Q: In this task, you are given text for US Congressional and California state bills, your task is to generate a summary for this bill.
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ''Vehicle Event History Information
Capturing Leads to Engineering Safety Improvements Act of 2010'' or the
''VEHICLE Safety Improvements Act of 2010''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In August 2001, the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration Research and Development Event Data Recorder
Working Group published the following findings:
(A) ''EDRs [event data recorders] have the
potential to greatly improve highway safety, for
example, by improving occupant protection systems and
improving the accuracy of crash reconstructions.''.
(B) ''EDR technology has potential safety
applications for all classes of motor vehicles.''.
(C) ''A wide range of crash related and other data
elements have been identified which might usefully be
captured by future EDR systems.''.
(D) ''NHTSA has incorporated EDR data collection in
its motor vehicle research databases.''.
(E) ''Open access to EDR data (minus personal
identifiers) will benefit researchers, crash
investigators, and manufacturers in improving safety on
the highways.''.
(F) ''Studies of EDRs in Europe and the U.S. have
shown that driver and employee awareness of an on-board
EDR reduces the number and severity of drivers'
crashes.''.
(G) ''Given the differing nature of cars, vans,
SUVs, and other lightweight vehicles, compared to heavy
trucks, school buses, and motorcoaches, different EDR
systems may be required to meet the needs of each
vehicle class.''.
(H) ''Most systems utilize proprietary technology
and require the manufacturer to download and analyze
the data.''.
(2) The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA) issued an event data recorder rule on August 28, 2006
(71 Fed. Reg. 50998), that--
(A) included a number of technical requirements for
event data recorders if they were provided in the motor
vehicle, including standardized data required to be
collected, the data format, and requirements for the
event data recorder to be readable following severe
crashes; and
(B) did not require the installation of event data
recorders in any motor vehicle.
(3) Recent NHTSA investigations have highlighted the
importance of event data recorders in determining the nature
and cause of motor vehicle crashes and malfunctions.

SEC. 3. EVENT DATA RECORDERS.

Section 30166 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
''(a) Definitions.--In this section:
''(1) Model year.--The term 'model year' means--
''(A) the annual production period of a
manufacturer that begins on September 1 of the year
preceding the calendar year for which the model year is
named; and
''(B) the calendar year for which the model year is
named, if the manufacturer has no annual production
period.
''(2) Motor vehicle crash.--The term 'motor vehicle crash'
means an occurrence associated with the maintenance or
operation of a motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment
resulting in personal injury, death, or property damage.
''(3) Owner.--The term 'owner' means a person who--
''(A) has all the incidents of ownership of a motor
vehicle, including legal title, regardless of whether
the person lends, rents, or creates a security interest
in the vehicle; or
''(B) is entitled to possession of a motor vehicle
as--
''(i) a purchaser under a security
agreement; or
''(ii) a lessee under a written lease
agreement for a period of at least 3 months.
''(4) Recording device.--The term 'recording device' means
a feature that--
''(A) is installed by the manufacturer in a motor
vehicle; and
''(B) complies with part 563 of title 49, Code of
Federal Regulations, for the purpose of retrieving
information from the motor vehicle after an event
involving the motor vehicle.''; and
(2) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by striking ''accident'' and
inserting ''crash'';
(3) in subsection (c)(3), by striking ''accident'' each
place it appears and inserting ''crash''; and
(4) by adding at the end the following:
''(o) Event Data Recorders.--
''(1) Installation requirement.--
''(A) Light-duty motor vehicles.--Beginning not
later than the September 1 that is between 1 and 2
years after the date on which regulations are
promulgated under section 4(a) of the VEHICLE Safety
Improvements Act of 2010--
''(i) each new motor vehicle with a gross
vehicle weight rating of not more than 8,500
pounds that manufactured for sale or lease in
the United States shall be equipped with a
recording device that complies with part 563 of
title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or any
successor regulation); and
''(ii) the data stored on any recording
device installed in any such new motor vehicle
shall be accessible and retrievable by a
commercially available universal data reader.
''(B) Medium- and heavy-duty motor vehicles.--
Beginning not later than the September 1 that is
between 3 and 4 years after the date on which
regulations are promulgated under section 4(b) of the
VEHICLE Safety Improvements Act of 2010--
''(i) each new motor vehicle with a gross
vehicle weight rating of more than 8,500 pounds
that is manufactured for sale or lease in the
United States shall be equipped with a
recording device that complies with part 563 of
title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or any
successor regulation); and
''(ii) the data stored on any recording
device installed in any such new motor vehicle
shall be accessible and retrievable by a
commercially available universal data reader.
''(2) 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
such a recording device, in accordance with section 563.11 of
title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor
regulation).
''(3) Privacy protection.--Information recorded or
transmitted by a recording device may not be retrieved by a
person other than the owner of the motor vehicle in which the
recording device is installed unless--
''(A) a court authorizes retrieval of such
information in furtherance of a legal proceeding;
''(B) the owner consents to such retrieval for any
purpose, including diagnosing, servicing, or repairing
the motor vehicle; or
''(C)(i) the information is retrieved by a
government motor vehicle safety agency for the purpose
of improving motor vehicle safety; and
''(ii) 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.''.

SEC. 4. RULEMAKING.

(a) Light-Duty Motor Vehicles.--Not later than 18 months after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation
shall promulgate regulations to carry out the provisions of section
30166(o) of title 49, United States Code, relating to light-duty motor
vehicles.
(b) Medium- and Heavy-Duty Motor Vehicles.--Not later than 3 years
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of
Transportation shall promulgate regulations to carry out the provisions
of section 30166(o) of title 49, United States Code, relating to
medium- and heavy-duty motor vehicles.
A:
Vehicle Event History Information Capturing Leads to Engineering Safety Improvements Act of 2010 or VEHICLE Safety Improvements Act of 2010 - Directs the Secretary of Transportation (DOT) to promulgate regulations to require: (1) each new light-, medium-, and heavy-duty motor vehicle manufactured for sale or lease in the United States to be equipped with an event data recorder (EDR) meeting certain requirements; and (2) any data stored in the EDR of such vehicles to be accessible and retrievable by a commercially available universal data reader.

Requires the owner's manual of new motor vehicles to indicate clearly the presence of EDRs.

Prohibits the retrieval of information recorded or transmitted by an EDR by any person other than the owner of the motor vehicle in which such device is installed, unless: (1) a court authorizes it, the owner consents, or the information is retrieved by a government motor vehicle safety agency; and (2) neither the personally identifiable information of the vehicle owner or driver nor the vehicle identification number (VIN) is disclosed in the retrieval of information.