[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 138 (Tuesday, July 20, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38938-38941]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-18503]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


Discretionary Cooperative Agreements To Support Seat Belt 
Enforcement in Major Metropolitan Areas

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT

ACTION: Announcement of Discretionary Cooperative Agreements in 
conjunction with the Buckle Up America campaign to increase seat belt 
enforcement in major metropolitan areas.

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
announces a discretionary cooperative agreement program to solicit 
support for the Buckle Up America (BUA) campaign. NHTSA solicits 
applications from law enforcement agencies which have jurisdiction in 
major metropolitan areas to participate in the BUA under this program. 
NHTSA seeks the participation and support of these law enforcement 
agencies to increase the use of seat belts and child safety seats, the 
most effective safety devices for reducing injuries and fatalities in 
traffic crashes.

DATES: Applications must be received at the office designated below on 
or before August 19, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Applications must be submitted to the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Contracts and Procurement 
(NAD-30), ATTN.: Joseph Comella, 400 7th Street S.W., Room 5301, 
Washington, D.C. 20590. All applications submitted must include a 
reference to NHTSA Program No. NTS-01-9-05102.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: General administrative questions may 
be directed to Joseph Comella, Office of Contracts and Procurement, at 
(202) 366-9568. Programmatic questions should be directed to Mr. Philip 
Gulak, Occupant Protection Division, NHTSA,

[[Page 38939]]

Room 5118 (NTS-12), 400 7th Street, S.W., Washington, D.C., 20590 (202) 
366-2725. Interested applicants are advised that no separate 
application package exists beyond the contents of this announcement.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Each year, approximately 42,000 Americans die in traffic crashes 
and another three million are injured. Sadly, many of these deaths and 
injuries could have been prevented if the victims had been wearing seat 
belts or were properly restrained in child safety seats.
    Seat belts, when properly used, are 45 percent effective in 
preventing deaths in potentially fatal crashes and 50 percent effective 
in preventing serious injuries. No other safety device has as much 
potential for immediately preventing deaths and injuries in motor 
vehicle crashes. The current level of seat belt use across the nation 
prevents more than 9,500 deaths and well over 200,000 injuries 
annually. Through 1997, more than 100,000 deaths and an estimated 2.5 
million serious injuries have been prevented by seat belt use.
    But, seat belt use rates and the resulting savings could be much 
higher. As of 1998, the average use rate among States in the U.S. was 
still well below the goal of 85 percent announced by the President for 
the year 2000 and at least a dozen States have use rates below 60 
percent. On the other hand, use rates of 85-95 percent are a reality in 
most developed nations with seat belt use laws, and at least six States 
and the District of Columbia achieved use rates greater than 80 percent 
in 1998. A national use rate of 90 percent, among front seat occupants 
of all passenger vehicles, would result in prevention of an additional 
5,500 deaths and 13,000 serious injuries annually. This would translate 
into a $9 billion reduction in societal costs, including 356 million 
for Medicare and Medicaid.
    In April 1997, the Buckle Up America (BUA) campaign established 
ambitious national goals: (a) To increase seat belt use to 85 percent 
and reduce child-related fatalities (0-4 years) by 15 percent by the 
year 2000; and (b) to increase seat belt use to 90 percent and reduce 
child-related fatalities by 25 percent by the year 2005. This campaign 
advocates a four-part strategy: (1) Building public-private 
partnerships; (2) enacting strong legislation; (3) maintaining high 
visibility law enforcement; (4) and conducting effective public 
education. Central to this Campaign's successes is the implementation 
of two major enforcement mobilizations each year (Memorial Day and 
Thanksgiving holidays).

Objectives

    To help achieve the new national seat belt goals, NHTSA seeks to 
establish cooperative efforts between NHTSA and qualified major 
metropolitan law enforcement agencies to increase the use of seat belts 
and child safety seats. Specific objectives for this cooperative 
agreement program will be to support the BUA campaign by increasing 
periodic waves of high visibility enforcement and promoting 
participation in Operation: America Buckles Up Children (ABC) national 
mobilizations (May and November).

