The Facts

Congressman Kevin Mullin proposed federal emergency-response rules for robotaxis that largely mirror California's rules, including a live 24-hour hotline and compliance with first-responder geofence requests within two minutes.

The Context

California rules that took effect July 1 require a dedicated hotline answered within 30 seconds, two-way communication inside each vehicle, and emergency geofencing. Mullin’s proposal would create a federal baseline as robotaxis expand nationally.

In May, seven Waymos entered active Bay Area freeway construction lanes by driving between cones, prompting Waymo to temporarily restrict their vehicles from operating on freeways. San Francisco firefighters have also filed at least 31 reports since April 2025 of robotaxis obstructing emergency operations, according to Jessica Blough at The Standard.

The GrowSF Take

We’re huge fans of Waymo because its vehicles are much safer than human drivers, and we think federal rules are better than a patchwork of local rules so that every company and every community can be treated fairly.

Despite a few high-profile incidents, an independent study found Waymos had 35% fewer crashes per mile than human drivers in San Francisco and 81% fewer injury crashes overall.

No person has ever been killed by a Waymo. The only Waymo-related death we know of is KitKat, a well-loved bodega cat that darted beneath it as the vehicle pulled away. Meanwhile human drivers have killed 12 pedestrians so far this year, and at least three pedestrians are hit in San Francisco every day, according to Walk SF.