Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 108 Part 2.djvu/243

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PUBLIC LAW 103-272—JULY 5, 1994 108 STAT. 959 and trucks equipped with an inflatable restraint include a statement in an easily understandable format stating that— (1) either or both of the front outboard seating positions of the vehicle are equipped with an inflatable restraint referred to as an "airbag" and a lap and shoulder belt; (2) the "airbag" is a supplemental restraint and is not a substitute for lap and shoulder belts; (3) lap and shoulder belts also must be used correctly by an occupant in a front outboard seating position to provide restraint or protection from frontal crashes as well as other types of crashes or accidents; and (4) occupants should always wear their lap and shoulder belts, if available, or other safety belts, whether or not there ^ is an inflatable restraint. (d) SEAT BELT USE LAWS. —Congress finds that it is in the public interest for each State to adopt and enforce mandatory seat belt use laws and for the United States Government to adopt and enforce mandatory seat belt use regulations. (e) TEMPORARY EXEMPTIONS.—(1) On application of a manufacturer, the Secretary of Transportation may exempt, on a temporary basis, motor vehicles of that manufacturer from any requirement under subsections (b) and (c) of this section on terms the Secretary considers appropriate. An exemption may be renewed, (2) The Secretary of Transportation may grant an exemption under paragraph (1) of this subsection if the Secretary finds that there has been a disruption in the supply of any component of an inflatable restraint or in the use and installation of that component by the manufacturer because of an unavoidable event not under the control of the manufacturer that will prevent the manufacturer from meeting its anticipated production volume of vehicles with those restraints. (3) Only an affected manufacturer may apply for an exemption. The Secretary of Transportation shall prescribe in the amendment to Standard 208 required under this section the information an affected manufacturer must include in its application under this subsection. The manufacturer shall specify in the application the models, lines, and types of vehicles affected. The Secretary may consolidate similar applications from different manufacturers. (4) An exemption or renewal of an exemption is conditioned on the commitment of the manufacturer to recall the exempted vehicles for installation of the omitted inflatable restraints within a reasonable time that the manufacturer proposes and the Secretary of Transportation approves after the components become available in sufficient quantities to satisfy both anticipated production and recall volume requirements. (5) The Secretary of Transportation shall publish in the Federal Federal Register a notice of each application under this subsection and ^^^^f' each decision to grant or deny a temporary exemption and the **" ^ ^°"' reasons for the decision. (6) The Secretary of Transportation shall require a label for each exempted vehicle that can be removed only after recall and installation of the required inflatable restraint. The Secretary shall require that written notice of the exemption be provided to the dealer and the first purchaser of each exempted vehicle other than for resede, with the notice being provided in a way, and containing the information, the Secretary considers appropriate.