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

This document delays the effective date of the November 26, 2024 final rule partially granting petitions for reconsideration of a May 9, 2024 final rule that adopted Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 127, "Automatic Emergency Braking for Light Vehicles," which requires automatic emergency braking (AEB), pedestrian automatic emergency braking (PAEB), and forward collision warning (FCW) systems on all new light vehicles.

This notice sets forth the reasons for the denial of defect petition DP22-002, submitted on April 29, 2022, by Mr. Sergio Betancourt (the petitioner) to NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). The petition requests that the Agency investigate alleged "wrong-sized wrist pins" in Mercedes-Benz vehicles equipped with the M274 engine (including the Metris minivan, GLC300, and C300). After conducting a technical review of the petitioner's submissions, information provided by Mercedes-Benz in response to the Agency's Information Request, and data within its own files, NHTSA has concluded that there is insufficient evidence to warrant further action at this time. Accordingly, the Agency has denied the petition.

This document proposes a voluntary framework for the evaluation and oversight of motor vehicles equipped with automated driving systems (ADS). The ADS-equipped Vehicle Safety, Transparency, and Evaluation Program (AV STEP) would establish a national program for ADS-equipped vehicles that operate or may operate on public roads in the United States under NHTSA's oversight with the goal of improving public transparency related to the safety of certain ADS-equipped vehicles, while allowing for responsible development of this technology. This proposal includes procedures for application, participation, public reporting, and program administration. It identifies content requirements for applications, including independent assessments of ADS safety processes, such as the safety cases used and conformance to industry standards. These application requirements will inform NHTSA's decisions on terms and conditions for participation. The proposal also contains reporting requirements for participants, including periodic and event-triggered reporting.

In accordance with the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act), NHTSA is proposing to amend the means of required recall notification to include notification by electronic means, in addition to first-class mail, and proposing certain other attendant obligations related to this requirement. NHTSA is also proposing to revise certain language that is currently required for recall notifications, as well as to update certain language in the regulation and the office designation for NHTSA's Recall Management Division and NHTSA's web address.

Transamerica Tire Co. Ltd. (Transamerica) has determined that certain Transeagle ST tires manufactured by Shandong Yinbao Tyre (Yinbao) 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) and Motorcycles. Transamerica, on behalf of Yinbao, filed a noncompliance report dated November 21, 2019. Transamerica petitioned NHTSA on November 25, 2019, and amended its petition on April 22, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document announces the grant of Transamerica's petition.

This notice transmits the revised minimum performance measures that State Highway Safety Offices use in their triennial Highway Safety Plans.

This document revises the chest jacket and spine box specifications for the Hybrid III 5th Percentile Female Test Dummy (HIII-5F). The jacket revisions resolve discrepancies between the jacket specifications in subpart O and jackets available in the field, and ensure a sufficiently low level of variation between jackets fabricated by different manufacturers. The spine box revisions eliminate a source of signal noise caused by fasteners within the box that may become loose during sled or vehicle crash tests. This rulemaking responds to a petition for rulemaking from the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers.

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 Occupant Anthropometry and Seating.

Michelin North America, Inc. (MNA), has determined that certain Michelin Primacy Tour A/S replacement passenger car tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 139, New Pneumatic Radial Tires for Light Vehicles. MNA filed an original noncompliance report dated March 25, 2021, and subsequently, MNA petitioned NHTSA on April 7, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces the grant of MNA's petition.

This final rule provides the statutorily prescribed 2025 adjustment to civil penalty amounts that may be imposed for violations of certain DOT regulations.

This final rule amends regulations regarding event data recorders (EDRs) to extend the EDR recording period for timed data metrics from 5 seconds of pre-crash data at a frequency of 2 Hz to 20 seconds of pre-crash data at a frequency of 10 Hz. This final rule responds to the mandate of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) to establish the appropriate recording period in NHTSA's EDR regulation.

