[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 18 (Monday, January 28, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 5865-5866]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-01715]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2012-0176]


Reports, Forms, and Recordkeeping Requirements

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

ACTION: Request for public comment on a proposed collection of 
information.

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SUMMARY: Before a Federal agency can collect certain information from 
the public, it must receive approval from the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB). Under procedures established by the Paperwork Reduction 
Act of 1995, before seeking OMB approval, Federal agencies must solicit 
public comment on proposed collections of information, including 
extensions and reinstatements of previously approved collections.
    This document describes the collection of information for which 
NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 29, 2013.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments (identified by the DOT Docket ID 
Number above) by any of the following methods:
    Electronic Submissions: Go to http://www.regulations.gov. Follow 
the online instructions for submitting comments.
    Mail: Docket Management Facility; M-30, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building Ground Floor, Rm. W12-140, 1200 New 
Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590.
    Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 
1200 New Jersey Avenue SE., Washington, DC 20590 between 9 a.m. and 5 
p.m. Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
    Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Regardless of how you submit your comments, you should mention the 
docket number of this document. You may call the Docket at (202) 366-
9324. Please identify the proposed collection of information for which 
a comment is provided, by referencing its OMB clearance number. It is 
requested, but not required, that two copies of the comment be 
provided.
    Note that all comments received will be posted without change to 
http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal information 
provided. Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act Statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78).
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov or the street 
address listed above. Follow the online instructions for accessing the 
dockets.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Complete copies of each request for 
collection of information may be obtained at no charge from Ms. Carla 
Rush, U.S. Department of Transportation, NHTSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE., W43-417, Washington, DC 20590. (Telephone: (202) 366-4583, Fax: 
(202) 493-2739).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
before a proposed collection of information is submitted to OMB for 
approval, Federal agencies must first publish a document in the Federal 
Register providing a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with 
members of the public and affected agencies concerning each proposed 
collection of information. The OMB has promulgated regulations 
describing what must be included in such a document. Under OMB's 
regulation (at 5 CFR 1320.8(d)), an agency must ask for public comment 
on the following:
    (i) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including 
whether the information will have practical utility;
    (ii) The accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    (iii) How to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected;
    (iv) How to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
those who are to respond, including the use

[[Page 5866]]

of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other 
technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology, e.g. permitting electronic submission of responses.
    In compliance with these requirements, NHTSA asks for public 
comments on the following proposed collection of information:
    Title: Rear Seat Belt Reminder System Survey.
    Type of Request: New collection of information.
    OMB Control Number: 2127--NEW.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval: Three years from the 
approval date.
    Summary of the Collection of Information: The National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposes to collect information 
from the driving public to determine drivers' and car passengers' seat 
belt usage habits as well as the effectiveness and consumer acceptance 
of rear seat belt reminder systems (SBRSs) in order to support an 
analysis of the potential benefits of requiring a rear SBRS. A national 
telephone survey will be administered to 2,500 respondents. Given the 
low incidence of Americans who own a car with a rear SRBS, the 
respondents will be selected from vehicle registration lists. The 
sampled population will be then divided up between 2,000 drivers who 
own cars with a rear SBRS and 500 drivers who own a car without a rear 
SBRS. The main study will be preceded by a pretest administered to 9 
respondents. The survey will collect basic demographic information, 
seat belt usage habits, acceptability of rear SBRSs, effectiveness of 
rear SBRSs and perception of current SBRSs. Interview length will 
average 15 minutes.
    A Spanish-language translation and bilingual interviewers would be 
used to minimize language barriers to participation. No personally 
identifiable information will be collected during the telephone 
interviews. In addition, the interviewers would use ``Computer Assisted 
Telephone Interviewing'' (CATI) to reduce interview length and minimize 
recording errors.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information: NHTSA was established to reduce the number of deaths, 
injuries, and economic losses resulting from motor vehicle crashes on 
the Nation's highways. As part of this statutory mandate, NHTSA is 
authorized to conduct research as a foundation for the development of 
motor vehicle standards and traffic safety programs.
    A NHTSA survey released in 2010 found passengers in the rear seat 
of a vehicle buckle up 74% of the time, compared with 85% for those 
sitting in the front. Unbelted rear seat passengers risk serious injury 
or death to themselves and pose a potentially fatal threat to others in 
the event of a crash. SBRSs have been shown to increase the use of seat 
belts in the front seats of vehicles. While rear SBRSs are currently 
available on only a few vehicle models sold in the U.S., NHTSA seeks to 
collect data from those who drive these vehicles (the test group) and 
draw comparisons to those who drive similar vehicles without a rear 
SBRS (the comparison group). To this end, NHTSA will collect basic 
demographic information from both groups and information on their and 
their passengers seat belt usage habits, as well as the effectiveness, 
preferences and acceptance of the rear SBRS.
    NHTSA will use the findings from this proposed collection of 
information in support of an analysis of the potential benefits of 
requiring a rear SBRS in new vehicles sold in the United States.
    Description of the Likely Respondents (including Estimated Number, 
and Proposed Frequency of Response to the Collection of Information): 
Under this proposed effort, 9 pretest telephone interviews and 2,500 
national survey telephone interviews would be conducted for a total of 
2,509 interviews. The telephone interview would be conducted with a 
national sample of 2,000 drivers aged 18 years old or older, that drive 
a vehicle with a rear SBRS and regularly transport rear passengers 8 
years old or older. In addition to this, interviews would be conducted 
with a comparison group of 500 drivers aged 18 years old or older that 
drive similar vehicles as those in the national sample except these 
vehicle do not have a rear SBRS. These drivers must also regularly 
transport rear passengers who are 8 years old or older. Interview 
length will average 15 minutes. The sample will be drawn from 
registration lists of vehicle owners.
    Interviews will be conducted both with respondents using landline 
phones and cellphones. Federal law prohibits the use of auto dialing to 
call cell phones; therefore all cell phone numbers would be dialed 
manually. Each sample member would complete just one interview. 
Businesses are ineligible for the sample and would not be interviewed.
    Estimate of the Total Annual Reporting and Recordkeeping Burden 
Resulting From the Collection of Information: NHTSA estimates that 
respondents would require an average of 15 minutes to complete the 
telephone interviews or a total of 627 hours for the 2,509 respondents. 
All interviewing would occur during a two to three month period during 
2013.
    Thus the annual reporting burden would be the entire 627 hours. The 
respondents would not incur any reporting or recordkeeping burden from 
the data collection.

    Authority:  44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).

    Issued on: January 17, 2013.
Lori K. Summers,
Director, Office of Crashworthiness Standards.
[FR Doc. 2013-01715 Filed 1-25-13; 8:45 am]
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