[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 130 (Tuesday, July 8, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40732-40737]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-17109]


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Department of Transportation

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


Discretionary Cooperative Agreement To Support Metropolitan/Urban 
Projects To Increase African American Safety Belt Use

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation (DOT).

ACTION: Announcement of a Discretionary Cooperative Agreement to 
Support Metropolitan/Urban Demonstration Projects to Increase African 
American Safety Belt Use.

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
announces a Discretionary Cooperative Agreement to provide funding to a 
national organization servicing the African American community to 
support demonstration projects in key metropolitan/urban cities 
designed to increase African American safety belt use. NHTSA 
anticipates funding one national organization for a period of three 
years that, if necessary, may sub-contract with local or community-
based service providers to administer demonstration projects in 
approximately 3 to 4 sites, to be determined jointly by NHTSA and the 
successful applicant. This Notice solicits applications from national 
non-profit, not-for-profit and for-profit organizations. Interested 
applicants must submit an application packet meeting the requirements 
set forth in the application section of this Notice. NHTSA will 
evaluate the applications to determine which proposal will receive 
funding under this announcement.

DATES: Applications must be received no later than August 5, 2003, at 1 
p.m., Eastern Standard Time.

ADDRESSES: Applications must be submitted to the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Contracts and Procurements 
(NPO-220), ATTN: April Jennings, 400 7th Street SW., Room 5301, 
Washington, DC 20590. All applicants must include reference to NHTSA 
Cooperative Agreement Program No. DTNH22-03-H-05155

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: General administrative questions may 
be directed to April Jennings, Office of Contracts and Procurement at 
(202) 366-9571 or by e-mail: [email protected]. Programmatic 
questions should be directed to Shirley Peterson Barton, Occupant 
Protection Division, NHTSA, NTI-112, 400 7th Street SW, Washington, DC 
20590, fax (202) 366-7721 or by e-mail: [email protected]. 
Interested applicants are advised that no separate application packages 
exist beyond the contents of this announcement.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

Safety Belt Use Among African Americans Reaches an Unprecedented Level

    After decades of being below the national average for safety belt 
use and suffering a higher incidence of deaths and injuries from motor 
vehicle crashes, African Americans have begun using safety belts at an 
increased rate. In 1996, only 51 percent of African Americans used 
safety belts. The latest National Occupant Protection Use Survey 
(NOPUS) indicates that safety belt use among African Americans reached 
an unprecedented level of 77 percent in 2002. This increase of 8 
percentage points over the rate recorded in 2000 places African 
Americans slightly ahead of the overall population in safety belt use 
(currently observed at 75 percent).

Keys to Success

    This dramatic increase appears to be the result of a combination of 
factors. Prior to the 2002 NOPUS, minorities were overrepresented in 
motor vehicle crashes. In response, NHTSA initiated a comprehensive 
outreach project to

[[Page 40733]]

