To amend title 49, United States Code, to require the Secretary of Transportation to promulgate rules to require that all motor vehicles be equipped with event data recorders by 2015, and for other purposes.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Event Data Recorder Enhancement 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Event data recorders have the potential to greatly 
        improve motor vehicle safety by improving occupant protection 
        systems and improving the accuracy of crash reconstructions.
            (2) Event data recorder technology has potential safety 
        applications for all classes of motor vehicles.
            (3) A wide range of crash-related and other data elements 
        have been identified which can usefully be captured by event 
        data recorders.
            (4) The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has 
        incorporated event data recorder data collection in its motor 
        vehicle research databases.
            (5) Open access to event data recorder data will benefit 
        researchers, crash investigators, and manufacturers in 
        improving motor vehicle safety.
            (6) Studies of event data recorder information in Europe 
        and the United States have shown that driver and employee 
        awareness of an on-board event data recorder reduces the number 
        and severity of crashes.
            (7) Given the differing nature of cars, vans, SUVs, and 
        other lightweight vehicles, compared to heavy trucks, school 
        buses, and motor coaches, different event data recorder data 
        systems may be required to meet the needs of each vehicle 
        class.
            (8) The degree of benefit from an event data recorder is 
        directly related to the number of vehicles operating with an 
        event data recorder and the current infrastructure's ability to 
        use and assimilate the data.
            (9) Automatic crash notification systems integrate the on-
        board crash sensing and event data recorder technology with 
        other electronic systems, such as global positioning systems 
        and cellular telephones, to provide early notification of the 
        occurrence, nature, and location of a serious collision.

SEC. 3. EVENT DATA RECORDERS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter II of chapter 301 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 30129. Event data recorders
    ``(a) Required Event Data Recorders.--Not later than 6 months after 
the date of the enactment of this section, the Secretary shall modify 
the motor vehicle safety standard contained in part 563 of title 49, 
Code of Federal Regulations, to require that passenger automobiles (as 
defined in section 32901(a)(16)) be equipped with an event data 
recorder that meets the requirements for event data recorders set forth 
in such part. The Secretary shall require manufacturers to include such 
event data recorders in--
            ``(1) not less than 25 percent of their fleet beginning in 
        model year 2013;
            ``(2) not less than 65 percent of their fleet beginning in 
        model year 2014; and
            ``(3) 100 percent of their fleet beginning in model year 
        2015.
    ``(b) Compatible Data Retrieval Tools.--Not later than 12 months 
after the date of enactment of this section, the Secretary shall modify 
the requirements in section 563.12 of title 49, Code of Federal 
Regulations, to require a standardized port for accessing and 
retrieving data stored in any event data recorder and that is 
compatible with all such event data recorders regardless of the 
manufacturer or model of the motor vehicle.
    ``(c) Disclosure.--The owner's manual of each new motor vehicle 
sold or leased in the United States that is equipped with a recording 
device shall clearly indicate the presence of the event data recorder 
required under this section, in accordance with section 563.11 of title 
49, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulation).
    ``(d) Privacy Protections.--Information recorded or transmitted by 
event data recorder required under this section may not be retrieved by 
a person other than the owner of the motor vehicle in which the 
recording device is installed unless--
            ``(1) a court authorizes retrieval of such information in 
        furtherance of a legal proceeding;
            ``(2) the owner consents to such retrieval for any purpose, 
        including diagnosing, servicing, or repairing the motor 
        vehicle; or
            ``(3)(A) the information is retrieved by a government motor 
        vehicle safety agency for the purpose of improving motor 
        vehicle safety; and
            ``(B) the personally identifiable information of the owner 
        or driver of the vehicle or the vehicle identification number 
        is not disclosed in connection with the retrieved information.
    ``(e) Non-Application to Trailers.--The requirements promulgated 
under this section shall apply to all motor vehicles except trailers, 
as such term is defined in section 571.3 of title 49, Code of Federal 
Regulations.
    ``(f) Definition of Model Year.--For purposes of this section, the 
term `model year' means the manufacturer's annual production period 
that begins on September 1 of a given year which includes January 1 of 
the calendar year for which it is named. If the manufacturer has no 
annual production period, the term `model year' for that manufacturer 
means the calendar year.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning of 
such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 
30128 the following new item:

30129. Event data recorders.

Summary: Event Data Recorder Enhancement Act - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to modify certain federal motor vehicle safety standards to require that passenger automobiles (except trailers) be equipped with: (1) an event data recorder (EDR) meeting certain requirements; and (2) a standardized port for accessing and retrieving data stored in any EDR regardless of the manufacturer or model of the motor vehicle.

Requires manufacturers of passenger automobiles to include EDRs in: (1) at least 25% of their fleet beginning in model 2013; (2) at least 65% of their fleet beginning in model year 2014; and (3) 100% of their fleet beginning in model year 2015.

Requires the owner's manual of new motor vehicles sold or leased in the United States to indicate clearly the presence of EDRs.

Prohibits the retrieval of information recorded or transmitted by an EDR by any other person than the owner of the motor vehicle in which such device is installed unless: (1) authorized by court order, the owner consents, or the information is retrieved by a government motor vehicle safety agency; and (2) the personally identifiable information of the owner or driver of the vehicle or vehicle identification number (VIN) is not disclosed in the retrieval of information.