Two State Surveys of Alcohol Targets of Opportunity

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[U.S. DOT Docket No. NHTSA-2001-10525]

Two State Surveys of Alcohol Targets of Opportunity

ACTION: Notice and request for public comment on proposed collection of

information.

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SUMMARY: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has

a central role in the national effort to reduce motor vehicle related

traffic injuries and deaths. The Partners in Progress goal is to reduce

the number of alcohol-related fatalities from 15,935, in 1998, to

11,000 by the year 2005. In support of this goal, in 1999, five states

were awarded cooperative agreements by NHTSA to demonstrate and

evaluate the effectiveness of traffic safety programs that combine

increased law enforcement efforts with substantial publicity about

these programs. These states were selected because of their potential

for reducing the substantial number or percentage of alcohol related

fatalities occurring each year within their state. Based on the

successful implementation of these programs, an additional two states

will be selected for data collection using essentially the same data

collection instrument to determine the effects of these alcohol

enforcement and publicity programs on drivers' attitudes and behavior

regarding drinking and driving after drinking. Under procedures

established by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, NHTSA invites the

general public and Federal Agencies to comment on the need for the

proposed data collection, the types of questions respondents should be

asked, ways to enhance the quality of the collection, and ways to

minimize the burden on respondents.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before December 3, 2001.

ADDRESSES: Direct all written comments to US DOT, Docket Management

Facility, Docket Operations, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,

Washington, DC 20590, Docket Number NHTSA-2001-10525. It is requested

but not required that 2 copies of the comment be provided. The Docket

section is open weekdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marvin Levy, Ph.D., Contracting

Officer's Technical Representative, Office of Research and Traffic

Records (NTS-31), Washington, DC 20590, e-mail [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 publish a document in the Federal Register

providing for a 60-day comment period and otherwise consult with

affected agencies and members of the public concerning each proposed

collection of information.

The OMB has promulgated regulations describing what must be

included in such a document. Under OMB's regulations (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

methods and assumptions;

(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 response to these requirements, NHTSA asks for public comment on

the following collection of information:

Two State Surveys of Alcohol Targets of Opportunity

Type of Request: New information collection requirement.

OMB Clearance Number: None.

Form Number: This collection of information uses no standard forms.

Requested Expiration Date of Approval: February 28, 2005.

Summary of the Collection of Information

The Partners in Progress goal is to reduce the number of alcohol-

related fatalities from 15,935, in 1998, to 11,000 by the year 2005. In

support of this goal, in 1999, five states were awarded cooperative

agreements by NHTSA to demonstrate and evaluate the effectiveness of

traffic safety programs that combine increased law enforcement efforts

with substantial publicity about these programs. These states were

selected because of their potential for reducing the substantial number

or percentage of alcohol-related fatalities occurring each year within

their state. Based on the successful implementation of these programs,

an additional two states will be selected for data collection using

essentially the same data collection instrument to determine the

effects of these alcohol enforcement and publicity programs on drivers'

attitudes and behavior regarding drinking and driving after drinking.

The objective of this survey is to determine the extent to which

these two programs impact the awareness, attitudes, and driving

behavior of motorists. It is anticipated that changes in enforcement

levels should be reflected by changes in driver awareness, attitudes

and behavior. For example, a state that substantially increases their

alcohol-enforcement activities and provides substantial publicity might

expect that respondents report a greater degree of awareness of these

efforts as compared to before the program began. It may be expected

that respondents would report they came in contact with law enforcement

more frequently and drive after drinking less

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often once the program began. In addition, the survey will provide

information on driver awareness and acceptability of specific

enforcement techniques being used as well as data regarding the ongoing

national alcohol media campaign called You drink and drive. You Lose.

The information to be collected by this survey is not available to

NHTSA through any other source.

Within each state, the survey will be administered in three waves

(prior to the intervention effort, at the mid-point, and at the end the

effort) by telephone to a probability sample of the driving age public

(aged 16 years or older as of their last birthday). Participation by

respondents is strictly voluntary. The interview is anticipated to

average 8.5 minutes in length. Interviewers will use computer assisted

telephone interviewing to reduce survey administration time and to

minimize data collection errors. A Spanish-language questionnaire and

bi-lingual interviewers will be used to reduce language barriers to

participation. All respondents' results will remain anonymous and

completely confidential. Participant names and telephone numbers used

to reach the respondents are separated from the data records prior to

its entry into the analytical database.

Description of the Need for and Proposed Use of the Information

More than 308,000 persons were reported injured and nearly 16,000

persons died in alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes during 1999

(Traffic Safety Facts: 1999, NHTSA-National Center for Statistics and

Analysis). NHTSA is committed to the development of effective programs

to reduce the incidence of these crashes. In 1999, NHTSA awarded

cooperative agreements valued at approximately $1,000,000 each to five

states--Pennsylvania, Georgia, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Texas. NHTSA

is currently in the process of awarding cooperative agreements to two

additional states. Each state is responsible for implementing an

enforcement and publicity programs and conducting both process and

impact evaluations. Data to be collected include number and types of

police stops made, and changes in alcohol-related violations and

crashes.

In order to reduce the work requirements for each state and to

create sets of survey data that can be readily compared among the

states, a separate award was made to a survey firm having expertise in

conducting random telephone surveys. Thus, the survey data to be

collected comprise only one part of the entire data set that will be

assessed.

The entire data set will be used to properly plan and evaluate new

enforcement programs directed at reducing alcohol-impaired driving.

States found to have implemented effective programs to counter the

driving after drinking problem will prepare a Best Practices Guide that

highlights the major features of their programs. These Guides will be

disseminated among states that want to implement an improved alcohol-

enforcement program.

The findings from this proposed data collection will assist NHTSA

in addressing the problem of alcohol-impaired driving and in

formulating programs and recommendations to Congress. NHTSA will use

the findings to help focus current programs and activities to achieve

the greatest benefit, to develop new programs to decrease the

likelihood of drinking and driving behaviors, and to provide

informational support to states, localities, and law enforcement

agencies that will aid them in their efforts to reduce drinking and

driving crashes and injuries.

It should be noted that during the past decade NHTSA has conducted

surveys on drinking and driving attitudes and behavior but these were

from nationally represented samples and not related to specific

statewide enforcement activities. Also, some survey data about an

enforcement effort were collected years ago in one of the targeted

states-Tennessee--but these data cannot be used within the context of

the present study.

Description of the Likely Respondents (Including Estimated Number,

and Proposed Frequency of Response to the Collection of

Information)

Under this proposed collection, a telephone interview averaging

approximately 8.5 minutes in length would be administered to each of

1,000 randomly selected members of the general public age 16 and older,

in each of the two states in this study, at three different times over

a 20-month period. A total of 6,000 individuals will be interviewed

over the course of this study. Interview will be conducted with persons

at residential phone numbers selected using random digit dialing. No

more than one respondent per household will be selected, and each

sample member will complete just one interview. Businesses are

ineligible for the sample and would be not be interviewed. After each

wave is completed and the data analyzed, the findings will be

disseminated to each state for review.

Estimate of the Total Annual Reporting and Record Keeping Burden

Resulting From the Collection of Information

NHTSA estimates that respondents in the sample would require an

average of 8.5 minutes to complete the telephone interview. Thus, the

number of estimated reporting burden on the general public would be a

total of 850 hours for all three waves of the proposed survey. The

respondents would not incur any reporting or record keeping cost from

the information collection.

Rose A. McMurray,

Associate Administrator, Office of Traffic Safety Programs.

[FR Doc. 01-24666 Filed 10-2-01; 8:45 am]

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