Sponsors (10)
Introduced February 4, 2026 by Kirsten Gillibrand · Last progress February 4, 2026
The bill substantially increases underride protection and transparency—likely preventing deaths and lowering long‑term crash costs—but does so by imposing sizable near‑term compliance, administrative, and potential price burdens on manufacturers, fleet owners, taxpayers, and consumers.
Motorists, passengers, pedestrians, and cyclists would face fewer fatal and severe underride crashes because the bill requires or encourages improved underride guards across truck fronts, sides, and rears.
Vulnerable road users (pedestrians and bicyclists) would get targeted protection from side underride (guards required to prevent intrusion at perpendicular impacts up to 40 mph), reducing severe injuries in common crash scenarios.
Fewer severe crashes should lower emergency response, medical, and long-term repair costs for crash victims and taxpayers over time.
Truck and trailer manufacturers, fleet owners, and retrofitters will face substantial upfront design, manufacturing, and installation costs to meet new underride guard requirements.
Those compliance and retrofit costs are likely to be passed through to shippers and consumers, raising freight rates and retail prices that affect households and small businesses.
Rapid deadlines (e.g., 18-month rulemaking and 2-year compliance windows), added reporting, advisory duties, and repository maintenance will increase administrative burdens and costs for DOT and could divert agency resources from other priorities.
Based on analysis of 9 sections of legislative text.
Directs DOT to require side underride guards on new large trucks/trailers, reconvene the underride advisory committee, fund studies, improve reporting, and provide law-enforcement training.
Requires the Department of Transportation to create mandatory safety standards that force installation of effective side underride guards on new trailers, semitrailers, and single-unit trucks, and to finalize that rule within 18 months with compliance beginning no later than two years after the rule is issued. Directs DOT to reconvene and expand the underride Advisory Committee, publish a public underride resource website, commission studies on front- and rear-underride risks and rule implementation, improve fatality reporting, and provide free on-demand law-enforcement training to better identify and document underride crashes.