[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 130 (Tuesday, July 8, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 40737-40743]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-17110]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration


Cooperative Agreement Demonstration Program To Increase Safety 
Belt Use in Rural Areas

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

ACTION: Announcement of a demonstration cooperative agreement program 
to increase safety belt use in rural areas. This funding is available 
through special allocation by Congress to increase safety belt use 
among teens, minorities, and rural populations.

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
announces a demonstration cooperative agreement program to solicit 
support for program leadership in increasing safety belt use and 
addressing traffic safety problems in rural communities. NHTSA is 
seeking to demonstrate best practices in establishing infrastructures 
in rural areas to address traffic safety problems utilizing a lead 
coordinating institution--community outreach serving agency or 
organization--interested in building and sustaining a coordinated motor 
vehicle injury prevention program in their rural service area.
    NHTSA seeks to engage rural area service providers in 
institutionalizing traffic safety as part of their community outreach 
initiatives. This notice solicits applications from for-profit or not-
for-profit national organizations, and State, regional or local 
agencies and organizations that administer direct community outreach 
programs in rural areas. In addition, NHTSA is particularly interested 
in gaining the interest and involvement of organizations that provide 
health and safety services and have the interest and ability to 
coordinate an on-going community effort beyond the project period. 
These could include, but are not limited to: hospitals and health care 
facilities, and Emergency Medical Services, law enforcement, 
transportation, county government and community serving organizations.

DATES: Applications must be received at the office designated below on 
or before (30 days after notice is issued) August 7, 2003, at 2 p.m., 
Eastern Standard Time.

[[Page 40738]]


