H.R. 1216
12-19-07, House Agreed to Bill by Voice Vote
2-14-08, Senate Passed Bill by Unanimous Consent
2-28-08, Became Public Law 110-189
One Hundred Tenth Congress
of the
United States of America
AT THE SECOND SESSION
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday,
the third day of January, two thousand and eight
An Act
To direct the Secretary of Transportation to issue regulations to
reduce the incidence of child injury and death occurring inside or outside
of light motor vehicles, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the `Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety
Act of 2007' or the `K.T. Safety Act of 2007'.
SEC. 2. RULEMAKING REGARDING CHILD SAFETY.
(1) CONSIDERATION OF RULE- Not later than 18 months after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation (referred to in this
Act as the `Secretary') shall initiate a rulemaking to consider prescribing
or amending Federal motor vehicle safety standards to require power windows
and panels on motor vehicles to automatically reverse direction when such
power windows and panels detect an obstruction to prevent children and others
from being trapped, injured, or killed.
(2) DEADLINE FOR DECISION- If the Secretary determines such safety standards
are reasonable, practicable, and appropriate, the Secretary shall prescribe,
under section 30111 of title 49, United States Code, the safety standards
described in paragraph (1) not later than 30 months after the date of enactment
of this Act. If the Secretary determines that no additional safety standards
are reasonable, practicable, and appropriate, the Secretary shall--
(A) not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act,
transmit a report to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House
of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation
of the Senate describing the reasons such standards were not prescribed;
and
(B) publish and otherwise make available to the public through the Internet
and other means (such as the `Buying a Safer Car' brochure) information
regarding which vehicles are or are not equipped with power windows and
panels that automatically reverse direction when an obstruction is detected.
(b) Rearward Visibility- Not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall initiate a rulemaking to revise Federal Motor
Vehicle Safety Standard 111 (FMVSS 111) to expand the required field of view
to enable the driver of a motor vehicle to detect areas behind the motor vehicle
to reduce death and injury resulting from backing incidents, particularly
incidents involving small children and disabled persons. The Secretary may
prescribe different requirements for different types of motor vehicles to
expand the required field of view to enable the driver of a motor vehicle
to detect areas behind the motor vehicle to reduce death and injury resulting
from backing incidents, particularly incidents involving small children and
disabled persons. Such standard may be met by the provision of additional
mirrors, sensors, cameras, or other technology to expand the driver's field
of view. The Secretary shall prescribe final standards pursuant to this subsection
not later than 36 months after the date of enactment of this Act.
(1) PHASE-IN PERIOD REQUIRED- The safety standards prescribed pursuant to
subsections (a) and (b) shall establish a phase-in period for compliance,
as determined by the Secretary, and require full compliance with the safety
standards not later than 48 months after the date on which the final rule
is issued.
(2) PHASE-IN PRIORITIES- In establishing the phase-in period of the rearward
visibility safety standards required under subsection (b), the Secretary
shall consider whether to require the phase-in according to different types
of motor vehicles based on data demonstrating the frequency by which various
types of motor vehicles have been involved in backing incidents resulting
in injury or death. If the Secretary determines that any type of motor vehicle
should be given priority, the Secretary shall issue regulations that specify--
(A) which type or types of motor vehicles shall be phased-in first; and
(B) the percentages by which such motor vehicles shall be phased-in.
(d) Preventing Motor Vehicles From Rolling Away-
(1) REQUIREMENT- Each motor vehicle with an automatic transmission that
includes a `park' position manufactured for sale after September 1, 2010,
shall be equipped with a system that requires the service brake to be depressed
before the transmission can be shifted out of `park'. This system shall
function in any starting system key position in which the transmission can
be shifted out of `park'.
(2) TREATMENT AS MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD- A violation of paragraph
(1) shall be treated as a violation of a motor vehicle safety standard prescribed
under section 30111 of title 49, United States Code, and shall be subject
to enforcement by the Secretary under chapter 301 of such title.
(3) PUBLICATION OF NONCOMPLIANT VEHICLES-
(A) INFORMATION SUBMISSION- Not later than 60 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, for the current model year and annually thereafter
through 2010, each motor vehicle manufacturer shall transmit to the Secretary
the make and model of motor vehicles with automatic transmissions that
include a `park' position that do not comply with the requirements of
paragraph (1).
(B) PUBLICATION- Not later than 30 days after receiving the information
submitted under subparagraph (A), the Secretary shall publish and otherwise
make available to the public through the Internet and other means the
make and model of the applicable motor vehicles that do not comply with
the requirements of paragraph (1). Any motor vehicle not included in the
publication under this subparagraph shall be presumed to comply with such
requirements.
(e) Definition of Motor Vehicle- As used in this Act and for purposes of the
motor vehicle safety standards described in subsections (a) and (b), the term
`motor vehicle' has the meaning given such term in section 30102(a)(6) of
title 49, United States Code, except that such term shall not include--
(1) a motorcycle or trailer (as such terms are defined in section 571.3
of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations); or
(2) any motor vehicle that is rated at more than 10,000 pounds gross vehicular
weight.
(f) Database on Injuries and Deaths in Nontraffic, Noncrash Events-
(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than 12 months after the date of the enactment
of this Act, the Secretary shall establish and maintain a database of injuries
and deaths in nontraffic, noncrash events involving motor vehicles.
(2) CONTENTS- The database established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall include
information regarding--
(A) the number, types, and causes of injuries and deaths resulting from
the events described in paragraph (1);
(B) the make, model, and model year of motor vehicles involved in such
events, when practicable; and
(C) other variables that the Secretary determines will enhance the value
of the database.
(3) AVAILABILITY- The Secretary shall make the information contained in
the database established pursuant to paragraph (1) available to the public
through the Internet and other means.
SEC. 3. CHILD SAFETY INFORMATION PROGRAM.
(a) In General- Not later than 9 months after the date of the enactment of
this Act, the Secretary shall provide information about hazards to children
in nontraffic, noncrash incident situations by--
(1) supplementing an existing consumer information program relating to child
safety; or
(2) creating a new consumer information program relating to child safety.
(b) Program Requirements- In carrying out the program under subsection (a),
the Secretary shall--
(1) utilize information collected pursuant to section 2(f) regarding nontraffic,
noncrash injuries, and other relevant data the Secretary considers appropriate,
to establish priorities for the program;
(2) address ways in which parents and caregivers can reduce risks to small
children arising from back over incidents, hyperthermia in closed motor
vehicles, accidental actuation of power windows, and any other risks the
Secretary determines should be addressed; and
(3) make information related to the program available to the public through
the Internet and other means.
SEC. 4. DEADLINES.
If the Secretary determines that the deadlines applicable under this Act cannot
be met, the Secretary shall--
(1) establish new deadlines; and
(2) notify the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives
and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate
of the new deadlines and describing the reasons the deadlines specified
under this Act could not be met.
Speaker of the House of Representatives.
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.
END
