Senate committee advances commercial autonomous-vehicle licensing bill amid safety and preemption questions
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Summary
SB 670 would create a DMV licensing framework for commercial autonomous vehicles and require insurance, reporting and law-enforcement coordination. Industry witnesses and disability advocates supported deployment; advocates and local-control critics urged limits and locality savings clauses. The committee reported the bill as amended and sent it to Finance.
The Senate Transportation Committee on Jan. 29 voted to report SB 670, a bill to establish a licensing and oversight framework for commercial autonomous vehicle operations in Virginia.
Sponsor remarks described SB 670 as establishing a path for licensing for commercial autonomous fleets and vehicle operators, including minimum insurance, incident reporting, and protocols for law-enforcement interactions and for pulling unsafe vehicle licenses. A line amendment limited the license requirement to commercial operators rather than private consumer-owned vehicles.
Industry witnesses said a codified framework would align Virginia with other states. Matt Walsh, regional head for state and local policy at Waymo, said Waymo operates fully autonomous services in multiple cities and presented company safety data: "When we examined 127,000,000 miles of fully autonomous operations, we found that the Waymo driver was involved in 91 fewer serious injury-causing crashes compared to human drivers where we operate," Walsh said, characterizing the company's safety record.
Disability advocates, including representatives of the National Federation of the Blind, testified the bill could expand travel options and reduce discrimination in rides for people with disabilities.
Opponents and several witnesses urged caution: a DMV drivers alliance speaker warned SB 670 preempts local authority to regulate operations and could limit local responses to hazards in school zones and special events. A member of the public cited an academic study that found higher crash risk in certain conditions and asked the committee to weigh those data alongside industry assertions.
Virginia State Police Major Ron Maxey told the committee the State Police participate in the autonomous work group and noted a related House bill had a report due Nov. 1 that addresses many rollout issues. He said the work group has presented to elected officials and that the committee should consider whether SB 670 aligns with the group's recommendations.
Committee members questioned operational details — weather handling, connectivity requirements, pilot locations and what constitutes deployment success or failure. Waymo representatives said core driving functions operate on-vehicle without requiring internet connectivity and that vehicles can be removed from service when conditions pose risks.
After extended questioning and industry testimony, the committee voted to report SB 670 as amended and refer it to Finance (roll recorded in the transcript). Next steps include agency rulemaking and coordination with the autonomous-study work group.