Operations, and sold to Toyota dealerships as replacement equipment do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 209, Seat Belt Assemblies. Toyota filed three noncompliance reports, two dated April 20, 2021, and the other dated May 4, 2021. Toyota subsequently submitted two petitions to NHTSA both dated May 14, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliances are inconsequential as they relate to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces receipt of Toyota's petitions.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) invites public comments about our intention to request approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for extension with modification of a currently approved information collection. Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from the public, it must receive approval from OMB. Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit public comment on proposed collections of information, including extensions and reinstatement of previously approved collections. This document describes a collection of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval on NHTSA's Investigation-Based Crash Data Studies: Crash Investigation Sampling System (CISS), Special Crash Investigation (SCI) and Special Study Data Collection.

Toyota Motor North America, Inc. (Toyota) has determined that certain Model Year (MY) 2013-2019 Toyota RAV4 and MY 2014-2019 Toyota Highlander/Highlander HV motor vehicles do not fully comply with S4 of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 302, Flammability of Interior Materials. Toyota filed a noncompliance report dated June 19, 2019, and subsequently petitioned NHTSA on July 12, 2019, and later amended that petition on August 13, 2019, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces the grant of Toyota's petition.

BMW of North America, LLC (BMW), a subsidiary of BMW AG, has determined that certain model year (MY) 2019 BMW F750 GS and F850 GS motorcycles do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 205, Glazing Materials. BMW filed a noncompliance report dated October 19, 2018. BMW subsequently petitioned NHTSA on October 29, 2018, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document announces the grant of BMW's petition.