49 U.S.C. § 30162
Section 30162 · Petitions by interested persons for standards and enforcement
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 15 court decisions — leading case 37 Cal. App. 4th 1291 - American Suzuki Motor Corp. v. Superior Court (1995)
Most recently applied in WildEarth Guardians v. Chao (May 2019)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
Any interested person may file a petition with the Secretary of Transportation requesting the Secretary to begin a proceeding—
to prescribe a motor vehicle safety standard under this chapter; or
to decide whether to issue an order under section 30118(b) of this title.
A petition under this section must state facts that the person claims establish that a motor vehicle safety standard or order referred to in subsection (a) of this section is necessary and briefly describe the order the Secretary should issue.
The Secretary may hold a public hearing or conduct an investigation or proceeding to decide whether to grant a petition under this section.
The Secretary shall determine whether to approve or deny a petition under this section by not later than 120 days after the petition is filed.
If a petition under this section is approved, the Secretary shall begin the proceeding promptly.
If a petition under this section is denied, the Secretary shall publish the reasons for the denial in the Federal Register.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Historical and Revision Notes
Revised
Section
Source (U.S. Code)
Source (Statutes at Large)
30162(a)
15:1410a(a).
Sept. 9, 1966, Pub. L. 89–563, 80 Stat. 718, § 124(a)–(d); added Oct. 27, 1974, Pub. L. 93–492, § 106, 88 Stat. 1481.
30162(b)
15:1410a(b).
30162(c)
15:1410a(c).
30162(d)
15:1410a(d).
Subsection (a)(1) is substituted for “the issuance of an order pursuant to section 1392 of this title” for clarity and because of the restatement.
In subsection (b), the words “a motor vehicle safety standard” are added because of the restatement. The words “referred to in subsection (a) of this section” are added for clarity. The words “of the substance” are omitted as surplus.
In subsection (c), the words “as he deems appropriate in order” and “or not” are omitted as surplus.
In subsection (d), the words “described in subsection (b) of this section”, “either”, and “requested in the petition” are omitted as surplus.
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2021—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(1), substituted “A petition under this section” for “The petition”.
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(2), substituted “a petition under this section” for “the petition”.
Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(3), designated first to third sentences of existing provisions as pars. (1) to (3), respectively, and inserted headings.
Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(3)(C), substituted “The Secretary shall determine whether to approve or deny a petition under this section by” for “The Secretary shall grant or deny a petition”.
Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(3)(B), substituted “If a petition under this section is approved” for “If a petition is granted”.
Subsec. (d)(3). Pub. L. 117–58, § 24206(3)(A), substituted “If a petition under this section” for “If a petition”.