ADDRESSES: Applications must be submitted to the National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, Office of Contracts and Procurement 
(NPO-220), ATTN: Maxine D. Edwards, 400 7th Street, SW., Room 5301, 
Washington, DC 20590. All applications submitted must include a 
reference to NHTSA Program NTS-01-3-05149.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: General administrative questions may 
be directed to Maxine D. Edwards, Office of Contracts and Procurement 
at (202) 366-4843. Programmatic questions relating to this grant 
program should be directed to Ann Mitchell, Occupant Protection 
Division (NTI-112), NHTSA, 400 7th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20590, 
by e-mail at [email protected], or by phone at (202) 366-2690. 
Interested applicants are advised that no separate application package 
exists beyond the contents of this announcement.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    In 1996, the U.S. Department of Transportation commenced a national 
initiative to increase safety belt use nationwide called the Buckle Up 
America Campaign.\1\ Since the start of the campaign, the national 
safety belt use rate has steadily climbed from 68 percent in 1996 to 75 
percent in 2002. By 1999--a year ahead of schedule--the campaign had 
achieved its goal of reducing occupant fatalities in children ages 0-4 
years by 15 percent. This success was a direct result of efforts by the 
many partners who joined the Buckle Up America Campaign and supported 
the campaign's initiatives. Despite significant gains, continued work 
is needed to reach the remaining 25 percent of Americans who still do 
not buckle up. NHTSA has established a target of 79 percent safety belt 
use by 2004. Meeting this goal will require an intense effort to 
persuade hardcore nonusers to change their behavior.
    Rural populations are among the groups at higher risk of being 
killed in a crash, as are teens, minorities, and pickup truck drivers 
and passengers. NHTSA statistics show that traffic crashes, injuries, 
and fatalities occur with much higher frequency in rural areas than in 
urban areas. Factors such as higher alcohol-related crash rates, lower 
safety belt use, higher speeding crash rates and less accessibility to 
emergency services all contribute to the disparity. In 2001, 25,737 
traffic related fatalities occurred in rural areas--61 percent of all 
traffic fatalities. Rural areas, however, account for only 39 percent 
of the vehicle miles traveled and only 21 percent of the population 
nationwide. In 2001, the rural fatality rate remains double that of the 
urban rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT).\2\
    These crash and fatality statistics illustrate why the rural 
population is a high-risk group that has been targeted by Congress for 
assistance. Yet, the highway safety community has not developed an 
approach that effectively incorporates rural America into its highway 
safety program. Administrative resources and programmatic goals often 
work against support for rural initiatives by focusing activity in high 
population/high crash rate areas. Rural communities individually do not 
have the data to support targeted funding in a small community; 
however, collectively, they encompass the majority of the crashes, 
injuries and fatalities on the road.
    Across the board, safety belt use is lowest among young adults ages 
16 to 24 years old and by occupants of pickup trucks. Safety belt use 
in pickup trucks is considerably lower (54 percent) in rural areas than 
in urban areas (69 percent).\3\ High-speed crashes play a role in the 
disparity, with 70 percent of fatal crashes at 55 MPH or higher 
occurring in rural areas.\4\ Studies reveal that survival from car 
crashes in rural areas depends on a number of factors, including crash 
dynamics, time to discovery and the degree of organization of EMS and 
trauma system resources.\5\
    Though NHTSA studies show that enactment and enforcement of a 
primary safety belt law comprise a proven methodology to increase 
safety belt use, rural America faces challenges in implementing this 
approach, and rural secondary States even more so. Law enforcement 
officials in rural communities are often elected officials and thus 
reluctant to write traffic tickets. Due to limited resources, 
inadequate manpower, and lack of community support for strong 
enforcement, rural communities are less engaged in coordinated 
national, state and local safety belt enforcement campaigns such as the 
Operation ABC (America Buckles Up Children) Mobilizations, Click It or 
Ticket.\6\ These campaigns have proven successful in increasing safety 
belt use;\7,8\ however, rural America has not fully embraced the 
enforcement concept, nor have traditional program delivery systems been 
successful in reaching rural communities.
    The problem of increasing safety belt use in rural communities 
needs a solution. Changing social norms in rural America is a difficult 
task that will require an understanding of the perceptions, knowledge, 
and attitudes of rural Americans. Messages and programs designed for 
``mainstream America'' often are not effective for those populations 
most at risk or hardest to reach. Language, cultural, and other 
barriers must play a role in the development of tailored messages and 
alternate delivery channels. Increasing usage rates in this population 
will require the leadership, support and cooperation of respected 
organizations that represent and advocate on behalf of rural Americans, 
with the credibility and knowledge to influence their members and 
constituencies to buckle up. Engaging the rural residents themselves to 
take responsibility in addressing this issue also will be key to the 
success of the highway safety community's efforts.
    This approach has been tested and proven effective in both urban 
and rural communities. Community Traffic Safety Programs and Safe 
Communities Coalitions \9,10\ have been active throughout the nation 
for a number of years. NHTSA also partnered with the National Rural 
Health Association (NRHA) to demonstrate the ``Partners for Rural 
Traffic Safety'' community-based approach. Fifteen projects conducted 
in 1997-1998 resulted in an average nine percentage-point increase in 
safety belt use. NRHA and NHTSA produced the Partners for Rural Traffic 
Safety Action Kit \11\ based on the demonstration projects and their 
community approach. Information on how to obtain copies of the sources 
sited herein (and other relevant resources) is set forth below, in the 
``Additional Resources'' section of this announcement.

Goal

    The goals of this demonstration program are to test viable delivery 
mechanisms for administering traffic safety programs in rural 
communities and to engage rural communities in activities to increase 
safety belt use. We are seeking organizations/agencies that will take a 
leadership role in serving as a focal point for traffic safety program 
delivery to/within the community. The success of the effort will be 
measured in terms of:
    [sbull] Changes in safety belt use rates;
    [sbull] increases in enforcement activities;
    [sbull] ability to coordinate, monitor, and publicize activity and 
serve as a focal point for information;
    [sbull] ability to engage the community in the program, provide 
education and training, and to work closely with law enforcement and 
other community service providers on planning, data collection, and 
evaluation;

[[Page 40739]]

    [sbull] utilization of technology, community resources, media, and 
other delivery channels to gather and provide information;
    [sbull] ability to establish an infrastructure and acquire 
resources for sustaining the program beyond the initial project funding 
period;
    [sbull] ability to evaluate activities and outcomes; and
    [sbull] potential for replication in other rural community 
settings.

