WASHINGTON, DC - House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) today responded to new reports regarding the recalls of vehicles equipped with faulty Takata air bag inflators. The New York Times today reported that Takata may have been aware of the dangerous defect as early as 2004 but failed to alert safety regulators. The committee began a review of the Takata air bag issue even before these latest revelations, and has already received bipartisan staff briefings from NHTSA and manufacturers on the status of the air bag recalls; the panel’s oversight of the issue is ongoing.
“Our first and most urgent priority is ensuring that drivers and their families are safe on the road. As the recalls continue and the faulty airbags are replaced, we also need answers about when the danger was discovered and whether it was concealed from regulators, or not adequately understood once the regulators became aware. A consistent focus for the committee has been information sharing - making sure that as soon as a danger is identified, the regulators are notified and a plan is put into place to address it. Auto safety will continue to be a priority for this committee for the rest of this Congress and well into next year," said Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI).
The Energy and Commerce Committee has been actively engaged on auto safety issues this year. The committee conducted an extensive investigation into the General Motors ignition switch recall, and recently released a report detailing NHTSA’s failures in identifying the deadly problem. Following this report, bipartisan leaders have requested a Government Accountability Office review of NHTSA’s structure and effectiveness, including the agency’s information sharing capabilities.