educate and enlist national African American organizations to focus on 
the motor vehicle problem. NHTSA also contracted with the Cambridge 
Institute for Applied Research to assess how best to reach the African 
American community. The Institute concluded that focusing on key 
metropolitan/urban areas with large African American populations would 
yield considerable results in increasing safety belt use and thereby 
reduce injuries and fatalities among this group.
    Also leading the way in research relating to this issue was Meharry 
Medical College, a predominately African American Medical College, 
which released a report funded by General Motors Corporation entitled, 
Achieving A Credible Health and Safety Approach to Increasing Seat Belt 
Use Among African Americans. Meharry reported that by increasing safety 
belt use by African Americans to 100 percent, 1,300 lives could be 
saved, 26,000 injuries prevented and $2.5 billion saved every year. 
This report helped galvanize the commitment of the African American 
community and Black legislators to address traffic safety issues, 
particularly safety belt and child safety seat use. One of the 
recommendations from the Meharry Report suggested that a panel of 
African American leaders periodically convene to identify additional 
strategies to increase safety belt use in their community.
    In October 1999, NHTSA collaborated with Meharry Medical College on 
a second report entitled, The Role of African-American National 
Organizations in Increasing Seat Belt Use Among African-Americans: A 
Health and Safety Forum & Student Practicum. One of the Forum's 
principal recommendations was to convene a national body, under the 
auspices of the U.S. Department of Transportation, whose purpose would 
be, ``* * * to inspire and excite all sectors of the American public to 
take action and address the public health crisis (by providing) 
strategies that could be implemented by all Americans to close the gap 
in safety belt use.''
    This led to significant efforts by several national African 
American leadership organizations, members of the Congressional Black 
Caucus, National Black Caucus of State Legislators, and most notably to 
the Blue Ribbon Panel to Increase Seat Belt Use Among African 
Americans. This Panel, which convened in June 2000 and consisted of 
African American leaders from civic, health and medicine, faith-based, 
academia, and law enforcement backgrounds, was charged with developing 
recommendations and strategies for increasing safety belt use among 
African Americans. The Panel documented its findings in a December 2000 
report entitled, Blue Ribbon Panel To Increase Safety Belt Use Among 
African Americans: A Report to the Nation. The report, which stressed 
the need to increase safety belt use among this population and 
recommended a number of specific strategies, was well received by the 
African American community and government officials. It can be viewed 
at [http://www.bchle.org]
    Concurrent with these research activities, NHTSA began working with 
States to implement the successful Click It or Ticket/Operation ABC 
Mobilizations. The Click It or Ticket model consists of intensive, 
widespread enforcement of a State's safety belt law coupled with earned 
and paid media that publicizes enforcement efforts. Specifically, media 
activities inform the motoring public directly about the enforcement 
campaign and paid media employs the ``Click It or Ticket'' slogan. 
Click It or Ticket, which began in North Carolina in 1993, has a strong 
track record of increasing safety belt use. Focus group testing 
demonstrates that Click It or Ticket's message resonates well with the 
hard-core non-user of safety belts.
    NHTSA's May 2002 Click It or Ticket Mobilization, involving ten 
``full implementation States,'' showed the effectiveness of the 
campaign's approach in raising safety belt use. Full participation 
involved a statewide coverage program employing the Click It or Ticket 
model of defined periods of earned media (5 weeks), paid media (2 
weeks) and intensive enforcement (2 weeks). Paid media used ``Click It 
or Ticket'' or similar direct enforcement messages. During this 
mobilization, belt use increased 8.6 percentage points (on average) 
among the full implementation States, versus a 2.7 percentage point 
increase (on average) among partial implementation States. Partial 
implementation States had some variation of the full implementation, 
but not all of the elements, such as following the model's timeline but 
only conducted conducting modest paid media or covering only a portion 
of the State. There was a 0.5 percentage point increase (on average) in 
comparison States, which did not use direct paid advertisements.
Looking to the Future
    Although the latest observational surveys of safety belt use for 
African Americans are positive, approximately one-quarter of this 
population still is not buckling up. The non-user segment of this 
population remains the most difficult group to reach and warrants 
enhanced efforts.
    NHTSA's mission is to ensure that everyone is buckled up, and to 
develop and implement national activities that will generate further 
positive change in safety belt and child safety seat use. NHTSA's 
programs are tailored to meet the unique needs of communities, use 
evidence-based and proven strategies, and rely on close collaborations 
and partnerships with community-based service providers.
    As part of this on-going effort to define strategies that work best 
to increase safety belt use in African American communities, NHTSA 
announces this demonstration program to examine the premise, presented 
by the Cambridge Institute for Applied Research, that focusing on key 
metropolitan/urban areas with large African American populations will 
reduce injuries and fatalities among this group. Through the award of a 
Cooperative Agreement to a national organization that serves the 
African American community, NHTSA hopes to increase safety belt use in 
metropolitan/urban communities with large African American populations 
and to identify effective strategies that can be replicated in other 
African American communities across the Nation.
    In June 2003, the U.S. Secretary of Transportation, Administrator 
of NHTSA, and the National Council of Negro Women, convened a 
Leadership Forum on Increasing Safety Belt Use in the African American 
Community. The Forum served to acknowledge the recent increases in 
African American safety belt use and to reaffirm the recommendations of 
the Blue Ribbon Panel to Increase Seat Belt Use in the African American 
Community. In addition to acknowledging the success of the Blue Ribbon 
Panel, the Leadership Forum discussed next steps to further increase 
safety belt use among urban-based African American populations. The 
strategies identified by the Blue Ribbon Panel will be utilized in the 
demonstration program.
Objective
    The objective of the demonstration program is to examine the impact 
of various strategies to increase safety belt use in key metropolitan/
urban areas with large African American populations. NHTSA and the 
successful applicant will select sites in metropolitan/urban areas with 
diverse geographical distribution and with safety belt usage rates 
lower than the national average. By implementing different strategies 
in different selected

