[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 250 (Monday, December 31, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 67625-67628]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-32026]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


Child Passenger Protection Education Grants

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, DOT.

ACTION: Announcement of grants for child passenger protection 
education.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
announces a grant program under Section 2003(b) of the Transportation 
Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) to implement child passenger 
protection programs that are designed to prevent deaths and injuries to 
children, educate the public concerning the proper installation of 
child restraints, and train child passenger safety personnel concerning 
child restraint use. This notice solicits applications from the States, 
the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Territories and the 
Indian Tribes through the Secretary of the Interior.

DATES: Applications must be received by the office designated below on 
or before January 31, 2002.

ADDRESSES: Applications must be submitted to the appropriate National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration Regional Administrator.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For program issues contact Ms. Marlene 
Markison, State and Community Services, NSC-01, NHTSA, 400 Seventh 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590; telephone (202) 366-2121. For legal 
issues contact Mr. John Donaldson, Office of the Chief Counsel, NCC-30, 
NHTSA, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, telephone (202) 
366-1834.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Motor vehicle crashes remain the leading cause of unintentional 
injury-related deaths among children for every age from 4 to 14 years, 
despite an 11 percent decline in the motor vehicle occupant death rate 
for children under age 15 from 1988 to 2000. During the same time 
period, the motor vehicle occupant nonfatal injury rate among children 
under age 15 has increased by 7 percent. Motor vehicle injuries and

[[Page 67626]]

fatalities occur when children ride unrestrained or are improperly 
restrained. This grant program is intended to help reduce injuries and 
deaths by educating the public about the importance of correctly 
installing and using child safety seats, booster seats and seat belts.

1. Children Riding Unrestrained

    Approximately 20-25 percent of children ages 1 through 15 years 
ride unrestrained. Child safety seats reduce the risk of fatal injury 
in a crash by 71 percent for infants (less than 1 year old) and by 54 
percent for toddlers (1-4 years old). In 2000, there were 529 passenger 
vehicle occupant fatalities among children under 5 years of age. Of 
those 529 fatalities, where restraint use is known, 240 (47.4 percent) 
were totally unrestrained. The problem of riding unrestrained is not 
limited to infants and young children. From 1975 through 2000, the 
lives of an estimated 4,816 children were saved by the use of child 
restraints (child safety seats or adult safety belts). Among children 
under age 15 who were killed as occupants in motor vehicle crashes, 
where restraint use was known, in 2000, 56 percent were not using 
safety restraints at the time of the collision.
    Examination of the demographics of children killed in motor vehicle 
crashes (for which the most complete data available is 1999) shows that 
safety restraint use differs markedly by race. For example, while 
somewhat less than half (46.5 percent) of white children up to age 9 
riding in passenger motor vehicles were using safety restraints at the 
time of their deaths, that was true of less than one-third (30.4 
percent) of black children. Native American children under age 15 have 
a motor vehicle occupant death rate twice that of white children. 
(Injury and fatality data for other minority groups is currently being 
collected.) Restraint use is also lower in rural areas and low-income 
communities. Lack of access to affordable child safety seats and 
booster seats contributes to a lower usage rate among low-income 
families. However, research shows that 95 percent of low-income 
families who own a child safety seat use it. Improving access to 
affordable child restraint systems and educating parents and caregivers 
about proper installation and use are key components to improving use 
rates in these communities.

2. Misuse of Child Safety Seats and Improper Seating Positions

    In 2000, 95 percent of infants (children under age 1) were 
restrained while riding in motor vehicles, as were 91 percent of 
children ages 1 to 5. However, it is estimated that approximately 80 
percent of children who are placed in child safety seats are improperly 
restrained. Furthermore, adult safety belts do not adequately protect 
children ages 4 to 8 (about 40 to 80 pounds) from injury in a crash. 
Although car booster seats are the best way to protect them, only 6 
percent of booster-age children are properly restrained in car booster 
seats.
    In addition, there is a high risk of severe injury or fatality to 
children riding in the front seat of vehicles equipped with a passenger 
side air bag, due to the deployment force of the air bag. However, even 
if the air bag is shut off or there is no air bag, the back seat is the 
safest place for children to ride. Under no circumstances should a 
parent place a rear-facing infant seat in front of an air bag. It is 
estimated that children ages 12 and under are 36 percent less likely to 
die in a crash if seated in the rear seat of a passenger vehicle.
    Furthermore, children are not cargo; they should not ride in the 
rear of pickup trucks. In 2000, 135 people died as a result of riding 
in the cargo area of pickup trucks. Nearly half of these were children 
and teenagers.
    Child passenger safety professionals, educators, emergency 
personnel and others need to be adequately trained on all aspects of 
child restraint use in order to help reduce the problems of misuse and 
encourage the safest seating positions for children riding in motor 
vehicles. In addition, parents and caregivers need easily accessible 
locations where they can receive information on choosing the correct 
child safety seat for their child, and identifying which child safety 
seats are compatible with various types of passenger motor vehicles. 
Parents and caregivers also need to know how to properly install a 
child safety seat, how to properly secure their child into that seat, 
and that the safest position in a vehicle is the back seat, away from 
front passenger air bags and not in the cargo area of pick-up trucks.
    With these concerns in mind, the Transportation Equity Act for the 
21st Century (TEA-21), which the President signed into law on June 9, 
1998, established a grant program under Section 2003(b), to promote 
child passenger protection education and training and authorized $7.5 
million each year for fiscal years 2000 and 2001. In the DOT 
Appropriation Act of 2002, Congress provided $7.5 million to fund the 
Child Passenger Protection Education grant program for fiscal year 
2002.

