Bipartisan Committee Leaders Seek Government Watchdog Review of NHTSA
Bipartisan leaders of the House Energy and Commerce Committee today wrote to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting a review of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The request follows the committee’s extensive investigation into the General Motors ignition switch recall.
In the request to GAO, the committee leaders wrote:
In early 2014, General Motors recalled more than 2 million vehicles due to faulty ignition switches that could shut off power to the front airbags. According to GM, these defects resulted in at least 31 crashes and 13 deaths before the recall was initiated. As demonstrated by investigations conducted in the wake of this recall, GM’s flawed approach to safety contributed to the tragic failure to identify this defect in a timely fashion.
In light of this and other recent recalls affecting millions of vehicles, however, our committee, safety experts, and other industry officials have questioned why NHTSA did not act more quickly to mandate recalls before the auto companies voluntarily did so. An investigation of the GM recalls by the committee revealed NHTSA lacked a comprehensive understanding of vehicle systems the agency is responsible for regulating, contributing to the inaction on this defect. As vehicle functions and safety systems become more complex, these findings raise concerns about NHTSA’s process for obtaining data and investigating vehicle defects and the agency’s broader framework and readiness for adapting to technological advances in the industries it oversees.
Because of these issues, we are requesting that GAO conduct a review of NHTSA, including the agency’s information sharing and information gathering capabilities and readiness to adapt to technological change.
The committee’s request comes as the agency and vehicle manufacturers are back in the spotlight regarding recalls for vehicles equipped with faulty and potentially hazardous Takata air bags.
The committee is asking GAO to specifically answer the following questions:
To what extent have NHTSA or other organizations evaluated NHTSA’s ability to adapt its regulatory structure to new developments in automotive technology? To what extent has NHTSA successfully adapted to new developments in automotive technology?
How does NHTSA facilitate information sharing across its directorates about new developments in automotive technology and safety?
What challenges, if any, does NHTSA face in its oversight of new automotive technologies?
The letter to GAO was signed by full committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI), Ranking Member Henry A. Waxman (D-CA), Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA), Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO), Commerce Manufacturing and Trade Subcommittee Chairman Lee Terry (R-NE), and Ranking Member Jan Schakowsky (D-IL).
To view of full copy of the request to GAO, click here.
Letter to Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General, GAO, from Reps. Fred Upton, Henry A. Waxman, Tim Murphy, Diana DeGette, Lee Terry, and Jan Schakowsky (October 29, 2014).