Congress says no to Stop Sale authority for NHTSA

Congress says no to Stop Sale authority for NHTSA

In a little noticed matter in the closing days of the lame duck session, Congress failed to pass new legislation that would have given the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) authority to order an immediate Stop Sale of vehicles it determined would pose an imminent hazard where death or serious injury could result.

The measure, put forward by Sen. Jay Rockefeller, (D-WV), chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, was high on the bucket list of the vehicle safety advocacy lobby in the waning days of the 111th Congress.

The measure would also have allowed federal safety regulators to fine auto executives who submit false reports $5,000 per day, up to $5 million for a single recall. It also increased maximum fines against automakers from $16.4 million to $200 million per recall.

The bills were sparked by Toyota’s recall of more than 8.5 million vehicles worldwide for sudden acceleration issues. The measures also would have required rules on the placement of vehicles’ pedals to avoid obstructions within 18 months.