HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4699        FILED ON: 11/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No.         

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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PRESENTED BY:

Daniel J. Hunt

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To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General
Court assembled:

The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill:

An Act relating to access to motor vehicle data by the owner or designee of a motor vehicle.

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PETITION OF:

HOUSE DOCKET, NO. 4699        FILED ON: 11/20/2023

HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  No.         

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts

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In the One Hundred and Ninety-Third General Court
(2023-2024)

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An Act relating to access to motor vehicle data by the owner or designee of a motor vehicle.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
 

SECTION 1. The General Laws are hereby amended by inserting after chapter 93L the following Chapter:-

Chapter 93M. Access To Motor Vehicle Data Act

Section 1. As used in this chapter, the following terms shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:

Access to motor vehicle data. (a) As used in this section:

"Access to motor vehicle data" means direct, in-vehicle, real- time, intelligible and bi-directional accessibility to motor vehicle data, including but not limited to connected vehicle data and access to electronic control units, through a technology-neutral, standards-based, cybersecure interface which may include, but is not limited to, a wired onboard diagnostics port or a wireless connection; such interface shall permit the operation of an open application programming interface that enables a motor vehicle owner or user authorized by the motor vehicle owner to redirect data to a third party authorized by the motor vehicle owner or erase any and all data that the motor vehicle owner or user directly or electronically inputs into the motor vehicle.

"Cybersecure interface" means an interface that provides both secure interoperability and access to motor vehicle data between a motor vehicle and the motor vehicle's owner.

"Motor vehicle data" means all data generated, or generated and retained, by the operation of a motor vehicle including but not limited to vehicle characteristics including but not limited to make and model, vehicle build sheet information, data  collected by onboard sensors including but not limited to odometer, accelerometer, malfunction indicators, crash or collision indicators, as well as advanced driving assistance systems including but not limited to adaptive cruise control, automatic following distance control, automatic emergency braking, lane departure correction, and other autonomous or assisted driving features, and  additional contextual and/or  environmental data obtained by the vehicle including but not limited to GPS and/or location, time of day, road conditions, vehicle following distance, usage of onboard entertainment systems.

"Owner" means: (i) a person with an ownership or contracted beneficial interest in a motor vehicle; or (ii) the lessee of a motor vehicle under a lease agreement of a term not less than one hundred eighty days and shall include the designee of a motor vehicle owner.

"Person" shall mean an individual, trust, estate, partnership, association, company, or corporation.

Section 2. A manufacturer shall provide access to motor vehicle data, wherever stored, of  the same quality as is available to the data holder, to the owner and to any third party designees of the motor vehicle  owner, without undue delay, free of charge, of the same quality as is available to the data holder, without any restriction or limitations including, but not limited to, a fee or license to decrypt motor vehicle data or a requirement to use a device provided by the manufacturer to access and use motor vehicle data, and where applicable, continuously and in  real time, in  a structured, commonly used machine readable format except as provided under sections three, four, or five.

Section 3. This chapter does not preclude a manufacturer from employing cryptographic or technological protections necessary to secure motor vehicle data, provided that the motor  vehicle owner, and  the motor vehicle owner's designees, are provided the means to gain access to motor vehicle data mandated under section two of this chapter, and such means of access to motor vehicle data, is standardized by an independent standard making organization across all motor vehicles.

Section 4. Notwithstanding any other provision of this chapter, no person, including but not limited to a motor vehicle owner, shall  be permitted to access  motor vehicle data if the person is the subject of a protective order under state law with respect to the natural person using the motor vehicle.

Section 5. Nothing in this chapter shall require a manufacturer to divulge a trade secret. The existence of a manufacturer's proprietary method for collecting, storing, formatting, or communicating vehicle data, telematics or similar program shall not preclude access to motor vehicle data under section two of this chapter.

Section 6. A manufacturer may not request a waiver of the vehicle owner’s right to data access under this section, require a waiver as a condition for purchasing, leasing, operating, or obtaining warranty repairs, or offer any compensation or other incentive for a waiver. Any such waiver obtained by a manufacturer shall be null and void.

SECTION 2. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2024.