1. Periodic ``Waves'' of High Visibility Enforcement

    The history of efforts to increase seat belt use in the U.S. and 
Canada suggests that highly visible enforcement of seat belt laws must 
be the core of any successful program to increase seat belt use. No 
State has ever achieved a high seat belt use rate without such a 
component.
    Canada currently has a national seat belt use rate well above 90 
percent. Nearly every province first attempted to increase seat belt 
use through voluntary approaches involving public information and 
education. These efforts were effective in achieving only very modest 
usage rates (no higher than 30 percent). By 1985, it became obvious to 
Canadian and provincial officials that additional efforts would be 
needed to achieve levels of 80 percent or greater. These efforts, 
mounted from 1985 to 1995, centered around highly publicized ``waves'' 
of enforcement, a technique that had already been shown to increase 
seat belt use in Elmira, New York. When these procedures were 
implemented in the Canadian provinces, seat belt use generally 
increased from about 60 percent to well over 80 percent, within a 
period of 3-5 years.
    The Canadian successes using periodic, highly visible ``waves'' of 
enforcement, as well as successes of such efforts implemented in local 
jurisdictions in the U.S., prompted NHTSA to implement Operation Buckle 
Down (also called the ``70'' by ``92'' Program) in 1991. This two-year 
program focused on Special Traffic Enforcement Programs (STEPs) to 
increase seat belt use. It was followed by a national usage rate 
increase from about 53 percent in 1990 to 62 percent by the end of 1992 
(as measured by a weighted aggregate of State surveys). Neither the 
level of enforcement nor its public visibility was uniform in every 
State. Had these ``waves'' of enforcement been implemented in a more 
uniform fashion in every state, the impact would likely have been much 
greater.
    In order to demonstrate the potential of periodic, highly visible 
enforcement in a more controlled environment, the State of North 
Carolina implemented its Click-It or Ticket program in 1993. In this 
program, waves of coordinated and highly publicized enforcement efforts 
(i.e., checkpoints) were implemented in every county. As a result, seat 
belt use increased statewide, from 65 percent to over 80 percent, in 
just a few months. This program provided the clearest possible evidence 
to demonstrate the potential of highly visible enforcement to increase 
seat belt use in a large jurisdiction.

2. National Mobilizations

    National law enforcement mobilizations have also proven effective 
in increasing seat belt use. The BUA campaign supports two national 
mobilizations each year (Memorial Day and Thanksgiving holidays). 
During the 1998 mobilizations conducted throughout the week surrounding 
Memorial Day and the week surrounding Thanksgiving, between 4,000 and 
5,000 law enforcement agencies participated in Operation ABC. Their 
efforts were covered by several hundred national and local television 
organizations in all major media markets. More than 1,500 print 
articles were written in response to each mobilization. As a result of 
the May mobilization, seat belt use increased significantly nationwide 
as more than 6,000,000 motorists were convinced to buckle up. Since 
that time, seat belt use has continued to increase significantly.

NHTSA Involvement

    NHTSA will be involved in all activities undertaken as part of the 
cooperative agreement program and will:
    1. Provide a Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) 
to participate in the planning and management of the cooperative 
agreement and to coordinate activities between the selected major 
metropolitan law enforcement agencies and NHTSA;
    2. Provide information and technical assistance from government 
sources, within available resources and as determined appropriate by 
the COTR;
    3. Act as a liaison between the selected metropolitan law 
enforcement agencies and with other government and private agencies as 
appropriate; and
    4. Stimulate the exchange of ideas and information among 
cooperative

[[Page 38940]]

agreement recipients through periodic meetings.

Availability of Funds and Period of Support

    Cooperative agreements may be awarded for a period of support for 
(1) year and (1) option year. The application for the funding period 
(12 months) should address what is proposed and can be accomplished 
during that period.
    Subject to the availability of funds, the agency anticipates 
awarding up to four (4) cooperative agreements in the amount of 
$250,000 each, totaling $1,000,000. NHTSA may choose to extend the 
period of performance under this agreement for an additional 12 months, 
subject to the availability of funds. If NHTSA elects to do so, it will 
notify the recipients within 50 days prior to the expiration of this 
agreement and the recipient will submit a proposal for an additional 12 
months of performance. Federal funding should be viewed as seed money 
to assist local law enforcement agencies in the development of traffic 
safety initiatives. Monies allocated for cooperative agreements are not 
intended to cover all of the costs that will be incurred in the process 
of completing the projects. Applicants should demonstrate a commitment 
of financial or in-kind resources to the support of the proposed 
projects.

