Bill aims to close revolving door between NHTSA, automakers
Look beyond the six million Toyota vehicles that have been recalled in the US over the past few months and you’ll see that there are several reasons why this story evolved into a full-fledged scandal.
There have been allegations of a cover-up on Toyota’s part and accusations that two former NHTSA officials, Chris Santucci and Chris Tinto, used their influence with old coworkers to narrow the focus of a 2004 investigation into sudden acceleration claims involving Toyota vehicles.
An investigation by ABC News found that NHTSA investigator, Scott Yon, met with Santucci and Tinto in March of 2004 and soon afterword recommended that the agency exclude reports of unintended acceleration where the acceleration lasted for more than several seconds and where control of the vehicle could not be regained after applying the brakes. In effect, this excluded the most serious cases of sudden acceleration from the investigation.
NHTSA is a, “lapdog, not a watchdog,” blasted Joan Claybrook, former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, at a March 11th hearing before the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection.
Claybrook, who led the agency during the Carter Administration, went on to say that she found 40 cases where former NHTSA employees went on to work as lawyers, consultants, and lobbyists for the industry they were once charged with regulating. This includes Rodney Slater, a former Secretary of Transportation who signed on earlier this year to head a special advisory board on quality for Toyota.
“Auto companies, including Toyota, treat the agency with contempt,” Claybrook leveled.
New legislation introduced by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-California) aims to close the revolving door between NHTSA and the auto industry that Claybrook referenced in her testimony. The legislation would prohibit former NHTSA regulators from working for an automaker for three years in any capacity that required written or oral communication with the government agency.
“I am deeply concerned about the all-too-cozy relationship between former NHTSA officials and the auto industry,” said Boxer at a press conference this morning. “My legislation would address this ‘revolving door’ by preventing automakers from having undue influence on agency decisions.”
The legislation would also impose penalties of $55,000 for individuals and $100,000 or more – plus civil penalties – for manufacturers who violate the requirements.
In an official response from NHTSA, spokesperson Julia Piscitelli defended her agency and its recently toughened set of ethics rules.
“The Obama administration enacted the toughest ethics rules in history to close the revolving door. The administration extended the ban prohibiting senior appointees leaving government from contacting employees of their former agency about official business from one to two years. And no political appointee is allowed to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration,” she explained. “We look forward to working with Congress further on these issues.”