Purpose

    The primary purpose of this cooperative agreement program is to 
identify/test ``best practice'' approaches for delivering/administering 
traffic safety programs in rural communities. Best practices are those 
that successfully increase safety belt use and can be replicated in 
other rural communities. The program is designed to generate the 
interest and commitment of rural area service providers to become 
traffic safety focal points in their rural community/service area. 
NHTSA will provide funding between approximately $150,000 and $200,000 
total over a 3-year period for program startup, implementation, and 
evaluation for each community level project, as well as support for 
State or national organization administrative costs. Annual funding 
will be allocated in depreciating increments based on 100 percent 
funding the first year, 50 percent funding the second year, and 25 
percent funding the third year. Thus, the successful applicant(s) will 
be responsible for providing 50 percent funding for the second year and 
seventy-five percent funding for the third year, while maintaining a 
level of program activity and delivery equivalent to or in excess of 
that provided in the first year of the program.
    The objectives of this initiative are to have successful 
applicants, whether national, State or local, work together to 
establish an infrastructure for program delivery, to conduct program 
delivery activities and to spearhead coordination at the community 
level of highway safety activities, all designed to increase safety 
belt use. In order to achieve these objectives, the successful 
applicant(s) will:
    [sbull] Work with NHTSA to identify one to four geographically 
dispersed ``rural'' community sites based on criteria and objectives 
identified in this Notice;
    [sbull] Perform an assessment of the identified community site(s) 
for their safety belt use rates, knowledge and attitudes about safety 
belt use, enforcement of occupant protection laws, motor vehicle 
injuries and fatalities, and recent past/current program activity;
    [sbull] Develop a program structure within the community 
organization(s) (and national or State organization, if applicable) or 
enhance an existing structure to serve as a central point(s) of contact 
for program coordination and community outreach;
    [sbull] Design and implement program delivery services and 
information to/within the community(ies) with regard to safety belts, 
occupant protection, and traffic safety in coordination with law 
enforcement, other service providers, and community leaders;
    [sbull] Evaluate the process and impact of this effort in terms of 
the benefits to the community and the service provider (applicant 
organization), increases in safety belt use rates and enforcement of 
occupant protection laws, changes in knowledge and attitudes, and 
community awareness of and impressions about the program, working under 
the oversight of a NHTSA evaluator.

