Congressman Introduces Amendment To Defund ‘Kill Switch’ For New Vehicles

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) introduced an amendment to defund the federal mandate to implement a ‘kill switch’ for all new vehicles.

“This week the House will vote on my amendment to defund the federal mandate that requires all new vehicles be equipped with a kill switch to monitor driver performance and prevent vehicle operation,” Massie said Monday.

This week the House will vote on my amendment to defund the federal mandate that requires all new vehicles be equipped with a kill switch to monitor driver performance and prevent vehicle operation. pic.twitter.com/FVWDpGsyUI

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) November 6, 2023

“If it passes, my ‘kill switch’ amendment will defund the looming mandate that all new vehicles sold after 2026 be equipped with technology that can automatically disable vehicles,” Massie added.

“Section 24220 of the infrastructure, investment, and jobs act requires all newly manufactured vehicles to be equipped with technology to monitor your performance while driving and to prevent vehicle operation if the car so determines that you are not doing a very good job of driving,” Massie said on November 1st.

“Allowing the car to disable itself I think is troublesome. We don’t have a lot of time. This is supposed to be implemented in 2026. And I don’t know about you all, but I would like to know when I put my family in the car and I’m taking a trip somewhere, the car is not going to disqualify me,” he added.

WATCH:

If it passes, my "kill switch” amendment will defund the looming mandate that all new vehicles sold after 2026 be equipped with technology that can automatically disable vehicles. pic.twitter.com/R32AXUPdI4

— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) November 7, 2023

The ‘kill switch’ was hidden in the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, with the excuse to prevent “alcohol-impaired driving fatalities.”

SEC. 24220. ADVANCED IMPAIRED DRIVING TECHNOLOGY states “to ensure the prevention of alcohol-impaired driving fatalities, advanced drunk and impaired driving prevention technology must be standard equipment in all new passenger motor vehicles.”

From the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act:

“I’ll proudly be supporting this amendment!” Rep. Kat Cammack (R-FL) commented.

I’ll proudly be supporting this amendment! #SayNoToBigBrother https://t.co/CAx7XO503p

— Kat Cammack (@Kat_Cammack) November 6, 2023

Motorious explains why the ‘kill switch’ is a frightening level of government overreach and disdain for the inalienable rights of Americans:

It gets even better: Barr points out that the bill, which has been signed into law by President Biden, states that the kill switch, which is referred to as a safety device, must “passively monitor the performance of a driver of a motor vehicle to accurately identify whether that driver may be impaired.” In other words, Big Brother will constantly be monitoring how you drive. If you do something the system has been programmed to recognize as driver impairment, your car could just shut off, which could be incredibly dangerous.

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There is the possibility the kill switch program might measure your driving as impaired, then when you try to start the car up again the engine won’t fire up. That would potentially leave you stranded.

But wait, there’s more. This kill switch “safety” system would be open, or in other words there would be a backdoor. That would allow police or other government authorities to access it whenever. Would they need a warrant to do that? Likely not. Even better, hackers could access the backdoor and shut down your vehicle.

Barr points out what a tremendous violation of Americans’ privacy this is, and he’s right. In addition, the term “impaired driving” isn’t defined by the legislation, so it would be open to interpretation by regulators such as the Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Do you want government regulators helping to write algorithms which might force your car to pull over and stop because you might be a little tired instead of tipsy? There was never a debate on the House or Senate floor about this issue. Instead, this bill was passed through with many backroom deals I detailed out before here, if you care to learn more about that.

THANK YOU @RepThomasMassie — this insane kill switch mandate has been lurking inside a bill already passed and signed into law. https://t.co/Iraw2rVoMm

— Mike Opelka (@stuntbrain) November 6, 2023

Mainstream ‘fact checkers’ declared the ‘kill switch’ fake news.

That should tell you everything you need to know.

From USA Today:

The claim: Bill gives government and law enforcement access to a ‘kill switch’ in vehicles beginning 2026
A Jan. 2 Facebook post (direct link, archived link) from musician Ted Nugent shows a screenshot of a tweet with a photo of President Joe Biden and another photo of cars on a highway.

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“Beginning 2026, a kill switch will be a mandatory feature on vehicles,” reads the tweet. “The device allows the government, the police, and car makers to disable your car from the comfort of their offices. Reminder – 18 GOP voted for this bill.”

The tweet is a reference to a line from a commentary piece in The Western Journal titled “Truth About Mandatory ‘Safety Device’ Biden Signed Into Law – This Is the Power Government Wants Over You” that makes the same claim.

The post generated over 100 shares in less than two weeks.

Our rating: False

Automobile experts told USA TODAY the bill does not direct a kill switch to be implemented in cars, nor does it give any third parties, including law enforcement or government officials, access to the in-vehicle technology. Rather, the bill in question directs a federal agency to require technology that would detect driver impairment and disable the vehicle in that scenario.

Claim misinterprets drunk driving provision in the bill

In 2021, Biden signed the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, bipartisan legislation aimed at enhancing the country’s infrastructure. One provision in the bill seeks to prevent alcohol-related driving fatalities by making “drunk and impaired driving prevention technology” standard equipment in all new vehicles.

The claim, however, misrepresents the bill’s directive on the technology.