Massachusetts 2025-2026 Regular Session

Massachusetts House Bill H3634 Compare Versions

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2	2	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4150 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
3	3	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3634
4	4	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
5	5	_________________
6	6	PRESENTED BY:
7	7	Daniel Cahill and Natalie M. Blais
8	8	_________________
9	9	To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
10	10	Court assembled:
11	11	The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:
12	12	An Act relative to providing multimodal transportation technologies.
13	13	_______________
14	14	PETITION OF:
15	15	NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :DATE ADDED:Daniel Cahill10th Essex1/17/2025Natalie M. Blais1st Franklin1/17/2025 1 of 7
16	16	HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4150 FILED ON: 1/17/2025
17	17	HOUSE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 3634
18	18	By Representatives Cahill of Lynn and Blais of Deerfield, a petition (accompanied by bill,
19	19	House, No. 3634) of Daniel Cahill and Natalie M. Blais relative to autonomous vehicles.
20	20	Transportation.
21	21	The Commonwealth of Massachusetts
22	22	_______________
23	23	In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court
24	24	(2025-2026)
25	25	_______________
26	26	An Act relative to providing multimodal transportation technologies.
27	27	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority
28	28	of the same, as follows:
29	29	1 SECTION 1. Chapter 90 of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following
30	30	2new section: -
31	31	3 19L. As used in the chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings
32	32	4unless the context clearly requires otherwise:
33	33	5 "Automated driving system" means hardware and software that are collectively capable
34	34	6of performing the entire dynamic driving task on a sustained basis, regardless of whether it is
35	35	7limited to a specific operational design domain.
36	36	8 “Department” The Massachusetts Department of Transportation established under the
37	37	9provisions of Chapter 6C of the General laws.
38	38	10 "Dynamic driving task" or "DDT" means all of the real-time operational and tactical
39	39	11functions required to operate a vehicle in on-road traffic, including i. Lateral vehicle motion 2 of 7
40	40	12control via steering; ii. Longitudinal motion control via acceleration and deceleration; iii.
41	41	13Monitoring the driving environment via object and event detection, recognition, classification,
42	42	14and response preparation; iv. Object and event response execution; v. Maneuver planning; and
43	43	15vi. Enhancing conspicuity via lighting, signaling, and gesturing. This definition shall not include
44	44	16the strategic functions of trip scheduling and, or the selection of destinations and waypoints.
45	45	17 "DDT fallback" means the response by the person or human driver to either perform the
46	46	18DDT or achieve a minimal risk condition after occurrence of a DDT performance relevant
47	47	19system failure, or upon operational design domain exit; or the response by an automated driving
48	48	20system to achieve minimal risk condition, given the same circumstances
49	49	21 "Fully autonomous vehicle" means a motor vehicle equipped with an automated driving
50	50	22system designed to function without a human driver as a level 4 or 5 system under SAE J3016B
51	51	23standards;
52	52	24 "Human driver" means a natural person in the vehicle with a valid driver's license who
53	53	25controls all or part of the dynamic driving task.
54	54	26 "Minimal risk condition" means a condition to which a person, a human driver, or an
55	55	27automated driving system may bring a vehicle after performing the DDT fallback in order to
56	56	28reduce the risk of a crash when a given trip cannot or should not be completed.
57	57	29 “On-Demand Autonomous Vehicle Network” means a transportation service network
58	58	30that uses a software application or other digital means to dispatch or otherwise enable the pre-
59	59	31arrangement of transportation with fully autonomous vehicles for purposes of transporting
60	60	32passenger goods, including for-hire transportation of passengers or goods for compensation. 3 of 7
61	61	33 "Operational Design Domain" means the operating conditions under which a given
62	62	34automated driving system is specifically designed to function, including but not limited to (i)
63	63	35environmental, geographical, and time-of-day restrictions and (ii) the requisite presence or
64	64	36absence of certain traffic and roadway characteristics.
65	65	37 “Person” means a natural person, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership,
66	66	38limited liability company, association, joint venture, governmental agency, public corporation or
67	67	39any other legal or commercial entity.