Eligibility Requirements

    Applications may be submitted by public and private, non-profit and 
for-profit organizations or agencies that represent and provide direct 
services to rural communities or within rural areas. An eligible 
organization may be national, state, regional or local in scope. Tribal 
organizations and agencies are also eligible to apply. Eligible 
applicants must have an established network at the community level, 
including affiliates well integrated into the infrastructure of each 
community where a demonstration project will be conducted.
    [sbull] National organizations must have the capacity to administer 
the entire demonstration program, consisting of at least three to four 
geographically dispersed community projects each servicing at least a 
countywide area, through their State/local affiliates. National 
organizations must demonstrate how they will institutionalize the 
program within their organization, nationally, in addition to 
institutionalizing the program in the demonstration communities.
    [sbull] State level organizations and agencies must have the 
capacity to administer/oversee at least one to possibly two community-
level projects each servicing at least a countywide area, and also 
demonstrate how they will institutionalize the program at the state 
level in addition to institutionalizing the program in the 
demonstration community(ies).
    [sbull] Local level applicants proposing to serve as the project 
focal point for the community must be able to provide program 
coordination/services on at least a countywide-basis. Tribal Nation 
applicants must have the capacity to provide program coordination/
services on a basis comparable to countywide.
    [sbull] All project applications must be coordinated with the State 
Governor's Highway Safety Office and a letter of support from that 
office must accompany applications. Tribal organization and agency 
applications must be coordinated with the Bureau of Indian Affairs 
(BIA) Indian Highway Safety Program Office, which serves as the 
Governor's Representative for Highway Safety for Indian Nations, and a 
letter of support from that office must accompany their application. 
National/state organizations may not be able to identify specific 
state/local site locations for proposed projects at the time of this 
application; however, upon award, successful applicants must submit 
support letters from the appropriate State Governor's Highway Safety 
Office or the Indian Highway Safety Program Office for all sites being 
considered for project funding under this agreement. These contacts and 
letters serve the purposes of notification and coordination with state 
and BIA highway safety programs. Contact information for Governor's 
Highway Safety Offices and the Indian Highway Safety Program Office can 
be found on the NHTSA Web site at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/nhtsa/whatis/regions/
    [sbull] Applicants must describe their strategies for increasing 
teen/adult safety belt use, including the role of law enforcement. 
Although programs may include activities that encompass younger 
children and the use of child restraint systems, the major focus should 
be on teen/adult belt use.
    [sbull] All applicants must include an evaluation plan in their 
proposal and be willing to work in conjunction with a NHTSA evaluator 
(discussed below) to insure that consistent data is collected for 
overall evaluation across all projects awarded as part of the 
demonstration program.

Project Evaluation

    [sbull] The grantee shall evaluate the process, outcome, and impact 
results of the demonstration project at the community level, and, if 
applicable, process and outcome of the effort at the State and/or 
national level to administer and institutionalize the program. As 
discussed in the ``Goals'' section of this announcement, at a minimum, 
applications should include a detailed Evaluation Plan. Please note 
that successful applicants will work closely

[[Page 40740]]

with a NHTSA evaluator, most likely an independent contractor, who will 
oversee the evaluation component of the program and individual 
community projects. The evaluator will work with successful applicants 
on evaluation design and overseeing implementation to ensure that 
results from all awarded projects remain consistent. Because evaluation 
are critical to the success of the Demonstration Project, NHTSA will 
require successful applicants to expend up to 20 percent of the project 
budget on evaluation activities, which must include: a process and 
impact evaluation of this effort in terms of the benefits to the 
community and the service provider (applicant organization), increases 
in safety belt use rates and enforcement of occupant protection laws, 
changes in knowledge and attitudes, and community awareness of 
impressions about the program, working under the oversight of a NHTSA 
evaluator.