Michelin North America, Inc. (MNA) has determined that certain Michelin TEX T195/65R22 T-type spare tires do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 109, New Pneumatic Tires for Vehicles Manufactured from 1949 To 1975, Bias Ply Tires, and T-Type Spare Tires. MNA filed a noncompliance report dated May 1, 2024, and subsequently petitioned NHTSA (the "Agency") on May 29, 2024, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This document announces receipt of MNA's petition.

This document corrects a November 26, 2024 final rule partially granting petitions for reconsideration of a May 9, 2024, final rule that adopted Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 127, "Automatic Emergency Braking for Light Vehicles," which requires automatic emergency braking (AEB), pedestrian automatic emergency braking (PAEB), and forward collision warning (FCW) systems on all new light vehicles. This document corrects a typographical error in the amendatory instructions.

This final decision notice adds four new advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) technologiesblind spot warning (BSW), blind spot intervention (BSI), lane keeping assist (LKA), and pedestrian automatic emergency braking (PAEB)to the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) and enhances the performance evaluation of ADAS technologies currently in NCAP. The notice also finalizes a 10-year roadmap for updating NCAP through multiple phases for the period 2024 through 2033. This notice responds in part to the provisions in section 24213 of the Infrastructure, Investment, and Jobs Act.

FCA US LLC f/k/a Chrysler Group LLC (collectively referred to as "FCA US") has determined that certain model year (MY) 2018-2022 Alfa Romeo Stelvio motor vehicles do not fully comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 111, Rear Visibility. FCA US filed a noncompliance report dated September 21, 2021. FCA US subsequently petitioned NHTSA on October 14, 2021, for a decision that the subject noncompliance is inconsequential as it relates to motor vehicle safety. This notice announces receipt of FCA US' petition and amended petition.

This final decision notice adds a crashworthiness pedestrian protection program to the New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) to evaluate new model year vehicles' abilities to mitigate pedestrian injuries. Based on its previous research, NHTSA concurs with and adopts most of the European New Car Assessment Programme's (Euro NCAP) pedestrian crashworthiness assessment methods, including the injury limits for test devices and the score calculation method used for impact points. NHTSA will identify new model year vehicles meeting a certain minimum safety threshold on the Agency's website and other published literature. This notice responds in part to the provisions in Section 24213 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which requires NHTSA to incorporate measures in NCAP for evaluating the protection that new vehicles provide vulnerable road users like pedestrians.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) provides notice to the public that the Conforming Products List (CPL) maintained and updated by NHTSA for Down The Road (DTR) radar speed measuring devices will be discontinued. A new industry-based product Verification Program has been developed to confirm that DTR radar speed measuring devices conform to certain minimum specifications. The new industry-based product Verification Program will provide manufacturers the flexibility to confirm conformance with any testing entity as long as the entity can fulfill the requirements for testing and verifying device compliance with the established performance specifications, testing protocols and laboratory accreditation requirements of the industry-based Verification Program. To afford manufacturers time to transition to the new program, NHTSA will maintain the CPL for one year after the date of this notice. Under the new Verification Program, a DTR radar speed measuring device manufacturer can use an accredited testing entity to verify that its speed measuring device conforms to an established performance standard and will be placed on a verified products list maintained by the Verification Program. Please refer to the NIST website for a list of available Verification Programs: https://www.nist.gov/mml/mmsd/ security-technologies-group/down-road-dtr-radar. The new Verification Program will provide manufacturers with a proven method of demonstrating compliance to the minimum performance specifications, will empower end-users to make better purchasing decisions, and benefit manufacturers as products can quickly gain market acceptance. Accordingly, as of the date of this publication, NHTSA will no longer perform CPL processing under the Interim Administrative Guide for the Traffic Enforcement Technologies Program.

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 for a National Roadside Survey (NRS) of alcohol and other drug prevalence among drivers and other road users (ORUs; e.g., pedestrians, bicyclists, electric scooter riders, and those with mobility aids. NHTSA will conduct two studies. Study 1 will focus on drivers but include convenience sampling of ORUs passing by the driver data collection locations. Study 2 is a pilot test assessing the feasibility of an NRS specific to ORUs. Both will collect breath and oral fluid specimens, demographic information, and self-report questionnaire data on roads across the country. Participation will be voluntary and anonymous.