[[Page 40734]]

sites, NHTSA and the successful applicant will have the capacity to 
evaluate the strategies' impact on safety belt use and, ultimately, 
their ability to reduce injuries and fatalities among this group.
Effective Strategies
    Research has shown that combinations of strategies have been 
effective in increasing safety belt use. The greatest increases in 
safety belt use have come from highly visible enforcement programs, 
supplemented with paid advertising with a strong enforcement message. 
The Click It or Ticket message is simple and straightforward; ``Wear 
your safety belt or you will get a ticket.'' (The evaluation report is 
available at www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury rsearch/index.html). 
Messages that are purely educational or safety oriented have not been 
shown to have as great of an effect (e.g., ``What's Holding You 
Back''). There is some evidence that the people who can be educated to 
wear their safety belts already are wearing them, so education alone 
does not seem to increase safety belt use beyond a minimal level.
    To assist the highway safety community in determining the most 
appropriate and effective strategies to increase safety belt use in 
African American populations, under this Cooperative Agreement, the 
successful applicant will assess variations of enforcement and 
education models. One of these approaches must be the Click It or 
Ticket model of high visibility law enforcement coupled with a strong 
enforcement media message. Other approaches might include education, 
health awareness programs, faith-based programs, or other programs 
proposed by the successful applicant.
    Since we know that highly visible enforcement of a State's safety 
belt law, supplemented by paid media, is an effective tool for 
increasing safety belt use, the high visibility enforcement/media model 
must constitute at least part of the successful applicant and sub-
grantee planned activities at most sites funded under this Cooperative 
Agreement.
Program Oversight
    Under the Cooperative Agreement, the successful applicant will be 
responsible for managing the demonstration projects in key 
metropolitan/urban areas. NHTSA will work closely with the successful 
applicant to provide necessary technical assistance to any sub-grantee.
Evaluation of Programs
    The successful applicant will be responsible for collecting 
information about program activities, resources, and outcomes. At a 
minimum, the successful applicant will conduct a process evaluation to 
document activities, materials, education activity, enforcement 
activity, and media activities expended on the program. The ultimate 
goal is to increase safety belt use among the African American 
population. To assess achievement of that goal, outcome measures must 
include pre- and post safety belt observation surveys to measure 
changes in safety belt usage rates as a result of the program. NHTSA 
also will require public perception surveys. A data collection and 
evaluation plan that describes the design for these observational 
surveys, as well as the public perception surveys, must be approved by 
NHTSA prior to conducting the surveys. Measuring public awareness will 
track the extent to which the successful applicant used media and other 
activities to make the African American public aware of the program. 
NHTSA will work with the successful applicant to select an independent 
evaluator to coordinate an outcome evaluation document changes in 
safety belt use among African Americans resulting from program 
activity. The successful applicant agrees to work with an independent 
evaluator in collecting information to document the success of the 
program.

NHTSA Involvement

    NHTSA will provide:

1. Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR)

    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 successful applicant and 
NHTSA;

2. Availability of Funds and Period of Performance

    Provide a total of $2 million is currently available to support 
demonstration efforts in key metropolitan/urban areas during the 
performance of the Cooperative Agreement. The government anticipates 
making an award to one national organization for a total performance 
period of 3 years. This funding shall include all monies to support the 
demonstration site, evaluation, administration and management, and all 
other related expenses. The successful applicant will, with the 
approval of NHTSA, sub-contract with an independent evaluator to 
conduct a full evaluation of the project. NHTSA will require the 
successful applicant to set aside $400,000 for these activities;

3. Support

    Provide technical assistance in response to specific requests from 
the successful applicant and/or sub-grantee and work collaboratively 
with both through phone conference calls, web site communications or 
meetings;

4. Briefing

    Conduct a one-day initial briefing in Washington, DC for the 
successful applicant to discuss and determine requirements for 
completing tasks successfully and efficiently;

5. Data Related Research

    Provide significant information and technical assistance from 
government sources and available resources (as deemed appropriate by 
the COTR), including safety belt use and African American population 
data; and

6. Oversight

    Stimulate the exchange of ideas and information among recipients of 
related projects, including through periodic meetings and briefings.

