Proposed Collection; Comment RequestAll-Terrain Vehicle Exposure Survey

CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY COMMISSION

Proposed Collection; Comment Request--All-Terrain Vehicle

Exposure Survey

AGENCY: Consumer Product Safety Commission.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: As required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C.

Chapter 35), the Consumer Product Safety Commission requests comments

on a proposed survey to determine consumer exposure to the hazards

associated with the use of All-Terrain Vehicles. All-Terrain Vehicles

(``ATVs'') are three- and four-wheeled motorized vehicles, generally

characterized by large, low-pressure tires, a seat designed to be

straddled by the operator, and handlebars for steering, which are

intended for off-road use by an individual rider on various types of

non-paved terrain. (Three-wheeled ATVs were last made in the late

1980s.) If conducted, the survey would seek information such as the

characteristics of ATV users, the types of ATVs in use, the amount of

time ATVs are used and the various types of ATV usage. The Commission

will consider all comments received in response to this notice before

requesting approval of this collection of information from the Office

of Management and Budget.

DATES: Written comments must be received by the Office of the Secretary

not later than June 16, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Written comments should be captioned ``All-Terrain Vehicle

Exposure Survey'' and mailed to the Office of the Secretary, Consumer

Product Safety Commission, Washington, D.C. 20207, or delivered to that

office, room 502, 4330 East-West Highway, Bethesda, Maryland. Written

comments may also be sent to the Office of the Secretary by facsimile

at (301) 504-0127 or by e-mail at [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For information about the proposed

collection of information, or to obtain a copy of the questionnaire to

be used for this collection of information, call or write Gregory B.

Rodgers, Ph.D., Directorate for Economic Analysis, Consumer Product

Safety Commission, Washington, D.C. 20207; (301) 504-0962, Ext. 1330.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

In the mid-1980s, the Commission learned of a rapidly growing

number of deaths and injuries--particularly to children under 16 years

old--involving ATVs. ATV sales had increased dramatically during that

time, including more than a tripling of sales between 1980 and 1985.

Most of the ATVs produced during that period were three-wheeled

vehicles.

After studying ATVs, the Commission issued an Advance Notice of

Proposed Rulemaking (``ANPR'') in May 1985 (50 FR 23139). In December

1987, the Department of Justice, at the Commission's request, filed a

lawsuit in federal district court under section 12 of the Consumer

Product Safety Act against five major distributors of ATVs. (United

States v. American Honda Motor Co., et al., Civ. No. 87-3525 (D.D.C.,

filed Dec. 30, 1987).) The lawsuit, filed simultaneously with a

Preliminary Consent Decree, sought a declaration by the court that ATVs

constituted an ``imminent hazard'' and requested certain remedial

relief. The matter was settled with the court's approval of a Final

Consent Decree on April 28, 1988, and the Commission subsequently

withdrew the ANPR (56 FR 47166).

The Consent Decree has been successful in a number of areas,

including stopping the sale of three-wheel ATVs and requiring dealer

compliance with rider age requirements at the point of sale. However,

the overall success of this and other Commission actions is ultimately

determined by their impact on consumer safety. While injuries and

deaths associated with ATVs declined in the late 1980s, the annual

figures have plateaued since then.

The Commission's most recent data show that, after gradually

declining from an estimated 347 deaths in 1986, the number of deaths

associated with ATVs has stabilized at an average of roughly 240

annually from 1990 to 1994. The risk of death per 10,000 four-wheeled

ATVs in use has remained relatively constant at roughly .8 since 1991,

after gradually dropping to that level from a previous high of 1.5 in

1985.

The estimated number of injuries has shown a similar trend. After

gradually declining from an estimated 108,000 injuries in 1986, the

number of injuries has stabilized at an average of about 62,000 from

1990 to 1995. Approximately 40% of all deaths and injuries occur to

children under 16.

The Consent Decree expires in April 1998. Therefore, the Commission

must decide what, if any, action should be taken to address the deaths

and injuries associated with ATVs after that date.

An ATV exposure survey would provide information on the

characteristics and use patterns of the general population of ATV

riders, and the ATVs they use. This information would be compared to

earlier ATV exposure surveys conducted in 1986 and 1989 to evaluate

changes over the last decade. Additionally, in combination with a

planned injury survey, the exposure survey would provide information to

quantify ATV risk patterns.

B. Estimated Burden

The exposure survey would be conducted by a contractor by either a

mail panel methodology or a probability sample using random-digit-

dialing (``RDD'') methods. A mail panel would permit the Commission to

obtain a sample size of approximately 1,000 completed interviews with

ATV users. If

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RDD methods were used, the sample size objective would be 500 completed

interviews instead of 1,000 because of the small percentage of

households that have ATVs (only two to three percent of households).

This smaller sample for the RDD method would be done to keep the cost

of the survey to a reasonable level and still provide reliable

statistical results.

Thus, the Commission staff estimates that the number of interviews

would range from about 500 (RDD) to 1,000 (mail panel). The length of

each interview would be approximately 20 minutes. Therefore, the total

burden hours for respondents would be about 165 hours (500 x .33 hrs.)

for the RDD survey or about 330 hours (1000 x .33 hrs.) for the mail

panel.

The Commission staff estimates the costs of the time to respond to

this collection of information at $12 an hour. This is the average

hourly wage for all private industry workers reported by the U.S.

Bureau of the Census in the 1996 edition of the Statistical Abstract of

the United States. At this valuation, the estimated cost of this survey

to the public would be about $1,980 (165 hours X $12/hour) to $3,960

(330 hours x $12/hour).

The Commission staff estimates that this collection of information

would require approximately 18 weeks of professional staff time. That

estimate includes five weeks to negotiate contracts, and to prepare

questionnaires, interviewer guidelines, and other instruments and

instructions used to collect the information. After the information

collection, an additional 13 weeks would be required to edit and

analyze the data and write the reports. Based on the average

professional level, the 18 weeks of staff time would be valued at

approximately $30,000.

C. Requests for Comments

The Commission solicits written comments from all interested

persons about the proposed survey. The Commission specifically solicits

information about the hourly burden and monetary costs imposed by this

collection of information. The Commission also seeks information

relevant to the following topics:

Whether the exposure survey described above is

necessary for the proper performance of the Commission's functions;

Whether the information would have practical utility

for the Commission;

Whether the quality, utility, and clarity of the

information to be collected could be enhanced; and

Whether the burden imposed by the collection of

information could be minimized by use of automated, electronic or

other technological collection techniques, or other forms of

information technology.

Dated: April 10, 1997.

Sadye E. Dunn,

Secretary, Consumer Product Safety Commission.

[FR Doc. 97-9696 Filed 4-14-97; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 6355-01-P