Eligibility Requirements

    In order to be eligible to participate in this cooperative 
agreement program, an applicant must be a metropolitan law enforcement 
agency and must meet the following requirements:

--have jurisdiction to enforce traffic safety laws within the 
metropolitan area;
--have support and political permission from the Mayor or other chief 
executive officer (in the form of a proclamation or letter of support) 
to conduct seat belt enforcement with the metropolitan area;
--have a population of at least 400 thousand within their metropolitan 
area's jurisdiction;
--obtain written support from the Governor's Representative or his/her 
designee in the State Highway Safety Agency (SHSA) demonstrating that 
the applicant's proposal is consistent with the State's overall plan;

Application Procedure

    Each applicant must submit one original and two copies of their 
application package to: NHTSA, Office of Contracts and Procurement 
(NAD-30), ATTN.: Joseph Comella, 400 7th Street, S.W., Room 5301, 
Washington, D.C. 20590. An additional five copies will facilitate the 
review process, but are not required. Applications are due no later 
than August 19, 1999. Only complete application packages received by 
the due date shall be considered. Applications must be typed on one 
side of the page only. Applications must include a reference to NHTSA 
Program No. NTS-01-9-05102. The proposal shall not exceed 25 pages, not 
including budget, letters of endorsement, and resumes.

Application Contents

    The application package must be submitted with OMB Standard Form 
424 (Rev. 4-88), Application for Federal Assistance, including 424A, 
Budget Information--Nonconstruction Program, and 424B Assurances--
Nonconstruction Programs, with the required information filled in and 
the certified assurances included. The OMB Standard Forms SF-424, SF-
242A and SF424B may be downloaded directly from the OMB Internet web 
site, http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/EOP/OMB/Grants/. While the Form 424-
A deals with budget information, and Section B identifies Budget 
Categories, the available space does not permit a level of detail which 
is sufficient to provide for a meaningful evaluation of the proposed 
costs. A supplemental sheet should be provided which presents a 
detailed breakdown of the proposed costs (direct labor, including labor 
categories, level of effort and rate; direct material, including 
itemized equipment; travel and transportation, including projected 
trips and number of people traveling; subcontracts/subgrants with 
similar cost detail, if known; and overhead costs), as well as any 
costs which the applicant proposes to contribute in support of this 
effort. The budget should be a 1-year plan. Also, the application shall 
include a program narrative statement which addresses the following:
1. A description of the project to be pursued which provides:
    a. A detailed explanation of the proposed strategy to increase seat 
belt use in the metropolitan area, including methods for gaining 
support (both within the community and law enforcement leadership). In 
addition, strategies for participation in the operation ABC national 
mobilizations and plans to conduct ``waves'' of highly publicized seat 
belt enforcement. A description of efforts to address training needs 
(i.e., differential enforcement or diversity sensitivity).
    b. The goals, objectives, and the anticipated results and benefits 
of the project (supporting documentation from concerned interests other 
than the applicant can be used.)
    c. A summary which includes the population of the metropolitan area 
for which the law enforcement agency has traffic enforcement 
jurisdiction and evidence of support of the enforcement program. The 
project must have the written support from the State Highway Safety 
Agency; however additional written support may be provided from 
Mayoral, and other law enforcement agencies (with overlapping 
jurisdictions).
    d. List the project activities in chronological order to show the 
schedule or accomplishments and their target dates.
    e. An explanation demonstrating the need for assistance.
    f. Description of any unusual features, such as design or 
technological innovations, reductions in cost or time, or extraordinary 
social/community involvement.
2. A description of the applicant's previous experience related to this 
proposed program effort, i.e., past participation in highly publicized 
enforcement or participation in the Operation ABC national seat belt 
mobilizations.
3. An evaluation section which describes how the recipient will 
evaluate and measure the project activities and outcomes. Describe the 
methods for assessing actual results achieved. Outcomes can be 
documented in a number of ways (e.g., number of citations, seat belt 
use surveys, level of earned media coverage, etc.). Increases in 
observed seat belt and child safety seat use are the ultimate measure 
of success. Other measures may include: (i) Increases in number of law 
enforcement personnel trained to enforce occupant protection laws; (ii) 
increased metropolitan participation in Operation ABC enforcement 
mobilizations; (iii) increased perception of ongoing enforcement and 
public education activities; (iv) incentive programs to complement 
enforcement efforts or (v) integration of occupant protection 
enforcement activities with other local enforcement activities. Data 
sources should be identified and collection and analysis approaches 
should be described.
4. A statement of any technical assistance which the applicant may