Successful Applicant Responsibilities

    First and foremost, NHTSA intends to replicate successful 
strategies and activities conducted pursuant to this Cooperative 
Agreement elsewhere throughout the Nation. Accordingly, this benchmark 
demonstration project will be closely monitored and its results shared 
with other programs and constituencies. NHTSA will work with the 
successful applicant to assure that the necessary components of the 
project are in place to fulfill this goal.

Successful applicant responsibilities include:

1. Briefing

    Participate with key NHTSA resource staff in the initial briefing 
meeting, which will take place after the Cooperative Agreement is 
awarded. The purpose of the meeting will be to review the project's 
objectives, planned course of action, successful applicant 
responsibilities, milestones and deliverables, and to resolve any 
differences between the Government's technical approach and the 
successful applicant's approach. The successful applicant first shall 
conduct a short briefing (20 to 30 minutes) describing the 
organization's planned approach. The successful applicant shall provide 
attendees with appropriate briefing

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materials. After the prepared briefing, the successful applicant and 
NHTSA personnel will discuss specific details of the project.

2. Personnel and Equipment

    Provide necessary skilled personnel and equipment needed for 
performing the work under this agreement. Assign a principal manager as 
the point of contact for NHTSA's Contracting Officer's Technical 
Representative (COTR) for the purpose of ongoing coordination and 
review of work under this agreement.

3. Site Selection

    Identify, jointly with NHTSA, the 3 to 4 communities/sites where 
the successful applicant and/or sub-grantees will administer 
demonstration projects. Based on NHTSA's preliminary identification of 
locations with large proportionate African American populations and low 
safety belt use rates, potential sites include, but are not limited to 
the cities listed in Appendix A.

4. Strategy Identification

    Identify the behavior change strategies, including high visibility 
enforcement and media, to be implemented in the various sites as 
approved by NHTSA.

5. Program Oversight

    Provide ongoing program oversight at the selected sites including 
oversight of any sub-grantee. Ideally, the successful applicant will 
engage sub-grantees at selected sites that already have the 
infrastructure and capacity to implement the demonstration project, as 
required by NHTSA and the successful applicant. If no such entities 
exist at some or all of the sites selected, the successful applicant 
may use project resources, as approved by NHTSA, to develop 
infrastructure necessary for the implementation of the demonstration 
project at those sites(s). Through coordinated discussions, NHTSA and 
the successful applicant together will determine whether the successful 
applicant or one or more sub-grantees will implement demonstration 
projects at the selected sites. In either case, the successful 
applicant will provide ongoing and close oversight and coordination 
over demonstration project personnel at the site(s) to ensure the 
quality of the programs.

6. Foster Community Support

    Build community support and buy-in for the program. Engage and 
mobilize policy makers, law enforcement (e.g., chiefs of police), 
mayors and other officials and community leaders at the selected sites. 
The successful applicant must ensure that efforts are coordinated with 
the Governor's Highway Safety Representative and the NHTSA Regional 
office in the related site locations.

7. Team Approach

    Establish and maintain a highly credible internal and external team 
approach to prepare for and resolve any potential challenges presented 
by this Demonstration Project.

8. Evaluation

    Work closely with an independent evaluator selected jointly by 
NHTSA and the successful applicant at the 3-4 selected sites to 
coordinate the design and execution of an evaluation model applicable 
to all demonstration projects conducted under this Cooperative 
Agreement. The successful applicant will be responsible for collecting 
information about program activities, resources, and outcomes, as well 
as engaging and paying the fees of the selected independent evaluator 
out of project funds. At a minimum, in partnership with NHTSA, the 
successful applicant will carry out a data collection and evaluation 
plan, and will conduct a process evaluation to document the activities, 
materials, education activity, enforcement activity, and media 
activities expended on the project.