Additional Resources and References

    The following is a list of resources and references relevant to 
this demonstration program. All (*) items may be ordered either 
directly from the NHTSA Web site at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov by E-Mail 
to Webmaster (see bottom of home page) or by sending a fax request to: 
Communication Services Division at 202-493-6062. All requests should 
include the name, address, and telephone number of the person to 
receive the materials.
    1. Presidential Initiative to Increase Seat Belt Use Nationwide, 
Fourth Report to Congress, Second Report to the President.* NHTSA. 
November 2001. DOT HS 809 349. This is the latest published report 
documenting activities of the Buckle Up America Campaign from April 2, 
1999 through December 31, 1999, http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/airbags/bua4threport/index.html.
    2. Traffic Safety Facts 2001, Rural/Urban Comparison.* National 
Center for Statistics and Analysis, NHTSA. DOT HS 809 524. Fact Sheet 
describing the overview and trends of motor vehicle crashes and 
fatalities based on 2001 data from NHTSA's National Center for 
Statistics & Analysis, http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/TSF2001/2001rural.pdf.
    3. Safety Belt Use in 2002--Demographic Characteristics.* National 
Center for Statistics and Analysis, NHTSA. DOT HS 809 557. Demographic 
results of National Occupant Protection Use Survey--2002. The data for 
this survey were collected between June 3, 2002 and June 22, 2002, at 
randomly selected road sites throughout the nation, http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/RNotes/2003/809-557.pdf.
    4. IBID (2).
    5. Esposito, T.J., Sanddal, T.L., Reynolds, S.A. and Sanddal, N.D. 
(2003). Effect of a Voluntary Trauma System on Preventable Death and 
Inappropriate Care in a Rural State. Journal of Trauma, 54(4) 663-670, 
http://www.jtrauma.com/.
    6. Operation ABC: America Buckles Up Children Mobilizations and 
Click It or Ticket. Current information can be found on the following 
websites: The Buckle Up America Online Headquarters at: http://www.buckleupamerica.org and The National Safety Council Air Bag and 
Seat Belt Safety Campaign's Web site at: http://www.nsc.org/airbag.htm. 
You can also find resource documents on NHTSA's Web site at: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/airbags/index.html.
    7. Achieving a High Belt Use Rate: A Guide for Selective Traffic 
Enforcement Programs.* NHTSA. April 2001. DOT HS 809 244. This is a 
short How To Guide for communities who want to do a selective traffic 
enforcement program (sTEP). It describes how Chemong County (Elmira), 
New York, increased their seat belt use rate from 63 percent to 90 
percent in three short weeks. The Guide describes leadership and 
coordination, enforcement strategies, public information and education 
messages, and includes data sheets to track progress, http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/research/ACHIEVE.pdf.
    8. Evaluation of Click It or Ticket Model Programs.* NHTSA. 
November 2002. DOT HS 809 498. Click It or Ticket (CIOT) is an intense, 
short duration, safety belt enforcement program that relies heavily on 
paid media to reach all motorists. During the Memorial Day 2002 holiday 
period, ten States that implemented the full CIOT model (5 weeks of 
earned media, 2 weeks of paid media, 2 weeks of intensive enforcement, 
and belt use observations surveys and public awareness surveys) were 
compared to four States that conducted belt use enforcement but with 
limited specific paid advertisement placement, and four other States 
that conducted enforcement but without specific paid advertisement 
placement. Belt use increased +8.6 percentage points averaged across 
the ten CIOT States, +2.7 percentage points across the four limited 
paid media States, and +0.5 percentage points across the four States 
using no specific paid advertisement placement.
    9. Safe Communities Service Center,* c/o NHTSA Region VI, 819 
Taylor Street, Room 8A38, Fort Worth, Texas 76102, Phone: 817-978-3633, 
Fax: 817-978-8339, or E-Mail: [email protected]. Also 
visit the Safe Communities Web site on the Internet (http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/safecommunities). These resources provide information 
on best practices, Safe Communities and traffic safety materials, and 
access to technical assistance sources.
    10. Item # 5P0026 Safe Communities folio package.* NHTSA. 1997. DOT 
HS 808 578. Contains technical assistance materials on various topics 
including getting started, coalition building, partnering with traffic 
safety specialists and evaluation and monitoring tips.
    11. Item #1P1239 Partners for Rural Traffic Safety Action Kit.* 
NHTSA. August 2001. DOT HS 809 299. This is a step-by-step guide on how 
to organize, plan and implement a 30-day campaign to increase safety 
belt use in rural communities based on demonstration projects conducted 
by the National Rural Health Association, http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/people/injury/airbags/ruralsafety/index.html.

Application Procedures

    Each applicant must submit one original and two copies of the 
application package to: NHTSA, Office of Contracts and Procurement 
(NPO-220), ATTN: Maxine D. Edwards, 400 7th Street, SW., Room 5301, 
Washington, DC 20590. An additional three copies will facilitate the 
review process, but are not required. Applications must be typed on one 
side of the page only. Applications must include a reference to NHTSA 
Program NTS-01-3-05149, and specify if you are applying as a 
national, state or local applicant.
    Only complete packages received on or before August 7, 2003, at 2 
p.m. Eastern Standard Time will be considered.