Grants for Child Passenger Protection

    Section 2003(b) provides Federal funds to States for activities 
that are designed to prevent deaths and injuries to children; educate 
the public concerning the design, selection, placement, and 
installation of child restraints; and train and retrain child passenger 
safety professionals, police officers, fire and emergency medical 
personnel, and other educators concerning all aspects of child 
restraint use. A State may expend the funds itself or elect to 
distribute some or all of the funds to carry out the public education 
and training activities as grants to political subdivisions of the 
State or appropriate private entities. States are encouraged to direct 
funds obtained through this grant program to organizations that can 
deliver training and education to ensure positive impact in minority 
and low-income communities where lack of child passenger protection is 
especially severe. Section 2003(b) provides that the Federal share of 
the cost of a program carried out with the grant funds is not to exceed 
80 percent. A State that receives a grant must submit a report 
describing the program activities carried out with the funds.

Application Procedures

1. Use of Funds

    To be eligible for funding under Section 2003(b), a State must 
submit an application that addresses how the State will implement child 
passenger protection programs that meet each of the three requirements 
listed below. For the education and training components, the grant 
application must identify expected program accomplishments, such as the 
estimated number of public education messages to be distributed (e.g. 
public service announcements or printed materials) and the type of 
audience to be targeted by these messages (e.g. minority or low-income 
communities); the estimated number of and type of training classes 
conducted and the individuals or groups to be trained (e.g. 
representing minority, rural or low-income communities); the number of 
child safety seat clinics or check-ups performed; and the number of 
inspection stations established. A State is encouraged to identify the 
proposed locations of child safety seat clinics, check-ups and 
inspection stations, specifying the target population to be served. 
Specifically, the State must implement a child passenger protection 
program that:
    (a) Is designed to prevent deaths and injuries to children. The 
State should provide a statement describing how its

[[Page 67627]]

program supports efforts to prevent deaths and injuries to children.
    (b) Educates the public on all aspects of child passenger safety. 
The public education program may include strategies that emphasize the 
four steps to child restraint use: Infant seats for babies, forward 
facing child safety seats for toddlers, booster seats for young 
children, and seat belts for older children. It may also include 
strategies that increase use of appropriate restraints and proper 
seating positions among targeted populations (e.g., minority, rural, 
low-income, or special needs populations), or develop and implement 
child safety seat clinics and/or permanent locations where consumers 
can have child safety seats and booster seats inspected. Additional 
information under public education may be included relevant to proper 
use of child restraint systems, booster seats, proper seating positions 
relative to air bag safety and cargo areas of pick-up trucks, and 
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 225--a standardized child safety 
seat system known as Lower Anchors and Tethers for Children (LATCH).
    At a minimum, the public education program must:
    (1) Provide a summary of the information that the State intends to 
include or develop in the public education program. The information 
must address at least the following topics:
     All aspects of proper installation of child restraints 
using standard seat belt hardware, supplemental hardware, and 
modification devices (if needed), including special installation 
techniques;
     Appropriate child restraint design, selection, and 
placement [NHTSA interprets this to include instruction about proper 
seating positions for children in air bag equipped vehicles]; and
     Harness threading and harness adjustment on child 
restraints.
    (2) Include a description of the public education information 
methods that the State intends to employ, how these messages will be 
delivered to the target population, and expected accomplishments. The 
methods could include billboards, public service announcements, and 
published materials. It is also important to deliver this information 
in the language of the targeted group.
    (c) Trains and retrains child passenger safety professionals, 
police officers, fire and emergency medical personnel, and other 
educators concerning all aspects of child restraint use. At a minimum, 
States should include in the application a description of or reference 
to the curricula that the State will use to train and retrain child 
passenger safety experts to reach the targeted population and expected 
accomplishments.
    All persons selected for training and retraining as child passenger 
safety professionals should achieve and maintain at least some minimum 
standards of expertise. In collaboration with several partners, NHTSA 
has developed several model curricula including: ``Mobilizing America 
to Buckle Up Children'' and ``Operation Kids'' for law enforcement 
officers; and the ``Standardized Child Passenger Safety Training 
Program'' for child passenger safety professional candidates. States 
are not restricted to using only these curricula, but States are 
encouraged to incorporate the learning objectives of these courses into 
the training and retraining provided to child passenger safety experts. 
Funding for this grant program is intended to help States develop and 
sustain adequate cadres of persons with technical expertise in child 
passenger protection who will directly serve the public through child 
safety seat clinics, checkpoints, workshops, inspection stations and 
other training and educational opportunities.