HOLON and HOLON U.S. Inc have petitioned NHTSA for a temporary exemption from certain requirements in seven Federal motor vehicle safety standards (FMVSS) for its "automated electric bus," which is a vehicle equipped with an Automated Driving System (ADS). Specifically, HOLON seeks exemption from portions of FMVSS No. 101, Controls and displays; FMVSS No. 102, Transmission shift position sequence, starter interlock, and transmission braking effect; FMVSS No. 104, Windshield wiping and washing systems; FMVSS No. 105, Windshield wiping and washing systems; FMVSS No. 108, Lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment; FMVSS No. 111, Rear visibility; and FMVSS No. 208, Occupant crash protection. NHTSA is publishing this document in accordance with statutory and administrative provisions and seeks comment on the merits of HOLON's exemption petition and on potential terms and conditions that should be applied to a temporary exemption if granted. After receiving and considering public comments, NHTSA will assess the merits of the petition and will publish a notice in the Federal Register notice setting forth NHTSA's reasoning for either granting or denying the petition.

Legacy Limousines and Luxury Coaches has petitioned NHTSA for a temporary exemption from the requirement to install Type 2 seat belts (i.e., shoulder belts) at side-facing locations in the company's motorcoaches. The petitioner is a final-stage manufacturer of entertainer-type motorcoaches, seeking temporary exemption from the shoulder belt requirement of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 208, "Occupant crash protection," for side-facing seats on motorcoaches. The petitioner seeks to install Type 1 seat belts (lap belt only) at side-facing seating positions, instead of the Type 2 seat belts (lap and shoulder belts) required by FMVSS No. 208. The petitioner states that, absent the requested exemption, it will otherwise be unable to sell a vehicle whose overall level of safety or impact protection is at least equal to that of a nonexempted vehicle. NHTSA is publishing this document to notify the public of the receipt of the petition and to request comment on it, in accordance with statutory and administrative provisions.

NHTSA seeks public comment on draft test procedure (TP) number TP-523-00, which is intended to assess vehicles for compliance with certain off-road capabilities requirements for vehicle classification within the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program. This TP is prepared for the limited purpose of use by contracted independent laboratories conducting tests for NHTSA. The TP presents guidelines for a uniform testing and data recording format. TPs are not rules, regulations, or agency interpretations. NHTSA will host a demonstration of TP-523-00 to show how NHTSA intends to test vehicles to determine compliance with its regulations on vehicle classification.

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

This notice requests information from interested parties to assist the agency in researching property damage only (PDO) crash data collection practices across the United States. State statutes dictate that law enforcement should complete a crash report for PDO crashes meeting a set of criteria including when damage is above a certain dollar threshold that varies by State. When a crash is below the reportable threshold, States may allow civilians to complete a crash report designed specifically for them. In some cases, jurisdictions within States have stopped collecting PDO crashes in an effort to save officer time and/or money. Other jurisdictions have stopped sending sworn officers to respond to PDO crashes. However, the impacts of these changes on crash data collection are not well documented or understood. NHTSA is seeking to identify States and jurisdictions that have modified their PDO crash reporting threshold or are using citizen or non-sworn officers to report PDO crashes, and to determine the impacts of these practices on crash data analyses and agencies' budgets and time. NHTSA seeks comments from all interested parties, including State crash data owners, highway safety offices, law enforcement, and other stakeholders to help inform NHTSA's research into State PDO crash data collection practices.

This final rule responds to petitions for reconsideration of the June 2022 final rule establishing Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 213a and the December 2023 final rule establishing FMVSS No. 213b. This final rule grants petitions to incorporate a dummy positioning procedure for shield-type child restraint systems (CRSs), clarify test procedure for CRSs with certain types of side impact technologies, remove testing CRSs installed with lap belt only in frontal sled tests, and correct inconsistencies in the regulatory text and figures in FMVSS Nos. 213a and 213b. This final rule also partially grants the petition to align compliance dates between the standards. All other requests are denied.

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 a new information collection to research limousine crash safety.