HB7: AN ACT relating to autonomous vehicles.

Legislative Summary

Creates various sections of KRS Chapter 186 to establish a regulatory framework for the operation of fully autonomous vehicles on public highways, to define terms, to establish requirements for autonomous vehicles and automated driving systems, to provide that from the effective date of the Act until July 31, 2026, any fully autonomous vehicle for which the declared gross weight is more than 62,000 pounds shall be required to have an appropriately credentialed human driver in the vehicle to monitor the automated driving system and intervene if necessary, to require submission of a law enforcement interaction plan with the Transportation Cabinet and the Kentucky State Police, to identify required elements of the plan, to establish requirements for proof of insurance or self-insurance in the amount of $1 million for death or bodily injury and property damage for personal and commercial fully autonomous vehicles, to require titling and registration of fully autonomous vehicles, to establish the Transportation Cabinet as the sole agency responsible for administering statutes and regulations regarding fully autonomous vehicles, and to limit the regulatory authority of local governments in regard to the operation of fully autonomous vehicles; amends KRS 186.410 to establish that, when an automated driving system is installed and engaged on a motor vehicle, the owner of a fully autonomous vehicle shall be considered operator of the vehicle for the purpose of assessing compliance with traffic or motor vehicle laws, and that the automated driving system is considered to be licensed to operate the vehicle; creates a new section of KRS Chapter 189 to exempt fully autonomous vehicles designed to be operated exclusively by an automated driving system from any vehicle equipment requirements of KRS 189.020 to KRS 189.205 that relate to vehicle operation by a human driver; amends KRS 189.635 to establish responsibility for the filing of accident reports and notification of law enforcement after accidents involving fully autonomous vehicles; amends KRS 281.010 to define terms relating to the operation of fully autonomous vehicles as motor carriers; amends KRS 281.630 to establish that any administrative regulations promulgated by the department that apply only to a human driver shall not apply to a fully autonomous vehicle; amends KRS 281.655 to establish minimum insurance requirements for fully autonomous vehicles operating under a certificate issued under KRS Chapter 281 in the amount of $1 million for death or bodily injury and property; and amends KRS 281.764, effective August 1, 2026, to require only the lead vehicle in a truck platoon to have a human driver behind the wheel; EFFECTIVE, in part, August 1, 2026.