68	68	40 "Request to intervene" means a notification by an automated driving system to a human
69	69	41driver that the human driver should promptly begin or resume performance of part of or all of the
70	70	42dynamic driving task.
71	71	43 "SAE J3016" means the "Taxonomy and Definitions for Terms Related to Driving
72	72	44Automation Systems for On-Road Motor Vehicles" published by SAE International on June 15,
73	73	452018, as revised.
74	74	46 SECTION 2. A person may operate on the highways in the commonwealth a fully
75	75	47autonomous vehicle or a motor vehicle equipped with an automated driving system capable of
76	76	48performing the entire dynamic driving task with the automated driving system engaged without a
77	77	49human driver if the vehicle meets the following conditions: i.the vehicle meets the requirements
78	78	50of this chapter and has been issued an autonomous operation license by the Department; ii. if a
79	79	51failure of the automated driving system occurs that renders that system unable to perform the
80	80	52entire dynamic driving task relevant to its intended operational design domain, the vehicle will
81	81	53achieve a minimal risk condition and, if there is a human driver physically present in the vehicle,
82	82	54issue a request to intervene with the expectation that the human driver will respond appropriately 4 of 7
83	83	55to such request; iii. the vehicle is capable of operating in compliance with the applicable traffic
84	84	56and motor vehicle safety laws and regulations of the Commonwealth when it is reasonable to do
85	85	57so unless an exemption has been granted by the Department; iv. when required by federal law,
86	86	58the vehicle bears the required manufacturer's certification label indicating that at the time of its
87	87	59manufacture it has been certified to be in compliance with all applicable federal motor vehicle
88	88	60safety standards, including any exemptions granted by the National Highway Traffic Safety
89	89	61Administration.
90	90	62 A fully autonomous vehicle for which the declared gross weight of the vehicle and any
91	91	63towed unit is 10,000 pounds or heavier shall have a human driver, with the appropriate
92	92	64credentials to operate the vehicle, physically present in the vehicle to monitor the performance of
93	93	65the vehicle and intervene if necessary. Prior to operating a fully autonomous vehicle in the
94	94	66Commonwealth without a human driver, a person shall submit a law-enforcement interaction
95	95	67plan to the Department of Transportation, Department of Public Safety and the police department
96	96	68of the city, town or jurisdiction where a vehicle will be operating that describes (i) how to
97	97	69communicate with a fleet support specialist who is available during the times the vehicle is in
98	98	70operation, (ii) how to safely remove the fully autonomous vehicle from the highway and steps to
99	99	71safely tow the vehicle, (iii) how to recognize whether the automated driving system is engaged
100	100	72on the fully autonomous vehicle, and (iv) any additional information the manufacturer or owner
101	101	73deems necessary regarding hazardous conditions or public safety risks associated with the
102	102	74operation of the fully autonomous vehicle. In the event of a crash the fully autonomous vehicle
103	103	75shall remain on the scene in accordance with state law. The owner of the fully autonomous
104	104	76vehicle, or a person on behalf of the vehicle owner, shall report any crashes or collisions in
105	105	77accordance with state law. 5 of 7
106	106	78 SECTION 3. The Department shall develop and issue autonomous operation licenses for
107	107	79fully autonomous vehicles and automated driving systems operated in the Commonwealth. The
108	108	80Department shall only issue such autonomous operation licenses to fully autonomous vehicles
109	109	81and automated driving systems that meet the requirements of this chapter. A fully autonomous
110	110	82vehicle shall be properly titled and registered in accordance with the requirements of this
111	111	83chapter. If a fully autonomous vehicle is registered in the Commonwealth, the vehicle shall be
112	112	84identified on the registration as a fully autonomous vehicle. The requirements under this act
113	113	85relating to exhibiting a driver's license and registration card are satisfied if the autonomous
114	114	86operation license and vehicle registration card are in the fully autonomous vehicle and available
115	115	87for inspection by a law-enforcement officer. When an automated driving system installed on a
116	116	88motor vehicle is engaged, the automated driving system is considered the driver or operator for
117	117	89the purpose of assessing compliance with applicable traffic or motor vehicle laws and shall be
118	118	90required to satisfy all physical acts required by a driver or operator of the vehicle.
