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Regulation · Other

Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.)

Washington DC's codified autonomous-vehicle statute: the Autonomous Vehicle Act of 2012 (effective Apr 23, 2013), codified at D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq. (Chapter 23A), amended by the Autonomous Vehicles Testing Program Amendment Act of 2020 (D.C. Law 23-156) and a 2024 testing-permit-requirement amendment. Unlike New York's annually-renewed testing rider, DC has a permanent codified chapter with SAE J3016 definitions. However it is testing-only and currently dormant: DDOT has not opened the driverless-permit application pathway, and as of late 2025 testing requires a human physically present. No commercial robotaxi service operates in DC. CAP-AND-FLAG: thin source coverage reflects the statute's low activity, not a sourcing gap.

Jurisdiction: United States/District of Columbia/Washington, D.C. · Effective 2013-04-23

Machine-readable surfaces

Sources (4)

  1. https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/sections/50-2351
  2. https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/code/titles/50/chapters/23A
  3. https://code.dccouncil.gov/us/dc/council/laws/23-156
  4. https://www.ncsl.org/transportation/autonomous-vehicles-legislation-database

Status history

  • In effect · 2013-04-23 · editor:DEPLOY content-agent (Sprint 5b-2 robotaxi-state laws)

    DC Autonomous Vehicle Act of 2012 in effect (Apr 23, 2013); amended 2020 (D.C. Law 23-156) and 2024. Testing-only; driverless-permit pathway not opened; no commercial robotaxi service in DC as of 2025.

Common questions

What does Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) cover?
Washington DC's codified autonomous-vehicle statute: the Autonomous Vehicle Act of 2012 (effective Apr 23, 2013), codified at D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq. (Chapter 23A), amended by the Autonomous Vehicles Testing Program Amendment Act of 2020 (D.C. Law 23-156) and a 2024 testing-permit-requirement amendment. Unlike New York's annually-renewed testing rider, DC has a permanent codified chapter with SAE J3016 definitions. However it is testing-only and currently dormant: DDOT has not opened the driverless-permit application pathway, and as of late 2025 testing requires a human physically present. No commercial robotaxi service operates in DC. CAP-AND-FLAG: thin source coverage reflects the statute's low activity, not a sourcing gap.
Where does Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) apply?
Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) is recorded as a other applying in Washington, D.C. on the DEPLOY registry.
When did Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) take effect?
Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) is recorded as effective April 23, 2013 on the DEPLOY registry.
Is Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) still in effect?
Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) is currently in effect and applies to covered operators in the named jurisdiction.
What types of robots does Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) apply to?
Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.) is recorded as applying to autonomous vehicles on the DEPLOY registry.
Methodology: Verified · 4 sources (no primary) · last reviewed 2026-05-31

Verification posture

Verified

Low confidence

Review state

Stable

Last reviewed 2026-05-31

Architectural position

Cohort: av

Sources by quality tier

4
unclassified
Unclassified source

The framework is documented at /methodology. Corrections at /corrections. Reviewer: DEPLOY editorial team.

Methodology surface for Washington DC autonomous vehicle law (D.C. Code 50-2351 et seq.).

Canonical ID 5e1e85f7-c848-443f-8add-797be4db7f02