[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 221 (Friday, November 19, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64989-64992]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-25241]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2021-0033]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for 
Comment; Government 5-Star Safety Ratings Label Consumer Research

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

ACTION: Notice and request for public comments on approval of a new 
collection of information.

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 
invites public comments about our intention to request approval from 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for a new collection of 
information. Before a federal agency can collect certain information 
from the public, it must receive approval from 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 one collection 
of information for consumer research purposes regarding the Government 
5-Star Safety Ratings section of the Monroney label for which NHTSA 
intends to seek OMB approval. On April 28, 2020, NHTSA published a 
notice in the Federal Register soliciting public comments with a 60-day 
comment period. NHTSA received 4 public comments submitted to the 
docket during this period. Given the extended time period since the 
initial publication of that notice, NHTSA is publishing this new 60-day 
notice. This notice also responds to the comments received on the 
original notice.

DATES: Written comments should be submitted on or before January 18, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by the docket number 
NHTSA-2021-0033 by any of the following methods:
     Electronic submissions: Go to the Federal eRulemaking 
Portal at http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the online instructions 
for submitting comments.
     Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management, U.S. Department 
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building Ground 
Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. 
Eastern Time, Monday through Friday, except on Federal holidays. To be 
sure someone is there to help you, please call (202) 366-9322 before 
coming.
     Fax: 202-493-2251.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number for this notice. For detailed instructions on submitting 
comments and additional information on the information-collection 
process, see the Public Participation heading of the Supplementary 
Information section of this document. Note that all comments received 
will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including 
any personal information provided. Please see the Privacy Act heading 
below.
    Privacy Act: 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) or you may visit https://www.transportation.gov/privacy.
    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 via internet.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or access 
to

[[Page 64990]]

