Mandatory kill switches on new cars coming in 2026

[Vimes]

This is a repost of what I mistakenly put in the junkyard.

There's a lot of news stories about kill switches being mandatory in new cars after 2026, that will shut the car down if the car thinks you're driving drunk or otherwise impaired. The problem - how does the car determine that you're drunk, or perhaps dodging blown tire bits or other debris on the road? How about rush hour traffic when there's a lot of jerking, slow driving (slower than the GPS says the speed limit is, which is an "indicator" of drunk driving? It might make new tech engine swaps a problem as well, since this will almost certainly have to be integrated into the ECM which likely will throw up errors and not allow the engine to run if it doesn't see the detection sensors. I don't know about the rest of you, but I see this as a bad thing for the future particularly if a later Congress decides that cars without this tech are no longer allowed. I don't know about the rest of you but I plan to yell at my Congressman about this one.


http://bobbarr.org/2021/11/29/bidens...itch-for-cars/




And, directly from the bill, which was signed into law:


https://www.congress.gov/bill/117th-...bill/3684/text


SEC. 24220. ADVANCED IMPAIRED DRIVING TECHNOLOGY.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds that--
(1) alcohol-impaired driving fatalities represent approximately
\1/3\ of all highway fatalities in the United States each year;
(2) in 2019, there were 10,142 alcohol-impaired driving
fatalities in the United States involving drivers with a blood
alcohol concentration level of .08 or higher, and 68 percent of the
crashes that resulted in those fatalities involved a driver with a
blood alcohol concentration level of .15 or higher;
(3) the estimated economic cost for alcohol-impaired driving in
2010 was $44,000,000,000;
(4) according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety,
advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention technology can
prevent more than 9,400 alcohol-impaired driving fatalities
annually; and
(5) to ensure the prevention of alcohol-impaired driving
fatalities, advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention
technology must be standard equipment in all new passenger motor
vehicles.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention
technology.--The term ``advanced drunk and impaired driving
prevention technology'' means a system that--
(A) can--
(i) passively monitor the performance of a driver of a
motor vehicle to accurately identify whether that driver
may be impaired; and
(ii) prevent or limit motor vehicle operation if an
impairment is detected;
(B) can--
(i) passively and accurately detect whether the blood
alcohol concentration of a driver of a motor vehicle is
equal to or greater than the blood alcohol concentration
described in section 163(a) of title 23, United States
Code; and
(ii) prevent or limit motor vehicle operation if a
blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit is
detected; or
(C) is a combination of systems described in subparagraphs
(A) and (B).
(2) New.--The term ``new'', with respect to a passenger motor
vehicle, means that the passenger motor vehicle--
(A) is a new vehicle (as defined in section 37.3 of title
49, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation));
and
(B) has not been purchased for purposes other than resale.
(3) Passenger motor vehicle.--The term ``passenger motor
vehicle'' has the meaning given the term in section 32101 of title
49, United States Code.
(4) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary of
Transportation, acting through the Administrator of the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
(c) Advanced Drunk and Impaired Driving Prevention Technology
Safety Standard.--Subject to subsection (e) and not later than 3 years
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall issue a
final rule prescribing a Federal motor vehicle safety standard under
section 30111 of title 49, United States Code, that requires passenger
motor vehicles manufactured after the effective date of that standard
to be equipped with advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention
technology.
(d) Requirement.--To allow sufficient time for manufacturer
compliance, the compliance date of the rule issued under subsection (c)
shall be not earlier than 2 years and not more than 3 years after the
date on which that rule is issued.
(e) Timing.--If the Secretary determines that the Federal motor
vehicle safety standard required under subsection (c) cannot meet the
requirements and considerations described in subsections (a) and (b) of
section 30111 of title 49, United States Code, by the applicable date,
the Secretary--
(1) may extend the time period to such date as the Secretary
determines to be necessary, but not later than the date that is 3
years after the date described in subsection (c);
(2) shall, not later than the date described in subsection (c)
and not less frequently than annually thereafter until the date on
which the rule under that subsection is issued, submit to the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate
and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of
Representatives a report describing, as of the date of submission
of the report--
(A) the reasons for not prescribing a Federal motor vehicle
safety standard under section 30111 of title 49, United States
Code, that requires advanced drunk and impaired driving
prevention technology in all new passenger motor vehicles;
(B) the deployment of advanced drunk and impaired driving
prevention technology in vehicles;
(C) any information relating to the ability of vehicle
manufacturers to include advanced drunk and impaired driving
prevention technology in new passenger motor vehicles; and
(D) an anticipated timeline for prescribing the Federal
motor vehicle safety standard described in subsection (c); and
(3) if the Federal motor vehicle safety standard required by
subsection (c) has not been finalized by the date that is 10 years
after the date of enactment of this Act, shall submit to the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate
and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of
Representative a report describing--
(A) the reasons why the Federal motor vehicle safety
standard has not been finalized;
(B) the barriers to finalizing the Federal motor vehicle
safety standard; and
(C) recommendations to Congress to facilitate the Federal
motor vehicle safety standard.