Application Contents

    1. The application package must be submitted with OMB Standard Form 
424 (Rev. 4-88), Application for Federal Assistance, including 424A, 
Budget Information B Nonconstruction Programs, and 424B, Assurances--
Nonconstruction Programs with the required information filled in and 
the certified assurances included. The OMB Standard Forms SF-424, SF-
424A, and SF-424B may be downloaded directly from the OMB Internet Web 
site, http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/EOP/OMB/Grants/.

[[Page 40741]]

    While Form 424-A details budget information and section B 
identifies Budget Categories, the available space does not permit a 
description of adequate detail to provide for a meaningful evaluation 
of the proposed costs. Accordingly, applicants must also submit a 
supplemental Detailed Budget Sheet and Narrative Explanation of Costs, 
itemizing the proposed budget by cost category for each year of the 
project. For example, for Personnel/Labor, the Detailed Budget Sheet 
should break down: personnel positions, number of hours and hourly 
rates, and benefits; for Products/Materials/Supplies: item, amount, and 
unit cost; for Subcontracts: specific services to be provided and 
estimated costs; for Overhead Rate: identify what is included in the 
rate and provide documentation of any previous governmental approval of 
this rate; and for Indirect Costs: provide breakdown of what is 
included. The budget also should identify any additional resources/
contributions from the applicant or other sources to support this 
effort, including in-kind services. The Narrative Explanation of Costs 
should reference the Detailed Budget Sheet items and explain why and 
how these costs are necessary to implement the project.
    2. Applications shall include a Program Narrative Statement which:
    a. Organization: identifies the organization's membership, purpose 
and structure; defines the constituency represented and serviced by the 
organization; demonstrates the organization's commitment to supporting 
the initiatives of the Buckle Up America Campaign; provides examples of 
the organization's involvement in community outreach activities; and 
states specifically how NHTSA funding will enable the organization to 
augment its rural community involvement in increasing safety belt use 
among the target population, and to institutionalize the demonstration 
program both in the community and within the applicant organization. 
Supporting documentation from concerned interests, partner 
organizations, and/or affiliates may be submitted to substantiate the 
applicant's level of commitment and interest.
    b. Proposed Demonstration Sites: for each such site, identifies the 
community demographics, how the applicant and/or the applicant's local 
affiliate will design and implement this program, and serve as a 
sustained focal point for traffic safety in the community.
    c. Plan of Action/Strategies: outlines a plan of action detailing 
the proposed work, including how activities will be coordinated with 
national and State mobilizations and other coordinated efforts to 
increase safety belt use. For calendar year 2004, the Click It or 
Ticket mobilization will begin on May 24 and end on June 6, 2004. 
States and communities are also encouraged to conduct summer-long 
campaigns, from July 4 to Labor Day, focusing on either safety belts, 
impaired driving, or both. The Action Plan should include an estimated 
time line of projected activity and approximate milestones. NHTSA will 
require successful applicants to submit a revised and more detailed 
Action Plan 60 days after award, including schedules for: dissemination 
of information; product development; targeted events; belt use 
observational survey dates; reporting dates; and/or other major tasks 
associated with the project.
    d. Deliverables: identifies required deliverables and due dates 
including products and reports. The organization also should identify 
any NHTSA publications or other materials proposed to support the 
project, including quantities and describing use and distribution. 
Successful applicants will be required to submit to NHTSA quarterly 
progress reports and a comprehensive final report with a complete 
evaluation report, in accordance with the evaluation plan.
    3. As discussed in the ``Project Evaluation'' section of this 
announcement, applications must include a detailed Evaluation Plan 
describing the applicant's proposed evaluation methodology for 
determining and documenting process, activity, outcomes and results.
    4. As noted in the ``Eligibility'' section of this announcement, 
for each proposed project site, applications must include a support 
letter from the appropriate State Governor's Highway Safety Office and 
or BIA Indian Highway Safety Program Office for Tribal applications. 
Additional letters of support may be included.

