Document ID: NHTSA-2021-0012-0001
Agency: nhtsa
Document Type: Notice
Title: Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposals, Submissions, and Approvals: Fatal Crash Seat Belt Use Reporting and Awareness
Posted Date: 2021-09-28T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 185 (Tuesday, September 28, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 53727-53729]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-21040]

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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[Docket No. NHTSA-2021-0012]

Agency Information Collection Activities; Notice and Request for 
Comment; Fatal Crash Seat Belt Use Reporting and Awareness

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

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

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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 information 
collection. 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 a collection 
of information for which NHTSA intends to seek OMB approval on Fatal 
Crash Seat Belt Use Reporting and Awareness.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before November 29, 2021.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments identified by the Docket No. NHTSA-
2021-0012 using 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.
     Fax: (202) 493-2251.
     Mail or Hand Delivery: Docket Management, U.S. Department 
of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Room W12-
140, Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through 
Friday, except on Federal holidays. To be sure someone is there to help 
you, please call (202) 366-9322 before coming.
    Instructions: All submissions must include the agency name and 
docket number for this notice. 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 background documents, contact Jordan A. Blenner, JD, Ph.D., Office 
of Behavioral Safety Research (NPD-320), (202) 366-9982, National 
Highway Traffic Safety Administration, W46-470, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.), before an agency submits a proposed 
collection of information to OMB for approval, it must 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: (a) 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; (b) 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; (c) how to enhance 
the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; 
and (d) 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: Fatal Crash Seat Belt Use Reporting and Awareness.
    OMB Control Number: New.
    Form Numbers: NHTSA Forms 1599, 1600, 1601, and 1604.
    Type of Request: Approval of a new information collection.
    Type of Review Requested: Regular.
    Requested Expiration Date of Approval: 3 years from date of 
approval.
    Summary of the Collection of Information: The National Highway 
Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) of the U.S. Department of 
Transportation is seeking approval to collect information from 1,500 
participants from two seat belt user groups, 750 who are full-time and 
750 who are occasional or non-users, for a one-time voluntary 
experiment to understand whether the inclusion of seat belt status in a 
fatal crash news report could affect seat belt use. NHTSA

[[Page 53728]]

