House rejects amendment to allow pulsating brake light systems

Brake lights.

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted down an amendment to the Build America 250 Act surface transportation bill that would have shielded truck operators using pulsating brake light systems from federal enforcement while agency rules are finalized.

Debate focused on whether Congress or safety regulators should dictate vehicle highway standards.

Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard regulations require that installed brake lamps be steady burning. This holds whether or not the lamps are original equipment.

The brake lights flash rapidly when a vehicle decelerates to better alert trailing drivers and prevent rear-end collisions. They are popular among commercial motor carriers but face inconsistent state and federal regulatory enforcement. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has granted or denied exemptions on a case-by-case basis for several years.

The amendment was offered by Rep. Daniel Webster (R-FL) and sought to require a federal evaluation of the pulsing stop lamps based on practical data and real-world safety performance.

But the committee’s ranking member, Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA), argued the measure would strip authority from federal safety experts and disrupt active safety standard evaluations.

He was quoted as saying “It’s not the job of Congress to determine what complies with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards. These determinations are made by neutral experts at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).”

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