Project Review Procedures and Criteria

    Upon receipt, NHTSA will screen applications to ensure that 
applicant organizations meet the eligibility requirements identified 
herein. An evaluation committee then will review eligible applications 
using the criteria outlined below.

Application Review Process and Evaluation Factors

    Each application package initially will be reviewed to confirm that 
the applicant is an eligible recipient and that the application 
contains all of the items specified in the Application Contents section 
of this announcement. Applicants should use the following outline of 
selection criteria as a basis for organizing their application 
packages:
    1. Ability and commitment of the organization in taking a 
leadership role to coordinate program efforts to increase safety belt 
use in rural area(s) (30%).
    The degree to which the applicant has demonstrated an understanding 
of the Buckle Up America campaign and detailed its role as a partner in 
the campaign; the organization's capacity to organize and manage a 
communitywide program, and its interest in and capacity to 
institutionalize the program and sustain its effort beyond the grant 
period.
    2. Commitment to encourage and support law enforcement efforts to 
increase safety belt use (30%).
    The degree to which the proposal incorporates coordinated activity 
with the law enforcement community and participation, with law 
enforcement, in national and State safety belt mobilization campaigns. 
The national mobilization schedule is noted in the ``Application 
Contents'' section of this announcement.
    3. Action and Evaluation Plans (20%).
    The quality and substance of the proposed action and evaluation 
plans, components of these plans, and data instruments utilized to 
measure outcomes and results. At a minimum, plans detailing all 
community projects must document: the process; activities; conduct of 
key participants; baseline; periodic safety belt observational surveys; 
and, as appropriate, public awareness surveys representative of the 
demonstration project site(s). In drafting plans, applicants should 
note that surveys should be scheduled in conjunction with mobilization 
or other ``waves'' of heightened activity periods. Additionally, 
community data, such as changes in: attitudes, knowledge and awareness, 
crashes, injuries, and fatalities, hospital admissions, enforcement 
citations, etc. should be specified.
    4. Budget (20%).
    The degree to which the application clearly identifies, itemizes, 
and explains project costs. Identification of project support cost 
sharing, particularly in second and third year performance period, is 
required. Cost-sharing may include in-kind services, the applicant's or 
other funding resources. NHTSA will give a preference to applicants who 
identify resources from within or outside their organization to support 
continuation of the program beyond the grant period.

[[Page 40742]]

Availability of Funds and Period of Support

    Contingent on the availability of funds and satisfactory 
performance, cooperative agreement(s) awarded under this solicitation 
will extend for a project period of 3 years. Should the Agency select a 
national organization to administer the entire demonstration program, 
consisting of multiple community projects rather than a single project, 
NHTSA will make only one (1) award under this announcement. NHTSA will 
consider applications from State organizations to administer 1 to 2 
community projects, and also applications from local organizations to 
administer individual community projects.
    A total estimated program effort of $700,000 is anticipated over 
the 3-year period, with approximately $400,000 available in Fiscal Year 
2003. Based on demonstrated need, we anticipate that the funding level 
to support the individual community projects will range from between 
approximately $150,000 and $200,000 total, over the 3-year project 
period. This estimate is based on depreciating funding levels of 100 
percent for year one, 50 percent for year two, and 25 percent for year 
three, and the expectation that the grantee will identify and utilize 
other funding resources to support the effort. This stated range does 
not establish minimum or maximum funding levels.
    Please note that applications from national and state organization 
also may budget for necessary organization costs to administer the 
community projects and establish an infrastructure to sustain the 
program. Each application, whether from a national, state or local 
entity, must specify the portion of funding requested for evaluation 
activities. It is imperative that all applicants earmark at least 20 
percent of the total budget for such evaluation activities, whether 
NHTSA funding, applicant's contribution, or combined funding resources.
    Successful applicants will work closely with a NHTSA evaluator, 
most likely an independent contractor, who will oversee the evaluation 
component of the program and individual community projects. The 
evaluator will work with successful applicants on evaluation design and 
execution to ensure that results from all awarded projects remain 
consistent. Thus, this portion of the project evaluation will not be an 
additional cost item for the project applicants.

