. /.   WORLD TRADE  
ORGANIZATION  G/TBT/N/USA/188 
9 May 2006 
 (06-2271) 
Committee on Technical Barriers to Trade Original:   English 
  
 
NOTIFICATION 
 
The following notification is being circ ulated in accordance with Article 10.6. 
 
1. Member to Agreement notifying:   UNITED STATES
 
If applicable, name of local government involved (Articles 3.2 and 7.2):         
2. Agency responsible:   National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (DOT, NHTSA) 
(194) 
Name and address (including telephone and fax numbers, e-mail and web-site 
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):   Motor vehicles  
(HS:  Chapter  8703;  ICS:  43)   
5. Title, number of pages and language(s) of the notified document:   Federal Motor 
Vehicle Safety Standards; Occupant Protection in Interior Impact (8 pages,  English) 
6. Description of content:   Our safety standard on occupant protection in interior impact 
requires, in part, that light vehicles provide h ead protection when an o ccupant's head strikes 
upper interior components, such as pillars, side  rails, headers, and the roof during a crash. 
For altered vehicles and vehicles built in two or more stages, these requirements become effective 1 September 2006. The Recreation Ve hicle Industry Association and the National 
Truck Equipment Association petitioned the agency  to permanently exclude certain types of 
altered vehicles and vehicles manufactured in two or more stages from these requirements. 
This document responds to these petitions for rulemaking and proposes certain amendments 
to the standard.    Based on a careful consid eration of both the safety benefits of the upper 
interior protection requirements, and practicab ility concerns relating to vehicles built in two 
or more stages and certain altered vehicles, we are proposing to limit these requirements to 
only the front seating positions of those vehicles. Further, we tentatively conclude that it is 
appropriate to exclude a narrow group of multi- stage vehicles delivered to the final stage 
manufacturer without an occupant compartment,  because of impracticability concerns.  We 
are also proposing to delay the effective date of the head impact protection requirements as 
they apply to final stage manufacturer s and alterers until 1 September 2008. 
7. Objective and rationale, including the na ture of urgent problems where applicable:  
Protection of human life and health 
8. Relevant documents:   :  71 Federal Register (FR) 20932 24 April 2006; Title 49 Code of 
Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 571.  Will app ear in the Federal Register when adopted. G/TBT/N/USA/188 
Page 2  
 
  9. Proposed date of adoption:   
Proposed date of entry into force:   }To be determined 
10. Final date for comments:   23 June 2006 
11. Texts available from:  National enquiry point [  X ] or address, telephone and fax 
numbers, e-mail and web-site addresses, if available of the other body:   
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/24 22/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/E6-
6024.htm 
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/24 22/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/
E6-6024.pdf