119	119	91 SECTION 4. Before operating a fully autonomous vehicle on public roads in the
120	120	92commonwealth without a human driver, a person shall submit proof of financial responsibility to
121	121	93the Department that the fully autonomous vehicle is covered by insurance or proof of self-
122	122	94insurance in accordance with the provisions of Chapter 175 of the Massachusetts General Laws.
123	123	95Such coverage shall be primary, however, and the minimum amount of liability coverage for
124	124	96death, bodily injury, and property damage shall be $1 million.
125	125	97 SECTION 5. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to (i) prohibit a human driver
126	126	98from operating a fully autonomous vehicle to control all or part of the DDT, (ii) prohibit a fully
127	127	99autonomous vehicle from operating without a human driver except as provided in this Act, (iii) 6 of 7
128	128	100prohibit a human driver from operating a vehicle with an automated driving system that is not a
129	129	101fully autonomous vehicle with such system engaged or disengaged, or (iv) apply to toy vehicles.
130	130	102 SECTION 6. An on-demand autonomous vehicle network shall be permitted to operate in
131	131	103the Commonwealth in accordance with the provisions of this Act under the jurisdiction of the
132	132	104Department.
133	133	105 SECTION 7. A fully autonomous vehicle shall be properly registered in accordance with
134	134	106the provisions of this Chapter. If a fully autonomous vehicle is registered in the Commonwealth,
135	135	107the vehicle shall be identified on the title as a fully autonomous vehicle. A fully autonomous
136	136	108vehicle shall be properly titled in accordance with the provisions of this Chapter. If a fully
137	137	109autonomous vehicle is registered in the Commonwealth, the vehicle shall be identified on the
138	138	110title as a fully autonomous vehicle.
139	139	111 SECTION 8. A person may operate a motor vehicle equipped with an automated driving
140	140	112system capable of performing the entire dynamic driving task if (i) such automated driving
141	141	113system will issue a request to intervene whenever the automated driving system is not capable of
142	142	114performing the entire dynamic driving task with the expectation that the person will respond
143	143	115appropriately to such a request; and (ii) the automated driving system is capable of being
144	144	116operated in compliance with the provisions of this chapter.
145	145	117 Nothing in this Act shall prohibit or restrict a human driver from operating a fully
146	146	118autonomous vehicle equipped with controls that allow the human driver to control all or part of
147	147	119the dynamic driving task.
148	148	120 SECTION 9. A fully autonomous vehicle that is also a commercial motor vehicle
149	149	121pursuant to the provisions of this chapter governing the operation of commercial motor vehicles, 7 of 7
150	150	122except that any provision that by its nature reasonably applies only to a human driver does not
151	151	123apply to such a vehicle operating with the automated driving system
152	152	124 engaged.
153	153	125 SECTION 10. A fully autonomous vehicle that is designed to be operated exclusively by
154	154	126the automated driving system for all trips is not subject to motor vehicle equipment laws or
155	155	127regulations of this state that: (1) relate to or support motor vehicle operation
156	156	128 by a human driver seated in the vehicle; and (2) are not relevant for an automated driving
157	157	129system.
158	158	130 SECTION 11. Unless otherwise provided in this chapter and notwithstanding any other
159	159	131provision of law, fully autonomous vehicles and automated driving systems are governed
160	160	132exclusively by the provisions of this Act. No state agency, political subdivision, municipality, or
161	161	133local entity may prohibit the operation of fully autonomous vehicles, automated driving systems,
162	162	134or on-demand autonomous vehicle networks, or otherwise enact or keep in force rules or
163	163	135ordinances that would impose taxes, fees, or other requirements (including performance
164	164	136standards), specific to the operation of fully autonomous vehicles,
165	165	137 automated driving systems, or on-demand autonomous vehicle networks in addition to
166	166	138the requirements of this Act.