Autonomous Vehicles Memo

The purpose of this memo is to provide an explanation and details on recent efforts in Congress to draft legislation on autonomous vehicles. If enacted, the legislation would introduce an overarching regulatory framework for this emerging technology that would preempt any current or future state and local rules. There are three parts to this memo. Each part focuses on one specific aspect of the legislation and why it is important and relevant to our organization. This will allow for a more comprehensive understanding of this particularly complex attempt at federal regulation.
SO MANY CHOICES, SO LITTLE TIME

After nearly a decade in development, it has become clear that autonomous (self-driving) vehicles has enormous potential to be “the next big” technological advance that is poised to positively disrupt how Americans commute and travel. The problem, however, is that development has been disparate. While there have been a number of promising advances with the technology, those advances have occurred under a ranger in different states, city, and local safety, licensing and performance regulations
In other words, state, city and local laws would no longer be applicable or enforceable. Instead, only compliance to federal guidelines would be required. As a result, with only one set of guidelines to follow, automakers and technology companies, the primary stakeholders in the development of self-driving cars would be freed from the fear that any return on investments for their efforts in advancing the technology would be minimal. That is to say, federal preemption would expand the potential market reach for self-driving cars to a national and international scale. This creates a much larger potential for automakers and technology companies to profit than limiting car development to a single state or local