Congressional Record-House August 17, 1966, 19631 Mr. SPRINGER. Obviously, the most important piece of equipment which comes to mind is the tire. The other body treated this subject in separate legislation, but it seems to me, and it did to our committee, that tire standards must be part and parcel of any legislation which seeks to impose standards of safety for the cars on the highway. Consequently, a portion of the bill was devoted specifically to this subject. It requires minimum standards for all tires, and then sees to it that the buyer will have all the information he needs to make a decision as to the tire he needs. He will know who makes the tire, the number of plies and the maximum load it should carry. Also, there will be a uniform grading system established. Equally important to informing the buyer of replacement tires, is the re quirement that the original equipment tires be adequate for the purposes the vehicle is designed to be used for. For example, & manufacturer must put strong enough tires on a nine passenger station wagon to hold the weight of nine passengers plus a reasonable amount of luggage. If all of the standards for the vehicle, plus adequate tires, make such a wagon ride like a truck, then there has been something terribly wrong with wagons up to now. Probably this will not happen. In any event, this bill should afford great additional protection to the car buyer when he makes the purchase and when he replaces the original tires with new ones. Congressional Record-House August 17, 1966, 19639 Mr. MOSS. I should like to ask the chairman a question. Because tire manufacturing and retreading processes involve different techniques, I should like to ask the chairman whether the Secretary would have authority under this bill to establish safety standards for retreaded tires in the form of minimum safe procedures for retreading tires? Mr. STAGGERS. I would like to call the gentleman's attention to the language on page 32 of the report, which states that in establishing standards for tires, the Secretary will have to consider the distinction between new tires and retreads. The National Bureau of Standards has informed the committee that it is not now feasible to test retread tires for performance in the manner in which the performance of new tires is tested. The committee report recognizes the existence of these technical problems. The usefulness of retread tires has been well established for various purposes, and standards can be developed which will insure safety to the public. The Secretary certainly would be empowered to do so under the bill. Congressional Record-House August 17, 1966, 19647 Mr. GIAIMO. Mr. Chairman, I rise in support of this legislation. I should like to commend the chairman of the committee and the committee for presenting it to the House. I believe it is legislation which is much needed and necessary. I take this time to ask a question of the chairman or of the committee concerning section 201, which deals with tire safety. In my district we have a major tire manufacturer which manufactures tires and, in addition, makes brand name tires for a major distributor and merchandiser. Actually, it makes tires for Sears. These tires are sold under the Sears name. As I understand the legislation, section 201 provides: Suitable identification of the manufacturer, .. ⚫ unless the tire contains a brand name other than the name of the manufacturer in which case it shall also contain a code mark which would permit the seller of such tire to identify the manufacturer thereof to the purchaser upon his request. Do I correctly understand that under this legislation the manufacturer of the tire could still manufacture the tire, which would carry the Sears trade name, and in addition to that would have some sort of identifying mark of the manufacturer? Mr. STAGGERS. You are correct. Mr. GIAIMO. But that it will not have the manufacturer's name on it. Is that correct? Mr. STAGGERS. That is correct. Mr. GIAIMO. So in this case such manufacturers will be protected? Mr. STAGGERS. That is true. Congressional Record-House August 17, 1966, 19651 Mr. HORTON. As one who introduced the Tire Safety Act, H.R. 11891, on the first day of this session of Congress, I am proud that the major provisions of this bill have been incorporated into the measure now before us as title II. During my testimony before the House Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, I said: With ever more traffic on our high speed Interstate Highway System and other major arterial roads, the need becomes more urgent by the hour for standards which will assure every motorist that his tires will in fact be safe under all driving conditions. I have brought the need for tire and auto safety legislation before my constituents on many occasions. On March 2, the day President Johnson sent his traffic safety message to Congress, I shared his message with my constituents in the following statement: [From the office of Congressman FRANK HORTON, Mar. 2, 1966] PRESIDENT'S TRANSPORTATION MESSAGE то CONGRESS SUPPORTS HORTON BILL ON TIRE SAFETY I am pleased to report that in today's White House Message on Transportation, the President specifically endorsed part of my own legislative program, the Tire Safety Act of 1966. My bill would establish Federal safety standards for all motor vehicle tires sold or shipped in interstate commerce. The President's Message said, in part, that "Most tires sold to American drivers are produced and properly tested by reputable companies. Nevertheless, evidence has shown that increasing numbers of inferior tires are being sold to unwitting customers throughout the country. The dangers such tires hold for high-speed automobiles and their occupants is obvious." The White House endorsement includes & plea for prompt passage of this legislation. In addition to the important support of the Administration for the Tire Safety Act, my bill has also received enthusiastic support from the American Automobile Association and the American Trial Lawyers Association. With such widespread recognition of the need for tire safety standards, I hope that I can soon report the enactment of this bill by Congress. On April 22, after our spring recess, I again sought