In a detailed letter to a key House subcommittee, CR applauds common-sense safety measures but warns that “modernization” cannot mean giving automakers and autonomous vehicle developers a free pass on safety.
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Ahead of a House Subcommittee hearing today on motor vehicle safety, consumer choice, and affordability, Consumer Reports (CR) has submitted a letter offering its perspective on a number of auto-related bills under consideration. View the live hearing today at 2:00 pm ET here.
“As Congress starts to map out its plans for the next major transportation bill, this hearing gives us an early look at what’s being prioritized on auto safety,” said Cooper Lohr, senior policy analyst for transportation and safety at Consumer Reports. “This is a first pass at ideas that could shape auto safety policy going forward. A lot of these ideas are promising and address real issues that everyday consumers face, while others raise questions that deserve scrutiny—which is exactly why this conversation matters now.”
In its letter to the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, CR highlights several clear, consumer-facing safety issues Congress can address now, including:
- Electronic door latches: CR has already endorsed the SAFE Exit Act, which would require accessible, clearly labeled manual door releases that function even when a car has lost electrical power. Poorly designed electronic door systems have been linked to tragic incidents where people got trapped in their burning vehicle and died, and this bill addresses a growing and preventable safety risk.
- Automatic emergency braking with cyclist and motorcyclist detection: While welcoming the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s 2024 rule for automatic emergency braking (AEB) as a major milestone, CR notes that it did not require cars to come with detection of cyclists or motorcyclists. CR supports the Safe Streets for Everyone Act—which is based on the Magnus White Cyclist Safety Act that CR has also supported—that would require AEB systems to detect both cyclists and motorcyclists, in addition to other vehicles and pedestrians.
- Putting a premium on proven safety features: CR research shows consumers are often forced to pay thousands of dollars more to access proven safety technologies because they are bundled with non-safety features. The Safety is Not For Sale Act would separate safety features from luxury packages and could improve access and affordability, though CR continues to urge that proven safety technologies simply be made standard on all new vehicles.
- Impaired driving: CR supports working toward the deployment of effective impaired-driving prevention technologies and appreciates the iterative approach taken by the DRIVE to HALT Drunk Driving Act to require deployment using technologies already in use globally, while allowing NHTSA to complete its congressionally mandated rulemaking on advanced drunk- and impaired-driving prevention technology.
At the same time, CR cautions that efforts to modernize safety standards must not come at the expense of meaningful oversight or accountability:
- NHTSA modernization: CR welcomes efforts to improve regulatory transparency, long-term planning, and consumer information at NHTSA, including updates to the New Car Assessment Program, which includes the well-known five-star safety ratings for new vehicles. However, CR raises serious concerns about proposals that would dramatically expand exemptions from federal motor vehicle safety standards or allow exemptions to be granted without a full safety review.
- Autonomous vehicles: CR warns that the SELF DRIVE Act would establish an inadequate federal regulatory baseline for autonomous vehicles (AVs) by allowing manufacturers to self-certify safety claims without independent verification, limiting public access to safety data, and broadly preempting state authority. Any AV framework, CR stresses, should include enforceable standards, accountability for safety, meaningful transparency, and a continued significant role for states and local governments. CR is urging lawmakers to improve the bill substantially before taking a vote on it.
The full letter to the House subcommittee is available here.
Media Contact: Emily Akpan, emily.akpan@consumer.org