In the middle of investigations into the Tesla Model S fires, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will go through a changing of the guard.
David Strickland, the agency's leader and the top auto safety regulator in the United States, will be stepping down soon, Bloomberg reported.
While the agency won't release details about where Strickland is headed next or exactly when he'll be leaving, it has named a replacement. Strickland's administrative duties will be filled by current deputy David Friedman, according to spokesman Nathan Naylor.
Strickland leaves during an uncertain time for the agency, which is still investigating the series of Tesla fires that resulted in a lawsuit and working to regulate autonomous vehicles.
"While several unresolved issues remain on David Strickland's docket, including the Tesla investigation, he would likely never find a moment where all open cases are resolved," Karl Brauer, senior analyst at auto-researcher Kelley Blue Book, said in an e-mail.
"The agency has survived changes in leadership before, and it should survive this one without letting anything fall between the cracks," he said.
Joining the agency in 2010, Strickland, 45, previously worked as an aide to the Senate Commerce Committee. During his time at the NHTSA, he started work on regulations for autonomous vehicles and proposed rating passenger vehicles for how well they protect older people.
While working with the committee, Strickland helped write the law requiring backup cameras in cars, which has been delayed until 2015.
Strickland, a lawyer, oversaw investigations into a 2011 fire at a crash test for General Motors. The NHTSA is currently investigating the Tesla Model S fires, which occurred when collisions with road debris sparked flames. The automaker previously refused a recall request and didn't give in to pressure from the NHTSA to fix some of the models.
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