For some time, California has acted as a de facto second level of regulatory authority over national automobile policy. Ever since the passage of the 1970 Clean Air Act included a special carveout for California to set its own stricter auto emissions standards, California has enforced standards that automakers have had little choice but to abide by. But while this blurring of the federalist structure is just one more example of California flexing its muscle as the country’s largest economy to effectively set national policy, New York may soon try and get in on the action.
A recently introduced bill in the New York State Senate would require cars sold to New Yorkers to comply with several new safety standards by 2024. These standards include visibility rules for larger vehicles such as trucks and SUVs, as well as speed-limiting technology (known as Intelligent Speed Assistance or ISA) and automated emergency braking systems.
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