background documents, contact Mike Joyce, Marketing Specialist, Office 
of Communications and Consumer Information (NCO-0200), National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration, 1200 New Jersey Ave, SE, W52-238, 
Washington, DC, 20590. Mike Joyce's phone number is 202-366-5600 and 
his email address is [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, 
before an agency submits a proposed collection of information to OMB 
for approval, it 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; and (iv) how to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including the 
use 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 for which 
the agency is seeking approval from OMB:
    Title: Government 5-Star Safety Ratings Label Consumer Research.
    OMB Control Number: 2127-New.
    Form Number(s):
    Type of Request: Request for approval of a new information 
collection.
    Type of Review Requested: Regular.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval: Three years from approval 
date.
    Abstract: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 
(NHTSA) was established by the Highway Safety Act of 1970 (Pub. L. 91-
605, 202(a), 84 Stat. 1713, 1739-40). NHTSA'S mission is to save lives, 
prevent injuries and reduce economic costs due to crashes on the 
nation's highways. Part C of the Motor Vehicle and Driver Programs, at 
49 U.S.C. 32302, requires the Secretary of Transportation (NHTSA by 
delegation) to provide to the public information about the safety of 
new passenger motor vehicles. Under its New Car Assessment Program 
(NCAP) and 5-Star Safety Ratings Program, NHTSA conducts frontal crash, 
side crash and rollover resistance tests of new vehicles and, based on 
the results, assigns safety ratings to the tested vehicles. The ratings 
enable consumers to consider and assess the relative safety of vehicles 
before deciding which new vehicle they want to purchase.
    In 2005, Congress enacted the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, 
Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) 
(Pub. L. 109-59), which required the safety ratings assigned by NHTSA 
under NCAP or a statement that the vehicle was not assigned safety 
ratings under NCAP to be included on the window label for new vehicles, 
known as the Monroney label.\1\ Per 15 U.S.C. 1232(g), the window label 
must contain the safety ratings published or released by NHTSA's New 
Car Assessment Program, including the graphical depiction of those 
ratings, reference to the safety rating categories (e.g., frontal 
impact crashes tests, side impact crash tests, and rollover restistance 
tests), and information describing the nature and meaning of the crash 
test data presented and a reference to http://www.safercar.gov. This 
information must be presented in a legible, visible, and prominent 
fashion that covers at least 8 percent of the total area of the label, 
or an area with a minimum length of four and a half inches and a 
minimum height of three and a half inches. If a vehicle has not been 
rated by NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program, then the label much state 
that.\2\ On December 4, 2015, Congress enacted the Fixing America's 
Surface Transportation (FAST) Act, which requires the Secretary of 
Transportation (NHTSA by delegation) to issue a rule to ensure crash-
avoidance information is provided next to crashworthiness information 
on vehicle window stickers.\3\
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    \1\ The Automobile Information Disclosure Act of 1958, 15 U.S.C. 
1231-1233, requires that new vehicles carry a sticker on a window 
containing specified information about the vehicle.
    \2\ 12 U.S.C. 1232(h).
    \3\ Section 24322 of Part II--Safety Through Informed Consumers 
Act of 2015. Public Law 114-94.
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    In continuing support of its mission and to assist the agency in 
meeting its FAST Act requirement, NHTSA proposes to conduct qualitative 
research using focus groups in four geographic markets located across 
the country to evaluate design and consumer information improvements to 
the Government 5-Star Safety Ratings section of the Monroney label.\4\ 
This information collection will involve a one-time, voluntary phone 
screening survey involving members of the public to identify research 
participants and a one-time, in-person focus group. Participants in the 
research program will be asked to evaluate design and consumer 
information improvements to the Government 5-Star Safety Ratings 
section of the vehicle window sticker. NHTSA will use the findings from 
this research to support planned changes to the current label 
requirements and future designs for communicating vehicle safety 
ratings and advanced driver assistance systems performance assessments 
to consumers.
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    \4\ 15 U.S.C. 1232.
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    Summary of the Collection of Information: In this collection of 
information, NHTSA is seeking approval to conduct qualitative focus 
groups with 66 consumer participants. The focus groups aim to achieve 
the following objectives:
    (1) Evaluate the overall appeal of each label concept and identify 
specific likes and dislikes associated with specific components of the 
label;
    (2) Measure the ease of comprehension for each label concept and 
understand which visual and text features are most effective at 
conveying vehicle safety information;
    (3) Assess the distinctiveness of how the information is displayed 
and understand how best to make the vehicle safety information stand 
out on the Monroney label; and,
    (4) Identify additional areas of improvement related to the three 
main label sections relating to safety protection, safety technology, 
and overall vehicle safety performance.
    Description of the Need for the Information and the Proposed Use of 
the Information: This collection of information will allow NHTSA to 
obtain critical information to assist the agency in fulfilling the 2015 
FAST Act's requirement that NHTSA issue a rule to ensure that crash-
avoidance information is provided next to crashworthiness information 
on vehicle windows stickers.\5\ Specifically, the data from this

[[Page 64991]]

collection will be used to not only enhance consumer understanding of 
NHTSA's vehicle safety ratings and advanced driver assistance systems 
performance assessments, but also guide the development of 
communications that will help consumers as they consider this 
information in their vehicle purchase decisions.
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    \5\ Section 24322 of Part II--Safety Through Informed Consumers 
Act of 2015 requires the Secretary of Transportation (NHTSA by 
delegation) to issue a rule to ensure that crash-avoidance 
information is indicated next to crashworthiness information on 
stickers placed on motor vehicles by their manufacturers. Public Law 
114-94, December 4, 2015.
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    Affected Public: Members of the public 18 years of age or older 
with a driver's license, who are a decision-maker for vehicle purchases 
for their household, has either purchased or leased a vehicle in the 
last six months or is planning to do so in the next 12 months and lives 
in one of the four recommended markets to conduct the research 
(Arlington, VA; Dallas, TX; Columbus, OH; or San Jose, CA).
    Frequency: One time.
    Number of Respondents: 500.
    For this information collection, NHTSA plans to conduct a total of 
eight focus group sessions (two groups in each of the following 
recommended markets: Arlington, VA; Dallas, TX; Columbus, OH; and San 
Jose, CA), each lasting approximately 90 minutes. NHTSA intends for 
each focus group to consist of approximately nine participants (six 
participants in Arlington, due to social distancing restrictions) for a 
total of 66 participants in the focus group sessions. Based on 
experience, NHTSA will need to recruit up to 14 people per focus group 
in order to ensure that the desired number will appear at the focus 
group facility at the appointed time. If more than the desired number 
of participants show up at the facility for a given session, the 
research team will select nine participants (six in Arlington) based on 
their profile information provided in the recruitment grid to seat. The 
remaining participants will be paid their honorarium, thanked for their 
willingness to participate, and informed that they are free to go. 
Therefore, in order to ensure that there are approximately nine 
participants (six in Arlington) per focus group session, a total of 100 
potential participants (eight per focus group in Arlington and 14 per 
focus group in other markets) will be recruited via telephone screening 
calls, which are estimated to take five minutes per call. In order to 
recruit 100 potential participants, NHTSA estimates that it will be 
necessary to initially reach out to and screen 500 people. This is 
based on experience that demonstrates that, of the people who are 
contacted, 20% will qualify for the study, be available and be 
interested in participating in the focus group.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 141 hours.
    NHTSA estimates the total burden per person actually participating 
in this focus group research is estimated to be 95 minutes (five 
minutes for the screening/recruiting telephone call plus 90 minutes in 
the focus group discussion session). Additionally, the total burden per 
person recruited (but not participating in the discussions) is five 
minutes. Therefore, the total annual estimated burden imposed by this 
collection is approximately 141 hours.

