[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 61 (Wednesday, April 28, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Page S2761]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. UDALL of New Mexico:
  S. 3271. A bill to amend section 30166 of title 49, United States 
Code, to require the installation of event data recorders in all motor 
vehicles manufactured for sale in the United States, and for other 
purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, I rise today to introduce 
legislation that I believe will help improve the safety of automobile 
drivers and passengers. The legislation, the Vehicle Safety 
Improvements Act, would, among other things, require all automobiles 
sold in the United States be equipped with an event data recorder, an 
EDR.
  Event data recorders provide a report of a vehicle's operating 
statistics--things like the throttle position and speed of the 
vehicle--during the last seconds before and immediately after a crash.
  They serve a similar function as the black boxes that are in each 
airplane by documenting critical information leading up to an incident. 
Unlike black boxes, an EDR doesn't record the voices of the vehicle 
occupants. It simply preserves the vehicle's internal operating data.
  The information stored by an EDR can be crucial in determining what 
happened in the last few seconds prior to a crash and the moments 
immediately after. If a vehicle doesn't have a recorder, or if the data 
is not easily accessible, this information can be lost. That leaves 
local and Federal investigators little to work with as they try to 
determine whether a vehicle malfunction was to blame. Unfortunately, 
while the majority of vehicles in the United States are currently 
equipped with these recorders, many still do not have them.
  In 2006, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, NHTSA, 
created a framework for the type of information to be recorded by event 
data recorders in light-duty vehicles, but it stopped short of 
requiring the recorders. If the vehicle manufacturer installs an event 
data recorder in a car, it must comply with the rule. But there is no 
requirement that the manufacturer install the recorder in the first 
place.
  NHTSA's 2006 rule further requires the manufacturers to ensure that a 
tool to read the recorder is commercially available. Today, while there 
are tools commercially available, there is no one universal tool--
creating a challenge for investigators who must carry a suitcase of 
readers with them on investigations. This is an unnecessary burden that 
can be easily addressed.
  This particular burden came to light recently in the context of the 
tragic Toyota crashes. During hearings held by Chairman Rockefeller in 
the Commerce Committee, we learned that although Toyotas were equipped 
with EDRs, until recently they were only able to be read by one 
computer in the entire United States. That is why, in addition to 
requiring recorders in all vehicles for sale in the United States, the 
Vehicle Safety Improvements Act will also require that recorders be 
easily read by a universal tool regardless of make or model of the 
vehicle.
  In addition, NHTSA's rule also fails to address medium- and heavy-
duty vehicles. My legislation would require NHTSA to issue a rule 
addressing those vehicles as well. While they comprise a small 
percentage of the vehicle miles traveled on an annual basis, medium- 
and heavy-duty vehicles are overrepresented in crashes resulting in 
fatalities. In these crashes, an event data recorder would be a useful 
tool during the crash investigation in determining the cause of the 
crash.
  Finally, my bill protects privacy by ensuring that the data can only 
be accessed with the vehicle owner's permission when authorized by a 
court or a legal proceeding or by a government motor vehicle safety 
agency.
  Adding these recorders would not cost much. In their rulemaking, 
NHTSA estimated the cost for the manufacturer to install an event data 
recorder at just over $2 per vehicle. That is a small price to pay for 
the critical information that can ultimately be used to save lives in 
the future.
  Vehicle crashes are horrible and oftentimes tragic. They result in 
damage, injuries, and too often fatalities. They create congestion and 
cost our economy billions of dollars each year. Event data recorders 
will not prevent crashes, but they will help to determine what caused 
the crash and, in the case of a vehicle malfunction, help to identify 
solutions to improve vehicle performance. In the end, the data they 
provide will serve to ensure a safer travel environment for all.
  I urge my Senate colleagues to join me in this important effort to 
improve vehicle safety. I look forward to working with them and my 
chairman, Chairman Rockefeller, who has been a champion on issues of 
transportation safety, to pass the Vehicle Safety Improvements Act this 
year.
                                 ______