9. Technical Assistance

    Provide technical assistance to the personnel at the selected sites 
and in selected communities through conferences, annual meetings, 
journals, and established networks and affiliate organizations. 
Encourage personnel at the selected sites to coordinate their efforts 
under this Cooperative Agreement with existing highway safety programs, 
and facilitate an open exchange of information with other key players. 
Collaborate with other national organizations and local chapters of 
such organizations.

10. Results and Strategy Assessment

    Identify remaining challenges to increasing safety belt use in the 
African American population. Identify what strategies can quickly be 
replicated, both locally, and nationally.

11. Report and Written Deliverables

    Create a credible and culturally infused report of facts, safety 
education materials and examples of safety belt use. Distribute the 
materials and information through collaborative partnerships with 
community-based service and other organizations/groups including 
churches, civil rights and volunteer organizations, schools, educators, 
parents and students. Coordinate and compile ``best practices'' guide 
for other metropolitan cities, especially targeted at community 
leadership and lawmakers.

12. Record Keeping

    Maintain accurate records of all internal executive and management 
discussions on planning, performance and evaluation activities related 
to this project. Accurate project records will greatly assist in the 
replication of the successful approaches and processes identified as a 
result of this Cooperative Agreement.

Eligibility Requirements

    To be considered for the Metropolitan/Urban Demonstration Projects 
to Increase African American Safety Belt Use, the applicant must be a 
non-profit, not-for-profit or for profit national organization 
dedicated to serving the needs and/or addressing issues specific to 
African American communities.
    The successful applicant must demonstrate that it has the 
infrastructure and staff sufficient to carry out the development, 
administration, coordination and implementation of activities required 
by this Agreement.
    Specifically, successful applicants must have:
    1. Demonstrated expertise in the development and implementation of 
traffic safety programs and have substantial knowledge of safety belt 
issues specific to the African American community;
    2. an organizational infrastructure with adequate staff time 
necessary to handle the day-to-day logistical needs of the 
Metropolitan/Urban Demonstration Project to Increase African American 
Safety Belt Use;
    3. a communications and office infrastructure sufficient to handle 
phone calls, conference calls, computer conferencing, faxes, emails, 
mailings, and other necessary group communications;
    4. staff experienced in and/or with adequate writing skills to 
prepare press releases, reports, articles and other methods of 
promotion and communication;
    5. demonstrated ability to work with the media (e.g., develop media 
buy plans, place media buys, etc.) or coordinate this effort with an 
appropriate firm, as well as with law enforcement to develop a high 
visibility enforcement campaign in a selected site(s);

[[Page 40736]]

    6. demonstrated ability to implement the recommendations 
promulgated by the Blue Ribbon Panel To Increase Safety Belt Use Among 
African Americans within the selected sites;
    7. capacity to identify effective strategies to increase safety 
belt use among high-risk populations, particularly African American 
youth ages 16-24;
    8. demonstrated ability to network with local chapters of national 
organizations and create a broader partnership to maximize the impact 
and ensure sustainability of the projects;
    9. demonstrated ability and/or willingness to attempt to secure in-
kind or other contributions for the purposes of enhancing the program 
and building sustainability;
    10. demonstrated capacity for program planning and analysis;
    11. demonstrated adequate knowledge of injury prevention programs;
    12. the ability to implement injury prevention programs at the 
grassroots level, or work with local coalitions or organizations at the 
grassroots levels to do so;
    13. demonstrated experience and technical proficiency in program 
design, data collection and evaluation; and
    14. the capability to outline strategies, successes, and challenges 
of programs, i.e., identifying new initiatives that can be developed to 
achieve increased safety belt use in minority communities and serve as 
a model nationwide.

Application Procedures

    The successful applicant shall submit on or before August 5, 2003, 
at 1 p.m. EDT, one original and two copies of the application package 
to: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Contracts 
and Procurements, NPO-220, 400 Seventh Street, SW., Room 5301, 
Washington, DC 20590, Attention: (April Jennings).
    An additional three copies will facilitate the review process, but 
are not required. Applications must be typed on one side of the page 
only. Only complete packages received on or before August 5, 2003 at 1 
p.m. EDT will be considered.

