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Title 49 — TransportationRelease 119-73

§30170 Criminal Penalties

Title 49 › Subtitle SUBTITLE VI— - MOTOR VEHICLE AND DRIVER PROGRAMS › Part PART A— - GENERAL › Chapter CHAPTER 301— - MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY › Subchapter SUBCHAPTER IV— - ENFORCEMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE › § 30170

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

Makes it a crime to lie to the Secretary about required reports when the lies concern vehicle or equipment safety defects that caused death or serious bodily injury. If someone breaks the federal false-statement law (18 U.S.C. 1001) in reports required under section 30166 with the clear intent to mislead, they can be fined under federal law, imprisoned for up to 15 years, or both. A person will not face those criminal penalties if, at the time, they did not know the false report would lead to an accident with death or serious injury and they correct the report or missing report within a reasonable time. The Secretary of Transportation must write rules saying what “reasonable time” and a proper correction mean and must issue a final rule within 90 days of the law’s enactment. The criminal rule does not start until that final rule is in effect. The Attorney General may only start a criminal case or grand jury action if the Secretary asks.

Full Legal Text

Title 49, §30170

Transportation — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)A person who violates section 1001 of title 18 with respect to the reporting requirements of section 30166, with the specific intention of misleading the Secretary with respect to motor vehicle or motor vehicle equipment safety related defects that have caused death or serious bodily injury to an individual (as defined in section 1365(g)(3) 11 See References in Text note below. of title 18), shall be subject to criminal penalties of a fine under title 18, or imprisoned for not more than 15 years, or both.
(2)(A)A person described in paragraph (1) shall not be subject to criminal penalties under this subsection if: (1) at the time of the violation, such person does not know that the violation would result in an accident causing death or serious bodily injury; and (2) the person corrects any improper reports or failure to report within a reasonable time.
(B)The Secretary shall establish by regulation what constitutes a reasonable time for the purposes of subparagraph (A) and what manner of correction is sufficient for purposes of subparagraph (A). The Secretary shall issue a final rule under this subparagraph within 90 days of the date of the enactment of this section.
(C)Subsection (a) shall not take effect before the final rule under subparagraph (B) takes effect.
(b)The Attorney General may bring an action, or initiate grand jury proceedings, for a violation of subsection (a) only at the request of the Secretary of Transportation.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

section 1365(g)(3) of title 18, referred to in subsec. (a)(1), was redesignated section 1365(h)(3) of title 18 by Pub. L. 107–307, § 2(1), Dec. 2, 2002, 116 Stat. 2445. The date of the enactment of this section, referred to in subsec. (a)(2)(B), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 106–414, which was approved Nov. 1, 2000.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

49 U.S.C. § 30170

Title 49 — Transportation

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73