WASHINGTON, D.C.— Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Senator Mark Pryor, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Consumer Protection, Product Safety, and Insurance, sent a letter yesterday to the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Transportation as part of its investigation of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) handling of the Toyota recalls.
The letter requests that the Inspector General expand his audit to encompass:
Industry-wide complaints or reports collected by NHTSA regarding sudden unintended acceleration and brake failure in automobiles with electronic throttle and braking control systems;
Compliance with the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and Documentation (TREAD) Act reporting requirements; and
Government ethics at NHTSA.