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require of NHTSA in order to successfully complete the proposed 
project.
5. Identification of the proposed program coordinator and other key 
personnel identified for participation in the proposed project effort, 
including a description of their qualifications, the nature of their 
contribution, and their respective organizational responsibilities.
6. A detailed breakdown of the proposed costs, as well the applicant's 
financial or in-kind resources to the support of the proposed projects.

Review Process and Criteria

    Initially, all applications will be screened to ensure that they 
meet the eligibility requirements.
    Each complete application from an eligible recipient will then be 
evaluated by a Technical Evaluation Committee. The applications will be 
evaluated using the following criteria:
    1. The potential of the proposed project effort to significantly 
increase the enforcement of seat belt laws, with a corresponding 
increase in seat belt use within the major metropolitan area. (80 
percent)
    The evaluation will include the proposed strategy for participating 
in the Operation: America Buckles Up Children (ABC) national seat belt 
mobilizations and the applicant's proposed strategy to coordinate this 
effort with other law enforcement agencies with overlapping 
jurisdictions. The applicant's ability to demonstrate support from 
local government officials and national organizations will also be 
considered in evaluating the potential impact of the proposed project. 
(See Application Contents paragraphs 1, 2, 3, and 4)
    2. The program management experience and technical expertise of the 
proposed personnel and the financial merit of the proposed project (20 
percent)
    Program management and technical expertise will be estimated by 
reviewing the qualifications and experience of the professional team, 
the various disciplines represented, and the relative level of effort 
proposed for professional, technical, contractual, and support staff. 
Consideration will be given to the adequacy of the organizational plan 
for accomplishing the proposed project effort. Also, the adequacy of 
the facilities, equipment, and other resources identified to accomplish 
the proposed project effort will be considered. Financial merit will be 
estimated by the cost of the cooperative agreement to be borne by NHTSA 
and the in-kind contribution provided by the applicant as compared to 
the anticipated benefits. (See Application Contents paragraphs 5 and 6)

Terms and Conditions of Award

1. Prior to award, the recipient must comply with the certification 
requirements of 49 CFR part 20, Department of Transportation New 
Restriction on Lobbying, and 49 CFR Part 29, Department of 
Transportation Government-wide Debarment and Suspension 
(Nonprocurement) and Government-wide Requirements for Drug-Free 
Workplace (Grants).
2. During the effective period of the cooperative agreement(s) awarded 
as a result of this notice, the agreement(s) shall be subject to 
NHTSA's General Provisions for Assistance Agreements (7/95).
3. Reporting Requirements
    a. Monthly Reports, which shall be due 15 days after the end of 
each month, shall be submitted to document project efforts and results. 
The reports should include up to date information (including 
summarizing accomplishments, obstacles and problems encountered, 
noteworthy activities) and should be suitable for public dissemination.
    b. Final Report: The recipient shall submit a final report 
summarizing the project effort within 30 days after the completion of 
the project. The final report will include an evaluation section as 
proposed in the initial proposal. An original and three copies of each 
of these reports shall be submitted to the COTR. The recipient shall 
submit a draft final report to the NHTSA COTR 60 days prior to end of 
the performance period. The COTR will review the draft report and 
provide comments to the recipient within 30 days of receipt of the 
document.
    c. Briefing to NHTSA: The recipient may be requested to conduct an 
oral presentation of project activities for the COTR and other 
interested NHTSA personnel. For planning purposes, assume that these 
presentations will be conducted at the NHTSA Office of Traffic and 
Injury Control Programs, Washington, D.C. An original and three copies 
of briefing materials shall be submitted to the COTR.

    Issued on: July 15, 1999.
Rose A. McMurray,
Associate Administrator for Traffic Safety Programs.
[FR Doc. 99-18503 Filed 7-19-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P