PRINTER'S NO. 2935
No. 2131 Session of 2005
INTRODUCED BY McNAUGHTON, GEIST, McCALL, HARHAI, BENNINGHOFF,
BOYD, BUNT, CALTAGIRONE, CAPPELLI, CAWLEY, COHEN, CRAHALLA,
CREIGHTON, DeWEESE, D. EVANS, GOODMAN, HENNESSEY, HERMAN,
McILHATTAN, O'NEILL, PETRARCA, READSHAW, REICHLEY, B. SMITH,
SOLOBAY, THOMAS, TIGUE, WHEATLEY, WILT AND YOUNGBLOOD,
OCTOBER 25, 2005
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, OCTOBER 25, 2005
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 75 (Vehicles) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
2 Statutes, requiring manufacturers to disclose information
3 relating to vehicles equipped with event data recorders or
4 sensing and diagnostic modules.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Title 75 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes
8 is amended by adding a section to read:
9 § 4109. Recording devices.
10 (a) Disclosure required.--A manufacturer of a new motor
11 vehicle sold or leased in this Commonwealth, which is equipped
12 with one or more recording devices commonly referred to as event
13 data recorders (EDR) or sensing and diagnostic modules (SDM),
14 shall disclose that fact in the owner's manual for the vehicle.
15 (b) Use of data.--Data described under subsection (f) that
16 is recorded on a recording device may not be downloaded or
17 otherwise retrieved by a person other than the registered owner
1 of the motor vehicle, except under one of the following
2 circumstances:
3 (1) The registered owner of the motor vehicle consents
4 to the retrieval of the information.
5 (2) In response to an order of a court having
6 jurisdiction to issue the order.
7 (3) For the purpose of improving motor vehicle safety,
8 including for medical research of the human body's reaction
9 to motor vehicle accidents, and the identity of the
10 registered owner or driver is not disclosed in connection
11 with that retrieved data. The disclosure of the vehicle
12 identification number for the purpose of improving vehicle
13 safety, including for medical research of the human body's
14 reaction to motor vehicle accidents, does not constitute the
15 disclosure of the identity of the registered owner or driver.
16 (4) The data is retrieved by a licensed new motor
17 vehicle dealer or by an automotive technician for the purpose
18 of diagnosing, servicing or repairing the motor vehicle.
19 (c) Release of data.--A person authorized to download or
20 otherwise retrieve data from a recording device in accordance
21 with subsection (b)(3), may not release that data, except to
22 share the data among the motor vehicle safety and medical
23 research communities, to advance motor vehicle safety and only
24 if the identity of the registered owner or driver is not
25 disclosed.
26 (d) Subscription services.--
27 (1) If a motor vehicle is equipped with a recording
28 device that is capable of recording or transmitting
29 information as described in paragraph (2) or (6) of the
30 definition of "recording device" under subsection (f) and
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1 that capability is part of a subscription service, the fact
2 that the information may be recorded or transmitted shall be
3 disclosed in the subscription service agreement.
4 (2) Subsection (b) does not apply to subscription
5 services meeting the requirements of paragraph (1).
6 (e) Applicability.--This section applies to all motor
7 vehicles manufactured on or after July 1, 2006.
8 (f) Definition.--As used in this section, the term
9 "recording device" means a device that is installed by the
10 manufacturer of the vehicle and does one or more of the
11 following, for the purpose of retrieving data after an accident:
12 (1) Records how fast and in which direction the motor
13 vehicle is traveling.
14 (2) Records a history of where the motor vehicle
15 travels.
16 (3) Records steering performance.
17 (4) Records brake performance, including, but not
18 limited to, whether brakes were applied before an accident.
19 (5) Records the driver's seatbelt status.
20 (6) Has the ability to transmit information concerning
21 an accident in which the motor vehicle has been involved to a
22 central communications system when an accident occurs.
23 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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