LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Michigan lawmakers immediately tackled major components of their postelection agenda Thursday, passing bills designed to keep the U.S. auto industry’s home state ahead of the curve on driverless vehicles and debating an update to energy laws.
The House, where members also were choosing new leadership for the next term, overwhelmingly voted to no longer require that someone be inside a self-driving car while testing it on public roads. The expansive bills, which the Senate could pass later in the day, would make Michigan a rare state to explicitly end a requirement that a researcher be present inside an autonomous test vehicle. The researcher would have to “promptly” take control of its movements remotely if necessary, or the vehicle would have to be able to stop or slow on its own.
Supporters said the human operator requirement is seen as an impediment that could put Michigan at risk of losing research and development to other states.
Other provisions would allow for public operation of driverless vehicles when they are sold and ease the “platooning” of autonomous commercial trucks traveling closely together at electronically coordinated speeds. The legislation would help create a facility to test autonomous and wirelessly connected cars at highway speeds at the site of a defunct General Motors plant that once churned out World War II bombers. Also, auto manufacturers would be authorized to run networks of on-demand self-driving vehicles.
Michigan is among eight states with laws related to autonomous cars, while Arizona’s governor has issued an executive order, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. Nevada was the first state to authorize self-driving vehicles in 2011, and California, Florida, Louisiana, North Dakota, Tennessee and Utah followed.
Also Thursday, the Republican-led Senate was expected to pass long-debated revisions to 2008 energy laws. The business lobby is at odds over provisions related letting some companies and schools buy power from competitors to dominant utilities DTE Energy and Consumers Energy. Conservative groups have opposed the bills.
If the legislation is approved, the debate will move to the GOP-controlled House.
Regulators authorized AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine for use in adults throughout the European Union on Friday, amid criticism the bloc is not moving fast enough to vaccinate its population.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A former FBI lawyer was sentenced to probation for altering an email that the Justice Department relied on during its surveillance of an aide to President Donald Trump during the Russia investigation.
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Tony Evers lashed out Friday at rival Republicans who tried to repeal his statewide mask mandate, saying killing the order would be a ridiculous move comparable to abolishing speed limits.
COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — As some conservatives in South Carolina celebrated getting a bill that would ban almost all abortions in the state past a legislative barrier and likely becoming law, they said they are not finished trying to end all abortions.
A Moscow court on Friday put the brother and several allies of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny under house arrest for two months as authorities sought to stymie more protests over the jailing of the top Kremlin foe.