2. Certification

    The State must submit certifications that: (i) It will use the 
funds awarded under this grant program exclusively to implement a child 
passenger protection program in accordance with the requirements of 
Section 2003(b) of P.L. 105-178 (TEA-21); (ii) It will administer the 
funds in accordance with 49 CFR Part 18; and (iii) It will provide to 
the NHTSA Regional Administrator no later than 15 months after the 
grant award a report of activities carried out with grant funds and 
accomplishments to date.

3. Eligibility Requirements

    Eligibility is limited to the 50 States, the District of Columbia, 
Puerto Rico, the U.S. Territories (which include the Virgin Islands, 
Guam, American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana 
Islands) through their Governor's Office of Highway Safety, and Indian 
Tribes through the Secretary of the Interior.

Award Procedures

    The amount available for this program in fiscal year 2002 is 
$7,500,000. In FY 2000, NHTSA awarded $7.5 million to 47 States, the 
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, 4 U.S. Territories and the Indian 
Nations. In FY 2001, NHTSA awarded $7.5 million to 48 States, the 
District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, 4 U.S. Territories and the Indian 
Nations. A new application is required to seek an award of fiscal year 
2002 funds. Awards to applicants meeting the requirements of this 
notice will be made based upon the formula used for Section 402 
apportionment, subject to the availability of funds. The amount awarded 
to each State qualifying under this program shall be determined by 
multiplying the amount appropriated for this grant program for the 
fiscal year by the ratio that the amount of funds apportioned to each 
such State under 23 U.S.C. 402 for the fiscal year bears to the total 
amount of funds apportioned to all such States under Section 402 for 
such fiscal year. Applicants will be required to submit to NHTSA within 
30 days of notification that an award is made, a program cost summary 
(HS Form 217) obligating the Section 2003(b) funds to child passenger 
protection education programs. The Federal funding share may not exceed 
80 percent of the program cost, and States should clearly identify 
their share in the program cost summary (HS Form 217).
    Each State must submit one original and two copies of the 
application package to the appropriate NHTSA Regional Administrator. 
Only complete application packages submitted by a Governor's Highway 
Safety Representative and received on or before January 31, 2002, will 
be considered for funding in fiscal year 2002.

Report Requirements

    A State that receives a grant must submit a report describing the 
activities carried out with the grant funds and the accomplishments to 
date. The report must be submitted to the NHTSA Regional Administrator 
no later than 15 months after the grant is awarded.
    At a minimum, the report must contain the following:
    1. A description of how the State's child passenger protection 
program is supporting efforts to prevent deaths and injuries to 
children.
    2. For the education component:
     A summary of the public education methods developed and 
how programs were delivered to the targeted population.
     The number of public education messages distributed (e.g. 
public service announcements or printed materials) and the type of 
audience targeted by those messages (e.g. minority or low-income 
communities);
     The number of child safety seat clinics or check-ups 
performed, and the number of inspection stations established. A State 
must also include

[[Page 67628]]

the locations of child safety seat clinics, check-ups and inspection 
stations, specifying the target population served.
    3. For the training component:
     The number of and type of training classes conducted and 
the individuals or groups trained (e.g. representing minority, rural or 
low-income communities);

NHTSA Publications Available To Support Public Education

    A number of NHTSA publications are available through the Traffic 
Safety Materials Catalog that address child passenger safety program 
topics, including targeted education messages such as ``Four Steps for 
Kids;'' ``Boost 'em Before You Buckle 'em;'' ``Salvele la Vida a Su 
Bebe,'' and ``Kids Aren't Cargo.'' These materials may be ordered from 
the NHTSA web site at >HTTP://WWW.NHTSA.DOT.GOV or contacting the Media 
and Marketing Division, NTS-21 by fax at (202) 493-2062.
* * * * *

    Issued on: December 21, 2001.
Jeffrey W. Runge,
Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
[FR Doc. 01-32026 Filed 12-28-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P