[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 138 (Tuesday, July 22, 2025)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34576-34578]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-13720]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
[Docket No. NHTSA-2025-0029]
Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for
Comment; Event Data Recorders
AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA),
Department of Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notice and request for comments on a request for extension of a
currently approved information collection.
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SUMMARY: NHTSA invites public comments about our intention to request
approval from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for an
extension 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 reinstatements of previously
approved collections. This document describes a collection of
information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval on Part 563,
Event Data Recorders (EDRs).
DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before September 22, 2025.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by the Docket No. NHTSA-
2025-0029 through any of the following methods:
Electronic submissions: Go to the Federal eRulemaking
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions
for submitting comments.
Fax: (202) 493-2251.
Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management, U.S. Department
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Room W12-
140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through
Friday, except on Federal holidays.
Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and
docket
[[Page 34577]]
number for this notice. Note that all comments received will be posted
without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal
information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading below.
Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all
comments received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78) or you may visit https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the street
address listed above. Follow the online instructions for accessing the
dockets via internet.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or access
to background documents, contact Joshua McNeil, Office of
Crashworthiness Standards, (202) 366-1810, National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration, W43-415, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200
New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590. Please identify the
relevant collection of information by referring to its OMB Control
Number (2127-0758).
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), before an agency submits a proposed
collection of information to OMB for approval, it must first publish a
document in the Federal Register providing a 60-day comment period and
otherwise consult with members of the public and affected agencies
concerning each proposed collection of information. The OMB has
promulgated regulations describing what must be included in such a
document. Under OMB's regulation (at 5 CFR 1320.8(d)), an agency must
ask for public comment on the following: (a) whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
the functions of the agency, including whether the information will
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of
the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the
validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (c) how to enhance
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected;
and (d) how to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
those who are to respond, including the use of appropriate automated,
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic
submission of responses. In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA
asks for public comments on the following proposed collection of
information for which the agency is seeking approval from OMB.
Title: Part 563, Event Data Recorders.
OMB Control Number: 2127-0758.
Form Number(s): N/A.
Type of Request: Extension of a currently-approved information
collection.
Type of Review Requested: Regular.
Requested Expiration Date of Approval: 3 years from date of
approval.
Summary of the Collection of Information: This notice seeks public
comment on NHTSA's intention to seek approval from OMB to extend
without change an existing information collection, OMB No. 2127-0758,
related to the requirements outlined in 49 CFR part 563, Event Data
Recorders. Part 563 establishes uniform national standards for vehicles
voluntarily equipped with EDRs regarding the collection, storage, and
retrieval of onboard crash data. Specifically, voluntarily installed
EDRs in vehicles with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) of 3,855
kilograms (8,500 pounds) or less must record 15 essential data
elements; record up to 30 additional data elements if the vehicle has
the capability; record data in a standardized format, including
specifications for range, accuracy, resolution, sampling rate,
recording duration, and filter class; remain functional after full-
scale vehicle crash tests as specified in Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards (FMVSS) Nos. 208 and 214; and have the capacity to record
data from two events in a multi-event crash. Furthermore, Part 563
requires vehicle manufacturers make a tool for retrieving EDR
information commercially available and include a standardized statement
in the owner's manual indicating the vehicle has an EDR and describing
its purpose. Part 563 aims to ensure that EDRs record crash data in a
readily usable format, which is valuable for effective crash
investigations and the analysis of safety equipment performance, such
as advanced restraint systems.
Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the
Information: Under 49 U.S.C. 322(a), the Secretary of Transportation
(the ``Secretary'') is authorized to prescribe regulations to carry out
the duties and powers of the Secretary. One of the duties of the
Secretary is to administer the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle
Safety Act, as amended. The Secretary has delegated the responsibility
for carrying out the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act to
NHTSA.\1\ Two statutory provisions, 49 U.S.C. 30182 and 23 U.S.C. 403,
authorize NHTSA to collect motor vehicle crash data to support its
safety mission. NHTSA collects motor vehicle crash information under
these authorities to support its statutory mandate to establish motor
vehicle safety standards and reduce the occurrence and cost of traffic
crashes.\2\ NHTSA also utilizes crash data in the enforcement of motor
vehicle safety recalls and other motor vehicle highway safety programs
that reduce fatalities, injuries, and property damage caused by motor
vehicle crashes. In 2006, NHTSA exercised its general authority to
issue such rules and regulations as deemed necessary to carry out
Chapter 301 of Title 49, United States Code to promulgate 49 CFR part
563.\3\
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\1\ 49 U.S.C. 105 and 322; delegation of authority at 49 CFR
1.95.
\2\ See 49 U.S.C. 30101 and 30111.
\3\ 71 FR 50997, August 28, 2006.
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NHTSA issued Part 563 to improve crash data collection by
standardizing data recorded on EDRs to help provide a better
understanding of the circumstances in which crashes and injuries occur,
which will in turn lead to the development of safer vehicle designs.