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                                                                                   Participation
                     Category of respondent                          Number of         time           Burden
                                                                    respondents      (minutes)        (hours)
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Recruit/screening call (assumes 20% qualify, are available and               500               5          * 41.7
 interested in participating in the focus group)................
Participation in 90-minute group................................              66              90            99.0
                                                                 -----------------------------------------------
    Total Burden................................................  ..............  ..............             141
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* Hours or 42 hours (rounded).

    Estimated Burden Costs to All Respondents: $3,360.00.
    The only cost burdens respondents will incur are costs related to 
travel to and from the research location. The costs are minimal and are 
expected to be offset by the honorarium that will be provided to all 
research participants. NHTSA estimates that each of the focus group 
participants will travel less than 30 miles one-way to the focus group 
location (60 miles round trip). Using the IRS standard mileage rate of 
$0.56 per mile,\6\ each respondent is expected to incur no more than 
$33.60 in transportation costs. Therefore, NHTSA estimates that the 
total costs to all respondents will be $3,360.00.
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    \6\ From Internal Revenue Services' 2021 Standard Mileage Rate 
for business miles driven. https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/standard-mileage-rates, last accessed May 7, 2021.
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    Public Comments Received During the First 60-Day Notice Period:
    On April 28, 2020, NHTSA published a notice in the Federal Register 
soliciting public comments with a 60-day comment period. The comment 
period closed on June 29, 2020. NHTSA received 4 public comments 
submitted to the docket during this period including those from a 
disabled veteran, DEVCO Design & Development, The Center for Automotive 
Safety, and the National Transportation Safety Board. Comments from the 
public were invited on any aspects of the information collection, 
including (1) whether the proposed collection of information was 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the 
Department, including whether the information would have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed information collection; (3) ways to enhance the quality, 
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to 
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents, 
including the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.
    NHTSA received comments on the following topics:
    (1) Manufacturing vehicles with appropriate standards of safety to 
relieve the burden for people with disabilities;
    (2) Including a title and summary for the consumer research that is 
not restricted to the number of stars and is inclusive of the test 
results of conditions at speed;
    (3) Concerns about the proposed collection of information lacking 
specificity about crash avoidance and other technology to be included 
in the evaluated labels and consideration for performance ratings for 
vulnerable road user protection systems; and
    (4) Defining NCAP testing regimen before designing new safety 
labels.
    The public comments and NHTSA's responses are summarized below:
    (1) Disabled Veteran: ``It would help relieve the burden for people 
with disabilities to have a vehicle that is appropriate for standards 
of safety.''
    Response: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's 
mission is to save lives, prevent injuries, and reduce economic costs 
due to road traffic crashes, through education, research, safety 
standards, and enforcement. NHTSA's 5-Star Safety Program provides 
comparative

