Inside This Issue...

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has submitted a notice identifying ports of entry where it will begin biometric screening of arriving aliens using the United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology (US-VISIT) Program. The ports are Fresno, California, the sea port of entry of New Orleans, Louisiana, and the pre-flight inspection location of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. This notice is effective Aug. 15, 2006 for Fresno, California, on or before Oct. 1, 2006, for Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada and Oct. 15, 2006, for New Orleans, Louisiana. For more information, contact Mark Rouse or Craig Howie, Senior Policy Advisors, US-VISIT, Department of Homeland Security, 1616 Fort Myer Drive, 18th Floor, Arlington, Virginia 22209, (202) 298-5200.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has issued a notice pursuant to the National Cooperative Research and Production Act of 1993—Revision of Voluntary Standard (ANSI/SVIA-1-2001) for Four-Wheel All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs). The notice states that, on June 13, 2006, pursuant to Section 6(a) of the National Cooperative Research and Production Act of 1993, 15 U.S.C. 4301et seq. (“the Act”), the parties involved in a joint venture regarding review and revision of the current voluntary standard (ANSI/SVIA-1-2001) for four-wheel all-terrain vehicles have filed written notifications simultaneously with the Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission disclosing (1) The identities of the parties to the venture and (2) the nature and objectives of the venture. The notifications were filed for the purpose of invoking the Act’s provisions limiting the recovery of antitrust plaintiffs to actual damages under specified circumstances. Pursuant to Section 6(b) of the Act, the identities of the parties are: American Honda Motor Co., Inc., Torrance CA; American Suzuki Motor Corporation, Brea, CA; Arctic Cat Inc., Thief River Falls, MN; Bombardier Recreational Products, Inc., Valcourt, Quebec, Canada; Deere & Company, Moline, IL; Kawasaki Motors Corp., U.S.A., Irvine, CA; Polaris Industries Inc., Medina, MN; and Yamaha Motor Corporation, U.S.A., Cypress, CA. The general areas of the joint venture’s planned activities are conducting research and collecting, exchanging and analyzing research information relating to review and revision of the current voluntary standard for four-wheel ATVs (ANSI/SVIA-1-2001).

The House Energy and Commerce Committee has approved legislation that would prevent the sale of Social Security Numbers. Approved by voice vote, HR 1078 would direct the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to set regulations within one year that restrict the sale or purchase of Social Security Numbers and any “unfair or deceptive” acts in that connection. FTC would be required to consider the nature, likelihood and severity of anticipated harm or benefits that could result from the sale or purchase of the numbers. The bill would provide exemptions for law enforcement or national security purposes, public health purposes, emergency situations to protect the health or safety of an individual, research purposes, consent from an individual or any other appropriate circumstance determined by the commission. The panel also adopted an amendment that would extend the exception for the use of Social Security Numbers for legitimate consumer credit verification if the numbers have been redacted or edited to protect personal information. The amendment would set penalties for the sale and purchase of the Social Security Number at $11,000 per violation, not to exceed a total of $5 million. The bill has been referred to the House Ways and Means Committee.

Under a rule issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), automakers will be required, for the first time ever, to tell new car buyers if an Event Data Recorder (EDR) has been installed. Event Data Recorders are electronic devices that capture crash data in the few seconds before, during and after a crash. EDRs do not capture any data unless there is a collision that is severe enough to cause the airbag to deploy. The new federal rule, which takes effect starting with model year 2011 cars, will require automakers who have chosen to install EDRs to note the presence of the safety monitoring equipment in the owner’s manual. The rule also includes new requirements designed to ensure that the data collected by EDRs can be used to improve highway safety. For example, the rule requires the devices to be more durable to protect data during a crash and requires automakers to collect the same type of crash data if they chose to install an EDR. The new federal regulation will apply to all passenger vehicles and light trucks with a gross vehicle weight of 8,500 pounds or less. NHTSA will separately evaluate EDR use in larger vehicles. For more information, see NHTSA's Web site.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has released new state-by-state and national data for 2005 showing that alcohol-impaired driving remains an extremely severe problem. Last year alone, there were 16,885 alcohol-related fatalities in traffic crashes. The drunk driving data provides new details that will help police and NHTSA tackle the problem, Acting Secretary Cino said. She noted that in 2005, 39 percent of all traffic deaths involved alcohol. However, she added that 23 states and Puerto Rico showed a decrease in the number of alcohol-related fatalities between 2004 and 2005. NHTSA’s new statistical report on alcohol-related fatalities is drawn from the agency’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and can be viewed on the agency's Web site.

The U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is accepting comments on an information gathering activity for the DRAFT 2006 Election Administration and Voting Survey. Written comments must be submitted on or before Friday, Sept. 29, 2006. The proposed survey can be viewed on EAC's Web site. To comment on the proposed survey, see to the Federal Register notice for specific instructions. For additional information, please contact Juliet Thompson-Hodgkins or Laiza Otero at (866) 747-1471.

On Aug. 17, Acting U.S. Transportation Secretary Maria Cino announced that James S. Simpson has been sworn in as the Federal Transit Administrator after being confirmed by the United States Senate. Prior to joining the Department, Simpson served for 10 years on the New York State Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), where he also served as Chairman of the Safety and Security Committee and Chairman of the Planning and Real Estate Committee. Following the terrorist attacks on 9/11, he was designated the primary MTA Board liaison to the Governor’s and Mayor’s offices to help coordinate MTA’s role at the World Trade Center site. Simpson began his career in transportation over 30 years ago as a tractor-trailer driver while attending college, and went on to own his own domestic and international moving and storage company.

The Department of Transportation's (DOT) Office of Inspector General announced that a laptop with personal information (SSNs, names, addresses, DOBs) on 81,000 CDL (Commercial Driver's License) holders in mostly the Miami-Dade County was taken by thieves. Federal and state investigators were hoping to make an arrest soon to ease the panic in the driver community. The crime occurred July 27, but wasn’t announced until August 9. Security Council members can read more in the Council’s October/November Security News to be published in November online at http://scata.truckline.com.

The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) has designated this September as Child Passenger Safety Month. New car dealers across the country will host child safety seat inspections at their dealerships, as part of NADA's national "Boost for Safety" campaign, a program developed in partnership with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The September initiative coincides with the back-to-school timeframe, when many children will be on the roads each day. More than 40,000 child passengers under age four are injured or killed in car crashes annually, according to NHTSA. The agency reports that over 50,000 children between four- and eight-years-old are injured or killed riding in cars annually. Approximately 40 percent of children under the age of eight who die or suffer serious injuries in fatal car crashes are completely unbelted. A list of dealers participating in the Safety Month will be posted on www.nada.org/boostforsafety in mid-August. The National Automobile Dealers represents approximately 20,000 new car and truck dealers holding nearly 43,000 separate franchises, domestic and international.

AAMVA welcomes back the fall workshops November 14-16, 2006 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. After a hiatus of several years, the fall workshops have returned to the AAMVA meeting track with a focus on motor carrier issues, law enforcement and technology. Planned by representatives from across committees and discipline areas, the new collaborative format will focus on improving highway safety and motor vehicle administration. Topics will include federal issues and rulemaking, funding and grants, credentials, roadside access, document fraud, highway safety enforcement campaigns and much more. Representatives from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also will be conducting interactive sessions with participants. FMCSA has qualified this workshop for use of MCSAP funding. Agenda details and meeting information is available on the AAMVA Web site at www.aamva.org.