WASHINGTON --- U.S. government vehicle safety regulators might seek greater authority to investigate defects in cars and trucks and are weighing new safety requirements in response to Toyota's recall.

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Associated Press

David Strickland, the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said Thursday that his agency will take a "hard look" at the power it has to set safety standards for automakers. Current authority, acquired in the 1960s and 1970s, might not be enough to oversee the technology used in modern vehicles, he said.

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David Strickland, the head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said Thursday that his agency will take a "hard look" at the power it has to set safety standards for automakers. Current authority, acquired in the 1960s and 1970s, might not be enough to oversee the technology used in modern vehicles, he said.

But one lawmaker at a House hearing said the agency's problems seem to have more to do with "ineptitude" and lack of money. Rep. John Dingell, a Democrat, said the agency's response had been sluggish after "years of stagnation in funding."

Strickland told the panel it was unclear whether the agency can regulate "in a way that allows the auto industry to build and sell safe products that the consumer wants to drive."

The government might also require automakers to include brake override systems, a fix intended to prevent the type of runaway car incidents that some Toyota drivers have described, Strickland said. It would ensure that a driver stepping on the brakes can slow the vehicle even if the gas pedal is stuck or malfunctioning.

Strickland said the agency will consider mandating event data recorders, which typically show whether the brake or accelerator pedals were depressed at the time of a crash. About 60 percent of vehicles already have the technology. He also vowed to look closely at push-button start and stop technologies to ensure that drivers can easily turn their cars off during an emergency.

Thursday's hearing of a panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee was the fourth in Congress related to Toyota's massive recalls for problems with faulty gas pedals and brake problems. The committee was focused on the transportation safety agency's oversight of the auto industry, which has been criticized for being too lax on automakers.

Strickland defended his agency's handling of the Toyota recalls and took exception to criticism that it is a "lapdog" of the industry, noting it opened eight investigations into reports of sudden unintended acceleration in Toyotas.

Along with reviewing its authority, Strickland said, his agency is seeking 66 new employees to bolster its safety work. The agency will also review its ethics standards after claims that many staffers head directly to automakers after they leave their jobs.