California Governor Vetoes Bill Requiring Speed Alert Systems in New Vehicles
California Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed a bill that would have required new cars to beep at drivers if they exceed the speed limit. The bill, which would have made California the first state to implement such a requirement, was aimed at reducing traffic deaths.
The legislation would have mandated that all new cars, trucks, and buses sold in California be equipped with intelligent speed assistance systems starting in 2030. These systems use GPS to compare a vehicle’s speed with posted speed limits and emit a visual and audio alert if the vehicle is traveling at least 10 mph over the limit.
Newsom vetoed the bill on Saturday, citing concerns that adding California-specific requirements would create a “patchwork of regulations” since federal law already dictates vehicle safety standards. He also noted that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is actively evaluating intelligent speed assistance systems, and imposing state-level mandates could disrupt these ongoing federal assessments.
The bill’s opponents, including automotive groups and the state Chamber of Commerce, argued that such regulations should be decided by the federal government. They also expressed concerns that the requirement could make cars more expensive and distract drivers. Republican lawmakers shared these concerns.
The legislation would have likely impacted all new car sales in the U.S., as car manufacturers would likely have made all of their vehicles comply with California’s regulations due to the state’s large market. This is not the first time California has influenced national policy with its regulations; the state has set its own emission standards for cars for decades, and more than a dozen other states have followed suit.
Democratic state Sen. Scott Wiener, who sponsored the bill, called the veto “disappointing” and a “setback for street safety.” Wiener argued that California should have led on this issue, just as Wisconsin did in passing the first seatbelt mandate in 1961.
The speeding alert technology has been used in the U.S. and Europe for years. In fact, the European Union will require all new cars to be equipped with this technology starting in July, although drivers will be able to turn it off. Several major manufacturers, including Ford, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Nissan, already offer some form of speed limiters on certain models sold in America.
The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 10% of all car crashes reported to police in 2021 were related to speeding. In California, 35% of traffic fatalities were speeding-related, the second-highest rate in the country.
The National Transportation Safety Board recommended last year that federal regulators require all new cars to alert drivers when they speed, following a crash in January 2022 in which a man with a history of speeding violations ran a red light at over 100 mph and struck a minivan, killing himself and eight others.
