NAC482A.190. Requirements for issuance of certificate of compliance; contents.

     1. Before an autonomous vehicle may be offered for sale by a licensed vehicle dealer in this State, a certificate of compliance must be issued for the autonomous technology installed on the autonomous vehicle by:

     (a) The manufacturer of the autonomous vehicle; or

     (b) An autonomous technology certification facility that is licensed pursuant to NAC 482A.220.

     2. A certificate of compliance issued pursuant to subsection 1 must certify that the autonomous technology installed on the autonomous vehicle:

     (a) Has a separate mechanism in addition to, and separate from, any other mechanism required by law, to capture and store the autonomous technology sensor data for at least 30 seconds before a collision occurs between the autonomous vehicle and another vehicle, object or natural person while the vehicle is operating in autonomous mode. The autonomous technology sensor data must be captured and stored in a read-only format by the mechanism so that the data is retained until extracted from the mechanism by an external device capable of downloading and storing the data. Such data must be preserved for 3 years after the date of the collision. The provisions of this paragraph do not authorize or require the modification of any other mechanism to record data that is installed on the autonomous vehicle in compliance with federal law.

     (b) Has a switch to engage and disengage the autonomous vehicle that is easily accessible to the operator of the autonomous vehicle and is not likely to distract the operator from focusing on the road while engaging or disengaging the autonomous vehicle.

     (c) Has a visual indicator inside the autonomous vehicle which indicates when the autonomous vehicle is engaged in autonomous mode.

     (d) Has a system to safely alert the operator of the autonomous vehicle if a technology failure is detected while the autonomous vehicle is engaged in autonomous mode, and when such an alert is given, either:

          (1) Requires the operator to take control of the autonomous vehicle; or

          (2) If the operator is unable to take control of or is not physically present in the autonomous vehicle, is equipped with technology to cause the autonomous vehicle to safely move out of traffic and come to a stop. Nothing in this subparagraph shall be construed to authorize or require the modification of a system installed in compliance with the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and Regulations unless the modification can be performed without adversely affecting the autonomous vehicle’s compliance with the federal standards and regulations.

     (e) Does not adversely affect any other safety features of the autonomous vehicle which are subject to federal regulation.

     (f) Is capable of being operated in compliance with the applicable traffic laws of this State and must indicate whether the autonomous vehicle may be operated with or without the physical presence of an operator.

     (g) If it is necessary for the operator of the autonomous vehicle to be physically present in the autonomous vehicle when it is engaged, allows the operator to take control of the autonomous vehicle in multiple manners, including, without limitation, through the use of the brake, the accelerator pedal and the steering wheel and alerts the operator that the autonomous mode has been disengaged.

     3. In addition to the requirements set forth in subsection 2, the certificate of compliance must certify that an owner’s manual has been prepared for the autonomous vehicle which describes any limitations and capabilities of the autonomous vehicle, including, without limitation, whether the operator of the autonomous vehicle must be physically present in the autonomous vehicle while the vehicle is engaged in autonomous mode. A licensed vehicle dealer or a licensed autonomous technology certification facility shall ensure that a copy of such a manual is provided to the purchaser of an autonomous vehicle.

     4. As used in this section, “vehicle dealer” has the meaning ascribed to it in NRS 482.020.

     (Added to NAC by Dep’t of Motor Veh. by R084-11, 2-15-2012, eff. 3-1-2012)