The legislation would block attempts to undermine NHTSA’s nationwide standards
Washington – Today, the American Trucking Associations applauded the introduction of the Uniform Vehicle Safety Standards Act. The bicameral bill would affirm that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is the primary authority over motor vehicle safety regulations, ensuring that there are consistent standards for the trucking industry across all 50 states.
“When NHTSA establishes a federal safety standard, manufacturers and motor carriers should be able to rely on that determination. Allowing lawsuits to effectively impose equipment mandates that diverge from federal requirements creates uncertainty, drives up costs, and threatens the uniformity that keeps our nation's supply chain moving safely and efficiently,” said ATA’s SVP of Legislative Affairs Alex Rosen. “The trucking industry applauds Reps. Flood, Obernolte, Rouzer, and Ellzey and Sens. Fischer and Lummis for introducing this commonsense legislation to affirm NHTSA’s role as the nation's expert regulator for motor vehicle safety standards. If NHTSA, after evaluating the available evidence through its rulemaking process, determines that a particular standard strikes the appropriate balance to maximize motor vehicle safety, that expert determination should carry greater weight than the hindsight judgments advanced by profit-seeking trial attorneys in individual courtrooms.” (....)