NHTSA Involvement

    In addition to being involved in all activities undertaken under 
the cooperative agreement program, NHTSA will:
    1. Provide a Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) 
to participate in the planning and management of activities undertaken 
pursuant to this cooperative agreement and to coordinate activities 
between the grantee(s) and NHTSA;
    2. Provide information and technical assistance from available 
government resources, as deemed appropriate by the COTR;
    3. Serve as a liaison between NHTSA Headquarters, Regional Offices 
and other Federal, State and local stakeholders who may be interested 
in the demonstration program and the activities of the grantee, as 
appropriate;
    4. Stimulate the transfer of information between grantees involved 
in the demonstration program and others engaged in rural community 
traffic safety programs; and 2.Provide available NHTSA materials to 
support grantee activities, as appropriate.

Special Award Selection Factors

    NHTSA strongly urges applicants to seek funds from other Federal, 
State, local and private sources to augment those available under this 
announcement, and specifically to support cost-sharing in the second 
and third years of the agreement as the program moves towards self-
sufficiency. NHTSA may give preference to meritorious applications with 
the best-proposed cost-sharing strategies and/or identifying additional 
proposed funding sources to support and sustain the program. In-kind 
services provided by the applicant organization may be included as a 
contribution.

Terms and Conditions of 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. Reporting Requirements and Deliverables:
    a. Quarterly Progress Reports are required and should include a 
summary of the previous quarter's activities and accomplishments, as 
well as the proposed activities for the upcoming quarter. Any decisions 
and actions required in the upcoming quarter should be included in the 
report. The grantee shall supply the progress report to the Contracting 
Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) every 90 days following date 
of award;
    b. Program Action Plan and Evaluation Plan: The grantee shall 
submit revised action and evaluation plans, incorporating comments 
received from the NHTSA COTR, no more than 60 days after award of this 
agreement. The NHTSA COTR will review, comment and request revision, if 
necessary.
    c. Draft Final Report: The grantee shall prepare a Draft Final 
Report that includes: a project description, process of implementation, 
partnerships established, community participation, activities 
conducted, establishment of infrastructure, and results and findings 
from the program evaluation, including changes in safety belt use 
rates. In terms of information transfer, it is important to know what 
worked and did not work, under what circumstances, what can be done to 
avoid potential problems in future projects. The report also should 
contain a discussion of how the project will be sustained within the 
community and organization, if applicable, and potential for 
replication. The grantee shall submit the Draft Final Report to the 
COTR 60 days prior to the end of the performance period. The COTR will 
review the draft report and provide comments to the grantee within 30 
days of receipt of the document.
    d. Final Report: The grantee shall revise the Draft Final Report to 
reflect the COTR's comments. The revised Final Report shall be 
delivered to the COTR 15 days before the end of the performance period. 
The grantee shall supply the COTR:
--Four hard copies of the final document;
--A disk of the report in Microsoft Word format; and
--A disk of the redlined version of the Draft Final Report reflecting 
changes made in response to the COTR's comments.

    e. Presentations: The grantee shall conduct a final briefing of the 
project process and results to NHTSA staff in Washington, DC, and 
provide a workshop presentation at a national meeting to be determined 
upon completion of the project.
    3. During the effective performance period of cooperative 
agreement(s) awarded as a result of this announcement, the agreement as 
applicable to the grantee shall be subject

[[Page 40743]]

to NHTSA's General Provisions for Assistance Agreements, dated July 
1995.

Jeffrey P. Michael,
Director, Office of Impaired Driving and Occupant Protection.
[FR Doc. 03-17110 Filed 7-7-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P