[[Page 64992]]

information on the safety performance of new vehicles to assist 
consumers with vehicle purchasing decisions and to encourage safety 
improvements. This proposed collection of information specifically 
seeks to evaluate design and consumer information improvements to the 
Government 5-Star Safety Ratings section of the Monroney label. NHTSA's 
website is accessible and 508-compliant so that vehicle safety 
information is available and may benefit the purchasing decisions of 
everyone, including those with disabilities.
    (2) David DeVeau, DEVCO Design & Development: Consideration for a 
title and summary for the consumer research that is not restricted to 
the number of stars and is inclusive of the test results of conditions 
at speed.
    Response: The title of the proposed consumer research is based on 
the New Car Assessment Program's (NCAP) current consumer program, the 
Government 5-Star Safety Ratings. NHTSA began using the 5-Star Safety 
Ratings system in 1993 to help consumers make informed safety choices 
when buying new or used vehicles. The proposed research seeks to 
evaluate a variety of label concepts to explore both graphical and 
text-based communications as potential modifications to the Government 
5-Star Safety Ratings section of the Monroney label with the intent of 
finding the most effective way to display information related to 
vehicle safety. The research will also explore whether consumers prefer 
ratings using a 5-Star system (1-5 stars), a numerical value or 
numerical scale. If research findings determine that consumers prefer 
the presentation of ratings in an alternative way, NHTSA will explore 
further research which may have implications for changes to the title 
of the consumer program.
    (3) NTSB: Concerns about the proposed collection of information 
lacking specificity about crash avoidance and other technology to be 
included in the evaluated labels and consideration for performance 
ratings for vulnerable road user protection systems.
    Response: As NHTSA has done in the past, there are two separate 
tracks for NHTSA efforts to upgrade NCAP. One track is the development 
of NHTSA's planned changes to NCAP--which is still ongoing, and the 
Agency intends to seek public comment on its proposal later in 2021. 
This track includes specific information about the crash avoidance and 
other technologies that NHTSA is considering including in NCAP such as 
performance thresholds, testing crash avoidance features, and 
developing a rating system that would compare all of those features. 
The other track is the rulemaking proceeding to update the safety 
ratings section on the Monroney label, which is the visualization of 
the safety performance information that would be available to 
consumers. NHTSA conducts comprehensive consumer research to inform its 
rulemakings to update the visualization of NCAP's rating information 
that would be included on the Monroney label. This consumer research 
does not focus on the details of the underlying rating system or any 
substantive changes to NCAP. Instead, NHTSA plans to use this consumer 
research to determine how to best convey vehicle safety rating 
information, including crash avoidance technologies, to the public. 
This 60-day notice initiates the multi-phase consumer research that 
NHTSA intends to use to inform its future update to the Monroney label. 
NHTSA is mindful in its development of a new rating system and 
accompanying visualization of the rating system through the Monroney 
label of the flexibility necessary to allow the agency to regularly 
update NCAP while also minimizing the number of rulemaking actions 
needed each time the agency incorporates a new technology or program in 
NCAP.
    (4) Center for Auto Safety: Defining NCAP testing regimen before 
designing new safety labels.
    Response: Similar to the explanation provided to NTSB's comment, 
there are two separate tracks for upgrading NCAP and upgrading the 
visualization of NCAP rating information on the Monroney label. 
Defining the NCAP testing regimen will be part of the first track, 
which will be detailed in upcoming requests for comments to upgrade 
NCAP. The consumer research efforts focus more on the consumer 
understanding of the safety information on the Monroney label and what 
NHTSA disseminates to the public. Also, due to the limited area on the 
Monroney label, the consumer research will help guide NHTSA on which 
visualization would best convey complex safety information to the 
public in a more consumer-friendly and flexible approach that is 
intended to minimize the number of rulemaking actions to update the 
Monroney label after future NCAP upgrades.
    Public Comments Invited: The results of this research will be used 
to inform labeling requirement proposals and communications for the New 
Car Assessment Program, also known as the Government 5-Star Safety 
Ratings Program. You are asked to comment on any aspects of this 
information collection, including (1) whether the proposed collection 
of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions 
of the Department, including whether the information will have 
practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the 
burden of the proposed information collection; (3) ways to enhance the 
quality, utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(4) ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on 
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology. The agency will summarize and/or 
include your comments in the request for OMB's clearance of this 
information collection.
    Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter 
35, as amended; 49 CFR 1.49; and DOT Order 1351.29.

    Issued on: November 16, 2021.
Juliette Marie Vallese,
Associate Administrator, Office of Communications and Consumer 
Information.
[FR Doc. 2021-25241 Filed 11-18-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P