constituent support for tire safety legislation in the following message: [From the office of Congressman FRANK HORTON] TEXT OF REMARKS PREPARED FOR BROADCAST OVER TOM DECKER'S NEWS PROGRAM ON WROC-TV (CHANNEL 8) ROCHESTER, N.Y., FRIDAY, APRIL 22, 1966 Thanks, Tom. Congress came back into session this week, following its Easter recess, and the calendar of legislation still to be considered is crowded. Many major items await debate and decision before the 89th Congress can adjourn. The newsletter that now is in the mail to all my 36th District constituents will highlight both what has been done this year and what remains. There is one item that I hope the House of Representatives will soon take up and pass. It is the Tire Safety Act. Already House Committee Report House Report 1776, Pages 32 and 33 Title II-Tire Safety SAFETY INFORMATION Section 201 of the reported bill requires the Secretary in establishing his standards for pneumatic tires under title I to require that tires subject thereto be permanently and conspicuously labeled with such safety information as he determines necessary to carry out the purposes of the act. This labeling is to include (1) Suitable identification of the manufacturer or retreader (unless the tire contains a brand name other than the name of the manufacturer) in which case the tire is required to contain a code mark which would permit the seller of the tire to identify to the purchaser, upon his request, the manufacturer of the tire; (2) Composition of the material used in the ply; (3) The actual number of plies; (4) The maximum permissible load for the tire; and (5) A recital that the tire conforms to Federal safety standards, except that in lieu thereof the Secretary may prescribe a mark or symbol to be used indicating such conformance. The section also permits the Secretary to require additional safety information be disclosed to the purchaser of the tire at the time he buys it. In a number of bills which have been introduced in both Houses as well as in a bill which has passed the Senate (S. 2669) the necessity for standards for tires was considered as an independent problem and without reference to its relationship to the total traffic safety problem. S. 2669 is confined only to the improvement of tires for passenger cars and station wagons. The committee decided that although tires are a highly important part of the total traffic safety problem they are, nevertheless, an integral part of it and should be dealt with in the context of the total problem and not in a piecemeal fashion. Therefore it is neither necessary nor desirable to grant separate authority for the establishment of standards for this one item of motor vehicle equipment when the Secretary has full authority to issue standards as to tires (as well as any other item of motor vehicle equipment) under title I of the reported bill. However the committee did feel that it was necessary to emphasize this aspect of the safety problem, and to establish certain specific requirements which should be contained in the Secretary's standards on tires. These requirements are set forth in section 201, and deal only with information to be given to consumers. The Secretary's authority to establish standards as to tire performance is contained in title I, and in establishing these standards he will have to consider distinctions between new tires and retreads. TIRES ON NEW VEHICLES Section 202 of the reported bill requires the Secretary to establish standards under title I to require that each motor vehicle be equipped (either by the manufacturer or the purchaser) at the time of the first 33 purchase for purposes other than resale, with tires which will meet the maximum permissible load standards when the vehicle is fully loaded with the maximum number of passengers it is designed to carry and a reasonable amount of luggage. The committee was advised that a number of new vehicles, particularly station wagons, have been equipped with tires which were less than adequate to meet the loads which such vehicles are designed and expected to carry. This section prevents that practice. At present, it is possible to purchase vehicles from manufacturers without tires or with the type and size of tire specified by the purchaser. The committee does not intend that the Secretary alter this possibility, except that the standards of the Secretary should insure that tires on a particular vehicle be adequate to safely carry the weight of the vehicle together with the maximum number of passengers that the vehicle is designed to carry, together with a reasonable amount of luggage. Therefore, section 202 requires either the manufacturer or the purchaser to equip the vehicle with tires which at their recommended pressures meet such maximum permissible load standards. UNIFORM QUALITY GRADING SYSTEM Section 203 of the reported bill requires the Secretary to prescribe a uniform quality grading system for motor vehicle tires within 2 years of the date of enactment of this title. The order establishing this system is to take effect 180 days after the date of its publication. The Secretary is further required to cooperate with industry and the Federal Trade Commission to eliminate deceptive and confusing tire nomenclature and marketing practices. In the course of the hearings and in discussions in executive session it became clear to the committee that the user's and consumer's confusion as to the quality of tires is a problem of great magnitude. Although some have argued that quality grading is solely an economic problem, the committee is satisfied this is not so and that it has a direct relationship to safety. Standards as to grading are necessary to assure safety. Grading standards, as well as any other tire standards related to safety, are within the scope of the authority of the Secretary under title I of the bill. The Secretary has a maximum of 2 years to establish a uniform quality grading system. With the cooperation of industry it is hoped that the formulation of this grading system will be undertaken immediately and that it will be established promptly. Senate Passed Act Contains no comparable provision. Senate Debate Contains nothing helpful. Senate Committee Report Contains nothing helpful. |