New Blog Post: What Is Your Role in the New Brake Pad MOU?
The Auto Care Association government affairs team publishes a blog to offer some additional insight into what is happening in Washington, D.C., the states and internationally, and how that relates to the auto care industry. Read this week's post here: http://tiny.cc/Blog012615. |
This Week in Congress
The Senate hopes to complete action on legislation that would authorize construction of the Keystone pipeline. The House plans to consider legislation that would speed up consideration of liquefied natural gas export permits. The House also will consider a bill that would seek to better control the U.S.-Mexico border.
Both the Senate Finance Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee will hold hearings on January 27 to hear testimony from U.S. Trade Representative, Michael Froman on granting the President authority to negotiate free trade agreements.
The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will hold a January 28 hearing on surface transportation reauthorization. |
Collaborative Effort Between EPA and Vehicle Manufacturers and Auto Care Industry Will Reduce Copper in Brake Pads
The Auto Care Association was among several automotive industry trade associations to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Environmental Council of the States (ECOS) for the reduction of copper in brake pads. Read more... |
Commerce Preliminarily Finds Dumping Of Chinese Car and Truck Tire Imports
The U.S. Commerce Department has preliminarily determined that imports of Chinese tires for passenger vehicles and light trucks have been dumped in the U.S. Mandatory respondents Giti Tire Global Trading Pte. Ltd. and Sailun Group Co. received preliminary margins of 19.17 percent and 36.26 percent, respectively. Read more... |
Parts Disclosure Bill Introduced in Montana
On Jan. 12, Montana state senator Gordon Vance (R-District 34) introduced SB 132, requiring disclosure by insurers regarding coverage for the use of aftermarket motor vehicle parts in liability policies. Past bills in Montana and other states have attempted to require disclaimers or disclosures to vehicle owners about aftermarket and original equipment parts at the time of repair. Read more... |
FTC Amends Fair Packaging Rules
On Jan. 22, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced proposed amendments to the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act (FPLA) and has requested additional comments on these changes. Read more... |
Transportation Secretary Adds Automatic Emergency Braking Systems to New Car Safety Scoring
On January 22, US Transportation Secretary, Anthony Foxx, announced at an event for the Washington, DC Auto Show, that the National Highway Traffic Safety Agency (NHTSA) would add two forms of emergency automatic braking systems to its New Car Assessment Program (NCAP). Read more... |
Federal Trucking Agency Report Rules Out Crash Fault Weighting in Safety Scores
On January 23, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) published its report on the costs and benefits of including crash faults in Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) scores for motor carriers. The FMCSA report concluded that it costs too much to include fault in the CSA scores compared to the benefits of more accurately reporting a driver or carrier’s level of safety. Read more... |
Levin Proposal for Resolving TPP Issues Includes 30-Year Phase-Out of Tariff On Japanese Autos
Last week, House Ways & Means Committee Ranking Member Sander Levin (D-MI) laid out a series of proposals for resolving outstanding issues in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks that include a 30-year phase-out of U.S. tariffs on Japanese autos. Read more... |
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