Application Contents

    A. The application package must be submitted with OMB Standard 424 
(Rev 7-97), including SF 424A and 424B). The Application for Federal 
Assistance, with the required information filled in and certified 
assurances must be included. While the SF 424 addresses budget 
information, and Section B identifies budget categories, the available 
space does not permit a level of detail that is sufficient to provide 
for a meaningful evaluation of the proposed costs. A Supplemental 
Budget Sheet must be submitted to detail the breakdown of the proposed 
costs (Direct Labor, including labor categories, level of effort, and 
rate; Materials including itemized equipment; Travel and 
Transportation, including projected trips and number of people 
traveling; Subcontractor/Sub-grantee, with similar detail; and 
Overhead) as well as any costs that the applicant proposes to 
contribute or obtain from any other sources in support of this effort.
    B. The certifications required by 49 CFR part 20.
    C. The certifications required by CFR part 29.
    D. A technical proposal not to exceed 20 pages describing:
    1. The successful applicant's proposed plan of action/approach for 
designing and implementing the Demonstration Programs, including a 
discussion of the applicant's infrastructure and/or proposed sub-
grantees at the sites proposed for demonstration projects;
    2. A timeline/schedule of activities that demonstrates that the 
successful applicant will comply with NHTSA requests and Cooperative 
Agreement requirements in a timely manner;
    3. A brief biography of each proposed staff person and sub-
contractor, if known, and their role on the Demonstration Projects and/
or projects at individual sites;
    4. Letters of support and commitment to the Metropolitan/Urban 
Demonstration Projects to Increase African American Safety Belt Use 
(e.g., from members of the Blue Ribbon Panel to Increase Seat Belt Use 
in the African American Community, mayors or other elected officials, 
or local community-based service providers involved with issues 
specific to the African American Community);
    5. A letter of support from the State Governor's Highway Safety 
Office in which the applicant resides; however, upon award, the 
successful applicant must submit letters of support from the State 
Governor's Highway Safety Offices in the States where the selected 
demonstration sites are located. Contact information for Governor's 
Highway Safety Offices can be found on the NHTSA Web site at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/nhtsa/whatis/regions/
    6. Work samples that demonstrate the required knowledge and skills 
necessary to implement this Demonstration Project; and
    7. Documentation of the applicant's recordkeeping strategy, 
specifically, how information from the organization and demonstration 
sites will be organized, maintained and disseminated.

Review Procedures, Criteria and Evaluation Factors

    Upon receipt of the application package, each package will 
initially be reviewed to ensure eligibility and that the application 
contains all of the items specified in the Application Contents Section 
of this announcement. An Evaluation Committee using the criteria 
outlined below will then review all complete applications.
    The application package must concisely address the following 
criteria:
    1. Organizational Capabilities--The Applicant shall provide 
evidence of the existence of a viable organizational entity with 
sufficient demonstrated experience in performing the tasks required for 
successful implementation of this Cooperative Agreement; a full and 
complete description of existing capabilities, and established 
credibility within the African American community through similar 
initiatives; and, sufficient staff with demonstrated skill and relevant 
experience to perform the tasks required to support the Metropolitan/
Urban Demonstrations. Applicants must have demonstrated research and 
evaluation capacity or be affiliated with an academic institution or 
other entity that possess these critical capabilities. (25 percent)
    2. Project Approach/Plan--The Applicant shall provide a sound and 
feasible plan for the development and implementation of program 
activities. The approach shall demonstrate a clear and comprehensive 
understanding of the African American community, knowledge of effective 
strategies and interventions, and the potential to increase safety belt 
use. (25 percent)
    3. Partnerships/Collaboration--The Applicant shall demonstrate its 
ability (through examples of current and prior activities) to form 
effective partnerships with other organizations, coalitions and with 
community leaders/officials, and to motivate and mobilize the community 
and community leaders to take action in furtherance of positive change. 
(25 percent)
    4. Project Management--The soundness of the project management 
structure, budget and the delineation of responsibility for different 
parts of the project. NHTSA will assess the qualifications and 
experience of project personnel. The applicant's staffing plan should 
be adequate to manage and implement the project and identify estimated 
costs and rationale for the proposed budget. (25 percent)

