. /.  WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION   
G/TBT/N/USA/704 
1 June 2012  
 (12-2893) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6 
 
1. Notifying Member:  UNITED STATES  
If applicable, name of local governme nt involved (Article 3.2 and 7.2):     
2. Agency responsible:  National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT) (721) 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, email and website 
addresses, if available) of agency or authority designated to handle comments regarding the notification shall be indicated if different from above :    
3. Notified under Article 2.9.2 [X], 2.10.1 [   ], 5.6.2 [   ], 5.7.1 [   ], other:   
4. Products covered (HS or CCCN where applicable, otherwise national tariff heading. 
ICS numbers may be provided in addition, where applicable):  Air bags (HS 8703; 
ICS 43.020, 43.040) 
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:  Federal Motor Vehicle 
Safety Standards; Occupant  Crash Protection (3 page s, in English)     
6. Description of content:  This final rule makes technica l amendments to Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standard (FMV SS) No. 208, Occupant Crash Pr otection. Specifically, this 
document updates references to the Pipeline a nd Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 
(PHMSA) (formerly the Research and Special Pr ograms Administration) regulations that are 
included in the requirements for pressure vess els and explosive devices used in occupant 
crash protection systems, such as  air bags. As a result of variou s rulemakings that reorganized 
the relevant regulations, the re ferences contained in FMVSS No. 208 are out of date. This 
final rule updates the references to the PHMSA regulations. 
This document also makes a correction to the air bag warning label re quirements for vehicle 
dashboards and steering wheel hubs to make clea r that the general warning label requirements 
for vehicles with air bags are superseded by different, specific requirements if the vehicle is 
certified to meet certain advanced air bag re quirements. As written now, the general warning 
label requirements contain an explicit exception for the warn ing label requirements for 
vehicles certified to meet these advanced air bag requi rements before 1 December 2003, but 
do not reference the warning label requirement s for vehicles certified to meet these 
requirements on or after 1 December 2003. This  document does not make any substantive 
changes to the requirements specified in FMVSS No. 208. 
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
Protection of human life.  G/TBT/N/USA/704 
Page 2  
 
  8. Relevant documents:   77 Federal Register (FR) 29247, 17 May 2012; Title 49 Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR ) Part 571. Will appear in the Fe deral Register when adopted.   
9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:    To be determined 
10. Final date for comments:  none 
11. Text available from:  National enquiry point [X], or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addres ses, if available of the other body:    
Internet URL's: 
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/ FR-2012-05-17/html/2012-11945.htm  
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-05-17/pdf/2012-11945.pdf