WASHINGTON — On Thursday, the Department of Commerce will publish its much-anticipated Final Rule on Connected Vehicles; the Department has elected to remove heavy trucks from the scope of this rule, however, they do indicate a separate rule covering trucks is necessary to address “grave” national security threats.
According to the Final Rule, the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) recognizes the substantial compliance concerns associated with the complex commercial vehicle sector and has determined that the commercial vehicle sector will not be covered by this rulemaking. Recognizing there are substantial national security concerns in the commercial vehicle market, BIS intends to issue a new proposed rule specifically tailored to this sector.
“A ‘grave’ national security threat from China and Russia should not be put on the back-burner,” said Todd Spencer, president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA). “OOIDA is disappointed with the Department’s decision to remove heavy trucks from the scope of its rulemaking on connected vehicles. A separate rule for trucks could delay addressing unacceptable and obvious national security risks posed by foreign controlled technologies active on some U.S. commercial trucks today. We question the choice to remove heavy trucks when the Department, itself, emphasizes the ‘grave’ national security risks associated with Chinese or Russian technology components in these vehicles. We will work with the Bureau of Industry and Security to ensure the future rule thoroughly responds to the public safety challenges of driverless 80,000-pound trucks.”
The rule also noted that BIS has opted to exclude commercial vehicles from the final rule. BIS emphasizes that the national security risks associated with PRC or Russian VCS and ADS in commercial vehicles are grave, and BIS’s decision to exclude commercial vehicles from this rulemaking in no way implies that these risks are lesser than in the passenger vehicle market. Rather, BIS intends to propose a separate regulation tailored to the commercial sector in the coming months.
OOIDA submitted extensive official regulatory comments during the rulemaking process, which are available HERE.
“We highlighted our concerns with autonomous trucking, hackable electronic logging devices (ELDs) and general cybersecurity risks with connected vehicles,” OOIDA said.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
