Interpretation ID: nht95-3.65

TYPE: INTERPRETATION-NHTSA

DATE: July 31, 1995

FROM: Dennis G. Moore -- President, Sierra Products

TO: Chief Council -- NHTSA

TITLE: Subject: Legal Interpretation Request for FMVSS # 108

ATTACHMT: ATTACHED TO 9/25/95 LETTER FROM JOHN WOMACK TO DENNIS G. MOORE (A43; REDBOOK 2; STD. 108); ALSO ATTACHED TO 3/4/77 LETTER FROM FRANK BERNDT TO DENNIS G. MOORE

TEXT: I have been reviewing all NHTSA's attempts over the years at improving the definition of "OPTICAL COMBINATION" as the subject applies to Vehicle Lighting. I have numerous pages of information from the Federal Register and from NHTSA's Docket "Legal Inter pretation" Files gathered over the past 20 years and I must say the situation is now worse than it ever has been.

Back in 1977 I was sent the attached letter from NHTSA lawyers. This was sent to me after five pieces of rather Technical back and forth correspondence * . The substance of the letter is that NHTSA's legal experts finally admitted that Lighting function s that share the same housing and the same lens (and when both use Separate Bulb Filaments and fulfill all other Lighting requirements for their particular function when lit separately), were "not" to be considered Optically Combined.

* All five pieces of Correspondence available upon request, but also in NHTSA's Docket Records.

Later, the Canadians, in spite of U.S. and Canadian written agreements to adopt identical rules and interpretations on this issue, said essentially they would only honor the common housing portion of this Interpretation, which "somehow?", NHTSA also late r adopted in spite of the 1977 Legal Interpretation sent me that was based on well thought out scientific discussions and conclusions. *

Then, around 1990, "out of the blue", NHTSA put a "Rider" into a proposed change that had no relevance to this subject, whereas the Rulemakers added the expression, "NOT TO SHARE THE SAME HOUSING", which of course, knocked out the second part of the Lega l Interpretation sent me. In response, I wrote NHTSA asking for clarification and a reasonable explanation, and was essentially ignored.

Using the Scientific Argument and discussions I submitted back in 1975, 1976 and 1977, and the Re-Interpretation letter sent me, how can NHTSA support the SAME HOUSING definition they currently support?