DOT chief seeks more power for safety inspectors

Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater today urged Congress to give federal safety inspectors broad new powers because of the Firestone tire case, including access to overseas product data, manufacturer warranty claims and insurance claim information, the Associated Press reported.

Senate Commerce Chairman John McCain, R-Ariz., called today's hearing to examine the recent recall of 6.5 million Firestone tires, which are used on the Ford Explorer.

The Transportation Department's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which said 88 U.S. deaths might be linked to the tires, has been criticized for not investigating Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. and Ford Motor Co. prior to May, despite lawsuits during the past 10 years alleging problems with Firestone tires.

McCain said he had questions about when Ford and Firestone knew they had tire problems. A bill to be introduced Tuesday by Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., which would increase penalties that NHTSA could impose for failing to report safety defects, would require auto and tire manufacturers to report foreign recalls, would mandate NHTSA to update its tire standards and would require tire makers to periodically report legal claims to NHTSA.