[[Page 40737]]

Terms and Conditions of the Award

    1. Prior to award, each grantee must comply with the certification 
requirements set forth in 49 CFR part 20, DOT's New Restrictions on 
Lobbying, and those set forth in 49 CFR part 29, DOT's Government-wide 
Debarment and Suspension (Non-procurement) and Government-wide 
Requirements for Drug Free Workplace Grants).
    2. Progress Reports
    The successful applicant will furnish two copies of a monthly 
letter typed progress report to the COTR and one copy to the 
Contracting Officer (CO), by the 10th of each month detailing:
    a. Accomplishments made during that reporting period, and one copy 
of any written or graphic product produced;
    b. An analysis and interpretation of those accomplishments, and an 
assessment of results achieved;
    c. Funding expended during the reporting period and a total of 
expenditures for the Cooperative Agreement;
    d. What is planned during the next reporting period; and,
    e. Specific actions that the successful applicant would like NHTSA 
to undertake.
    3. Annual Summary Report
    At the completion of each year of the Cooperative Agreement, the 
successful applicant will submit an annual summary report. These 
reports shall document and review the accomplishments of the year. The 
reports shall include a list and brief summary of materials developed, 
dissemination of methods used, feedback from the field, a list of 
partners secured, notable accomplishments, evaluation results and 
recommendations for future year's efforts. The annual summary report 
also shall include an executive summary, which may be reproduced for 
widespread distribution and used as a ``best practices guide.''
    4. Draft Final Report
    The successful applicant shall prepare a Draft Final Report that 
includes a description of the demonstration project detailing the major 
activities, events, data collection, methodology, and best practices 
guide that can be replicated for use in other communities. The 
successful applicant shall submit the Draft Final Report to the COTR 90 
days prior to the end of the performance period. The COTR will review 
the draft report and provide comments to the successful applicant 
within 30 days of receipt of the document.
    5. Final Report
    The revised Draft Final Report shall be delivered to the COTR one 
(1) month before the end of the performance period and reflect the 
COTR's comments. The comprehensive report should detail the major 
activities, events, data collection, methodology, and best practices 
guide that can be replicated in other communities. The successful 
applicant shall supply the COTR with:
    (a) one camera-ready version of the document, as printed and one 
copy, on appropriate media disk in Microsoft Word Format or CD ROM of 
the document in the original program format that was used for the 
printing process. Some documents require several different original 
program languages (e.g., PageMaker for general layout and design, 
PowerPoint for charts, Project for project timeline management, and 
another for photographs, etc.). Each of these component parts should be 
available on disk, properly labeled with the program format and the 
file names. For example, PowerPoint files should be clearly identified 
by both a descriptive name and file name (e.g., 2001 Fatalities--chart 
1.ppt).
    (b) document must be completely assembled with all colors, charts, 
sidebars, photographs, and graphics, if appropriate). This can be 
delivered to NHTSA on a standard 1.44 floppy diskette (for small 
documents) or on any appropriate archival media (for larger documents) 
such as CD ROM. The successful applicant will provide to the COTR four 
hard paper copies of the final document, as well as a disk containing 
the redlined version of the Draft Final Report reflecting changes made 
in response to the COTR's comments.
    6. During the effective performance of Cooperative Agreement 
awarded as a result of this announcement, the Agreement shall be 
subject to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's General 
Provisions for Assistance Agreements, dated July 1995.

Marilena Amoni,
Associate Administrator for Program Development and Delivery.

Appendix A--Cities With Highest African American Populations

     1. Jacksonville, FL
     2. Atlanta, GA
     3. Chicago, IL
     4. New Orleans, LA
     5. Cleveland, OH
     6. Columbus, OH
     7. Philadelphia, PA
     8. Birmingham, AL
     9. Memphis, TN
    10. St. Louis, MO
    11. Indianapolis, IN
    12. Boston, MA
    13. Milwaukee, WI

[FR Doc. 03-17109 Filed 7-7-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P