NHTSA, the Nation’s Top Auto-Safety Regulator, Is Losing Its Administrator
The nation’s top auto-safety regulator is losing its top administrator
Steven Cliff,
less than three months after lawmakers confirmed his appointment to the job.
In a statement on Friday, Mr. Cliff said he was leaving the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to rejoin the California Air Resources Board, where he’d worked previously and will become its executive officer.
Mr. Cliff, who was confirmed in late May by Congress, was NHTSA’s first permanent boss in years and his arrival came at a critical time for the agency, which is grappling with how to better regulate new technologies, like self-driving cars.
NHTSA said that Mr. Cliff will leave his position in mid-September and the agency’s chief counsel,
Ann Carlson,
will assume his responsibilities in the interim.
Mr. Cliff, in a statement, said that the position at CARB provides him with a unique position to work with California, other states and federal regulators to support the Biden administration’s transportation policies.
His surprise departure leaves the agency, which oversees safety and fuel-economy regulations for the auto industry, with another leadership vacuum. During the Trump administration, NHTSA was without a permanent administrator, and Mr. Cliff, who joined on an acting basis in February 2021, wasn’t confirmed until the following year.
In his short tenure, Mr. Cliff oversaw the implementation of more stringent fuel-economy requirements for auto makers and NHTSA rolled out new reporting standards for automated and driver-assistance technologies.
In June, NHTSA released data that provided the public with its first detailed look at vehicle crashes involving self-driving cars and other systems that automate certain driving tasks, such as steering and braking. The report drew criticism from auto makers, who said that it could unfairly malign the technology.
Also, under Mr. Cliff, NHTSA escalated its investigation into emergency-scene crashes involving
Tesla Inc.’s
Autopilot, a critical step for determining whether to order a safety recall. Tesla has said that driving with Autopilot engaged is safer than doing so without it.
Write to Ryan Felton at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
The nation’s top auto-safety regulator is losing its top administrator
Steven Cliff,
less than three months after lawmakers confirmed his appointment to the job.
In a statement on Friday, Mr. Cliff said he was leaving the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to rejoin the California Air Resources Board, where he’d worked previously and will become its executive officer.
Mr. Cliff, who was confirmed in late May by Congress, was NHTSA’s first permanent boss in years and his arrival came at a critical time for the agency, which is grappling with how to better regulate new technologies, like self-driving cars.
NHTSA said that Mr. Cliff will leave his position in mid-September and the agency’s chief counsel,
Ann Carlson,
will assume his responsibilities in the interim.
Mr. Cliff, in a statement, said that the position at CARB provides him with a unique position to work with California, other states and federal regulators to support the Biden administration’s transportation policies.
His surprise departure leaves the agency, which oversees safety and fuel-economy regulations for the auto industry, with another leadership vacuum. During the Trump administration, NHTSA was without a permanent administrator, and Mr. Cliff, who joined on an acting basis in February 2021, wasn’t confirmed until the following year.
In his short tenure, Mr. Cliff oversaw the implementation of more stringent fuel-economy requirements for auto makers and NHTSA rolled out new reporting standards for automated and driver-assistance technologies.
In June, NHTSA released data that provided the public with its first detailed look at vehicle crashes involving self-driving cars and other systems that automate certain driving tasks, such as steering and braking. The report drew criticism from auto makers, who said that it could unfairly malign the technology.
Also, under Mr. Cliff, NHTSA escalated its investigation into emergency-scene crashes involving
Tesla Inc.’s
Autopilot, a critical step for determining whether to order a safety recall. Tesla has said that driving with Autopilot engaged is safer than doing so without it.
Write to Ryan Felton at [email protected]
Copyright ©2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8
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