will contact a sample of 20,850 potential participants from a marketing 
research firm's panel with an invitation email and screening questions 
to identify adult volunteers who regularly drive a passenger vehicle. 
Recruiting participants for the experiment has an estimated burden of 
348 hours for the invitation email and 70 hours for the screening 
questions. (An estimated 20% of the invited potential participants will 
be interested in participating in the study and will complete the 
screener form, i.e., 4,170 potential participants.) An estimated 1,668 
potential participants will read the consent form with an estimated 
burden of 139 hours. The 1,500 participants will complete the 
experiment with an estimated burden of 500 hours. The experiment 
involves a 40-question online survey that participants will complete in 
their own homes using their personal computers. Participants will read 
one of three fictitious news reports of crashes (some of which involve 
fatalities) to gauge whether including seat belt use in news reports 
has the potential to increase belt use by occasional and non-seat belt 
users. After reading the news report, participants will report their 
recollection of belt use in the news report they read, self-reported 
seat belt use, intentions to use belts, attitudes about seat belts, and 
demographic information. The total estimated burden associated with 
reporting is 1,057 hours. The collection does not involve recordkeeping 
or disclosure. An approved Institutional Review Board (IRB), Advarra, 
has reviewed the study and determined that the research project is 
exempt from IRB oversight. NHTSA will summarize the results of the 
collection using aggregate statistics in a final report to be 
distributed to NHTSA program and regional offices, State Highway Safety 
Offices, and other traffic safety stakeholders. This collection will 
inform the development of countermeasures, particularly in the areas of 
communications and outreach, for increasing seat belt use and reducing 
fatalities and injuries associated with the lack of seat belt use.
    Description of the Need for the Information and Proposed Use of the 
Information: NHTSA was established to reduce 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 for the development of traffic safety programs. Title 
23, United States Code, Section 403 gives the Secretary of 
Transportation (NHTSA by delegation) authorization to use funds 
appropriated to conduct research and development activities, including 
demonstration projects and the collection and analysis of highway and 
motor vehicle safety data and related information, with respect to all 
aspects of highway and traffic safety systems and conditions relating 
to vehicle, highway, driver, passenger, motorcyclist, bicyclist, and 
pedestrian characteristics; accident causation and investigations; and 
human behavioral factors and their effect on highway and traffic 
safety.
    In 2018, 22,697 occupants of passenger vehicles (passenger cars, 
pickup trucks, vans, and SUVs) died in motor vehicle crashes in the 
United States. Of those killed where restraint status was known, 47% 
were unrestrained at the time of the fatal crash. NHTSA estimates that 
seat belts saved the lives of 14,955 passenger vehicle occupants age 5 
and older in 2017 (latest data available), and, if all passenger 
vehicle occupants age 5 and older had worn seat belts, an additional 
2,549 lives could have been saved.\1\
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    \1\ National Center for Statistics and Analysis. (2020). 
Occupant protection in passenger vehicles: 2018 data (Traffic Safety 
Facts. Report No. DOT HS 812 967). National Highway Traffic Safety 
Administration. https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812967.
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    This project supports NHTSA's efforts to increase occupant 
protection by examining factors related to seat belt use. Previous 
research in this area indicated that news organizations may not report 
seat belt use in many of the driving fatalities they cover.\2\ That 
said, the research conducted previously involved data from 1999 through 
2002, which may be out of date with current practices. Many 
stakeholders assume that increased reporting of seat belt usage in 
fatal crashes, especially when seat belts were not worn, could increase 
seat belt use. In addition, when seat belt status has been reported in 
a news report, it is not clear individuals are paying attention. 
Improving awareness of seat belt status, particularly involving 
unbelted fatalities, may be an effective countermeasure that may 
encourage individuals to wear seat belts.
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    \2\ Connor, S.M., & Wesolowski, K. (2004). Newspaper framing of 
fatal motor vehicle crashes in four Midwestern cities in the United 
States, 1999-2000. Inj Prev. 10(3), 149-153. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/ip.2003.003376. Rosales, M., & Stallones, L. (2008). 
Coverage of motor vehicle crashes with injuries in U.S. newspapers, 
1999-2002. Journal of Safety Research, 39(5), 477-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsr.2008.08.001.
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    The information from this collection will assist NHTSA in (a) 
planning seat belt program activities; (b) supporting groups involved 
in improving public safety; and (c) identifying countermeasure 
strategies that are most acceptable and effective in increasing seat 
belt use.
    Affected Public: Participants will be U.S. adults (18 years and 
older, except for those from Nebraska or Alabama (who will need to be 
19 years or older), or those from Mississippi (who will need to be 21 
years or older)) with fluency in reading and writing in English, who 
have driven a passenger vehicle (car, van, SUV, or pickup truck) at 
least once in the past month, and whose main form of transportation is 
a passenger vehicle.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 20,850 total respondents, with 
1,500 participating in the full experiment.
    The experiment will invite up to 20,850 people to participate. The 
number of invitations is based on the need to recruit 1,500 
participants, 750 of whom are either non- or part-time seat belt users. 
Based on corporate experience with online panels, the marketing 
research firm providing access to their panel of participants estimates 
a participation rate of 20%. Furthermore, NHTSA research has shown that 
while most drivers reported wearing their seat belts every time they 
drive, approximately 20% are either non-users or part-time users.\3\ 
Finally, NHTSA estimates that 90% who qualify and read the consent form 
will provide consent and complete the study. To obtain a sample of 750 
consenting participants in the non/part user group, requires a universe 
of 20,850 potential respondents. Of the 20,850 invited panelists, we 
expect 20% or 4,170 volunteers who are interested and qualify. Of the 
4,170 who are interested, we expect 20% or 834 volunteers will be non- 
or part-time seat belt users. Of the 834 volunteers who are non- or 
part-time seat belt users, we expect 90% or 750 to consent and complete 
the study. The marketing research firm will provide a link to the 
consent form to the first 834 non- or part-time seat belt users and to 
the first 834 full-time seat belt users who are interested and qualify. 
(Once the firm reaches 750 completions from full-time users, which is 
expected to occur before the 750 completions from non- or part-time 
users, they will no longer provide links to the informed consent to 
qualified full-time users.)
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    \3\ National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. (2019, 
December). The 2016 motor vehicle occupant safety survey: Seat belt 
report (Report No. DOT HS 812 798). Author. https://rosap.ntl.bts.gov/view/dot/43608.
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    Frequency: This study is a one-time information collection, and 
there will be no recurrence.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: The total estimated burden 
associated with this collection is 1,057

[[Page 53729]]

hours. The sample of potential participants will receive an email 
invitation from Schlesinger Group, a marketing research firm that 
specializes in providing sampling pools of panelists, with screening 
questions to determine eligibility. The 20,850 potential participants 
are expected to spend 1 minute each in reading the invitation email for 
an estimated 348 hours. Those who are interested (estimated to be 20%, 
or 4,170 individuals) are expected to spend 1 minute each in completing 
the screener form for an estimated 70 hours. Schlesinger will provide 
electronic links to the consent form to the first 834 full-time seat 
belt users and to the first 834 part-time/non-users who qualify based 
on the screening questions. The 1,668 eligible participants are 
expected to spend 5 minutes each reading and completing the consent 
form for an estimated 139 hours. The estimated 1,500 consenting 
participants will each spend 20 minutes completing the experiment for 
an estimated 500 hours. The total burden is the sum of the burden 
across the invitation/screening, consenting, and completing the 
experiment for a total estimate of 1,057 hours. The details are 
presented in Table 1 below.

                                     Table 1--Estimated Burden Hours by Form
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                                                                                                       Total
                                                                                     Estimated       estimated
                 Form                          Description         Participants     minutes per    burden hours
                                                                                    participant      per form
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Form 1599.............................  Invitation Email........          20,850               1             348
Form 1604.............................  Screener Form...........           4,170               1              70
Form 1600.............................  Informed Consent Form...           1,668               5             139
Form 1601.............................  Experiment Form.........           1,500              20             500
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    Total.............................  ........................  ..............  ..............           1,057
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    Estimated Total Annual Burden Cost: NHTSA estimates that there are 
no costs to respondents beyond the time spent participating in the 
study.
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspects of 
this information collection, including (a) 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; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate 
of the burden of the proposed information collection; (c) ways to 
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information to be 
collected; and (d) 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.
    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 in Washington, DC.
Nanda Narayanan Srinivasan,
Associate Administrator, Research and Program Development.
[FR Doc. 2021-21040 Filed 9-27-21; 8:45 am]
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