EDR data are used to improve the quality of crash data collection to
assist safety researchers, vehicle manufacturers, and the agency in
crash investigations to understand vehicle crashes better and more
precisely. Similarly, vehicle manufacturers use EDRs to improve vehicle
designs and develop more effective vehicle safety countermeasures.
Additionally, the agency's experience in handling unintended
acceleration and pedal entrapment allegations has demonstrated that, if
a vehicle is equipped with an EDR, the data from that EDR can improve
the ability of both the agency and the vehicle's manufacturer to
identify and address safety concerns associated with possible defects
in the design or performance of the vehicle.
Affected Public: The respondents are manufacturers that voluntarily
equip passenger cars, multipurpose passenger vehicles, trucks, and
buses having a GVWR of 3,855 kg (8,500 pounds) or less and an unloaded
vehicle weight of 2,495 kg (5,500 pounds) with EDRs.
Estimated Number of Respondents: Approximately 20 vehicle
manufacturers.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: NHTSA estimates that there are
[[Page 34578]]
no annual reporting or recordkeeping burdens associated with Part 563,
except for the owner's manual statement requirement which is
incorporated into the consolidated owner's manual requirements
information collection (OMB Control Number 2127-0541). Vehicle
manufacturers are not required to retain or report information gathered
by EDRs because the devices themselves continuously monitor vehicle
systems and determine when to record, retain, and/or overwrite
information. The information is collected automatically by electronic
means. Data are only required to be locked and cannot be overwritten
when a recordable event occurs (e.g., an air bag deploys in a crash
event). When recordable events do occur, EDRs only capture data for a
few seconds. NHTSA estimates that there is no annual hourly burden
associated with the information standardization requirements of part
563.
Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost: NHTSA initially estimated
negligible costs for the 2006 final rule that established part 563 for
several key reasons. First, in 2005, approximately 64 percent of new
light vehicles already incorporated EDRs within their existing air bag
control systems. This meant the rule primarily required these systems
to capture information they were already processing. Second, the agency
limited the scope of required EDR data elements and associated
requirements to the minimum necessary to achieve its objectives. At the
time, NHTSA assessed that the industry's existing EDR technology
largely satisfied the aims of part 563, negating the need for costly
additional sensors or hardware. NHTSA stated in the 2006 final rule
that the most significant potential costs may result from data storage
upgrades.
NHTSA estimated that 99.5 percent of model year 2021 light vehicles
had compliant EDRs, indicating that manufacturers had largely absorbed
the costs of meeting the original part 563 requirements. Given this
near-universal adoption, NHTSA continues to believe that the currently
effective part 563 requirements impose no additional or negligible
costs. Consequently, the cost burden for this information collection is
discussed qualitatively.
Part 563 applies only to vehicles voluntarily equipped with EDRs.
Therefore, any burden is based on the cost difference between compliant
and non-compliant EDRs. In assessing additional burden for compliant
EDRs, NHTSA considered: (1) the added cost of meeting the 10-day data
crash survivability requirement; and (2) the added cost of meeting the
data format requirements. Part 563 requires that an EDR must remain
functional during and after the compliance tests specified in FMVSS
Nos. 208 and 214, and the stored data must be downloadable 10 days
after the crash test. While this ensures a basic level of functionality
and survivability, it does not guarantee EDR survival in extremely
severe events such as fires or submersion. The potential burden for
data survivability could include expenses for an additional power
supply and enhancements to the Controller Area Network (CAN), such as
wiring, data bus, and harness. However, prior to part 563, the agency
had not documented widespread EDR survivability issues, except in rare
and extreme circumstances. Thus, NHTSA does not anticipate vehicle
manufacturers incurring additional costs to ensure the retrieval of
essential data elements 10 days after the crash test.
NHTSA believes the current part 563 requirements align with
industry EDR practices and international EDR requirements in terms of
the minimum duration and sample rate for recorded data elements.
Regarding the data storage for part 563 requirements, the adequacy of
existing memory in non-compliant EDRs remains unknown due to
proprietary concerns. However, EDRs have been nearly universally
adopted in the vehicle fleet and manufacturers have not had issues
meeting the minimum data capture requirements. Manufacturers may
continue to equip EDRs that voluntarily capture a broader range of data
elements than the part 563 minimum. Manufacturers can also continue
capturing EDR data at longer durations and higher sample rates than the
current minimum requirements if they believe there are added benefits
for additional data elements at increased sample rates or durations.
Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspects of
this information collection, including (a) whether the proposed
collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of
the functions of the Department, including whether the information will
have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate
of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be
collected; and (d) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of
information on respondents, including the use of automated collection
techniques or other forms of information technology.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. Chapter
35, as amended; 49 CFR 1.49; and DOT Order 1351.29A.
David Hines,
Acting Associate Administrator for Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 2025-13720 Filed 7-21-25; 8:45 am]
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