U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) has introduced Senate Bill 2760, the Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Enhancement Act of 2014. McCaskill serves as chairman of the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety and Insurance within the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.
S. 2760 would reauthorize funding for highway and motor vehicle safety at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for the next six years. This bill seeks to improve auto safety by amending legal requirements related to recalls for manufacturers going through bankruptcy and implementing stricter penalties for civil and criminal auto safety violations. The highway safety component of S. 2760 focuses on highway safety grant funding to states for six years, updating the highway safety grant program, and revising the criteria for ignition interlock grant funding.
This bill also includes the text of S. 921, the Raechel and Jacqueline Houck Safe Rental Car Act of 2013, which would ensure that recalled rental vehicles are repaired before a consumer gets behind the wheel. The Motor Vehicle and Highway Safety Enhancement Act of 2014 is currently before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation for further consideration. With less than 10 legislative days left in the 113th Congress, it is unlikely this bill will move forward before 2015.
