Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation Planning (2006)

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Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation-Planning APPENDIX B FEDERAL HIGHWAY SAFETY PROGRAM GUIDANCE ALCOHOL-RELATED GUIDELINES 23 U.S.C 158: Minimum Drinking Age 23 U.S.C 158 established 21 as the minimum drinking age. Under 23 CFR 1208, the Secretary of Transportation “shall withhold ten percent of the amount to be apportioned under each of the sections 104 (b)(1), 104 (b)(2), 104 (b)(5) and 104 (b)(6) of Title 23 U.S.C. on the first day of each fiscal year in which the purchase or public possession in such State of any alcoholic beverage by a person who is less than twenty-one years old is lawful.” 23 U.S.C 161: Operation of Motor Vehicles By Intoxicated Minors (Zero- Tolerance Laws) 23 U.S.C 161 proposes to treat individuals under the age of 21 operating a motor vehicle with blood alcohol concentrations of 0.02 percent or greater as intoxicated or as driving under the influence of alcohol. The Secretary of Transportation may withhold 10% of the amount of National Highway System dollars, Surface Transportation dollars that would otherwise be apportioned to the State. 23 U.S.C 164: Repeat Intoxicated Driver Laws 23 U.S.C 164 requires that the State’s enact laws aimed ay providing increased penalties for repeatedly driving under the influence of alcohol. Individuals convicted of a second offense have their driver’s license suspended for at least one year, be subject to the impoundment or immobilization of their vehicles, or have an ignition interlock system installed on their vehicles, and be required to perform 30 days of community service or serve at least 5 days in prison. Third-time offenders must receive, at a minimum, 60 days of community service or 10 days in prison. State’s failing to adopt repeat intoxicated driver laws shall have 3% of their National Highway System, Surface Transportation Program and Interstate Maintenance dollars transferred to the State’s National Highway Safety Program, for use either to plan and implement the State’s Highway Safety Program, or for use on the State’s Hazard Elimination Program. U.S.C. 154: Open Container Laws 23 U.S.C. 154 requires states to adopt open container laws that prohibit “the possession of any open alcoholic beverage container, or the consumption of any alcoholic beverage, in the passenger area of any motor vehicle (including possession or consumption by the driver of the vehicle) located on a public highway, or the right-of-way of a public highway, in the State.” Vehicles designed to carry “many passengers,” as well as motor homes, may be exempted from this requirement by the state. States failing to adopt an open container law will have 3% of the funds originally allocated for the National Highway System, Surface Transportation Program, and Interstate Maintenance Program transferred to the State’s Highway Safety program 23 CFR 1270.7 indicates that the funds transferred to the Highway Safety Program may be used for alcohol-impaired driving countermeasures, the enforcement of DWI laws, hazard elimination activities specified under 23 U.S.C 153, which mandates that a state shall conduct engineering surveys to identify hazards on public roads. Within 60 days of the transfer of these funds, the Governor’s Appendix B: Federal Highway Safety Program Guidance 85

Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation-Planning Appendix B: Federal Highway Safety Program Guidance Representative for Highway Safety and the State’s Secretary of Transportation “shall jointly identify, in writing, to the appropriate NHTSA Administrator and FHWA Division Administrator, how the funds will be programmed among alcohol-impaired driving programs, hazard elimination programs, and planning and administration costs.” ALCOHOL-RELATED INCENTIVE GRANTS 23 U.S.C 163: Operation of Motor Vehicles by Intoxicated Persons To encourage states to adopt legislation to make it unlawful to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 or higher, 23 U.S.C 163 establishes incentive grants available to states that adopt 0.08 BAC laws. “There are authorized to be appropriated out of the Highway Trust Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) to carry out this section $55,000,000 for fiscal year 1998, $65,000,000 for fiscal year 1999, $80,000,000 for fiscal year 2000, $90,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, $100,000,000 for fiscal year 2002, and $110,000,000 for fiscal year 2003.” Further, 23 CFR 1225 indicates that the 0.08 law should have the full effect of a standard “driving while intoxicated” law for which there is no prescribed BAC level. If, for example, the state has an administrative license suspension or revocation law as a penalty for driving while intoxicated, the State must also use this law as part of its enforcement of the 0.08 BAC law. Because the grant funds awarded under this section are to be used for then enforcement of the 0.08 BAC laws, they appear to function as supplemental income for state and local law enforcement agencies. 23 U.S.C 408: Alcohol Traffic Safety Programs 23 U.S.C 408 allows the Secretary of Transportation to issue grants to States to implement and enforce programs aimed at reducing “traffic safety problems resulting from persons driving while under the influence of alcohol or a controlled substance.” States may receive these grants for up to five years, with the Federal share being issued on a sliding scale – 75% the first year, 50% the second year, and 25% for years three through five. 23 U.S.C. 410: Alcohol-Impaired Driving Countermeasures 23 U.S.C. 410 provides additional grant money to States that adopt programs aimed at reduce traffic safety problems resulting from individuals driving under the influence of alcohol. This money is available only to supplement existing programs; States are required to maintain their existing expenditures on DUI enforcement in order to be eligible for additional funding under section 410. Several different grants are provided under this section. For Basic Grants, States can receive up to an additional 25% over their 1997 allocations under Section 402. Basic Grant A - States are eligible for this funding provided that they have adopted 5 of the following programs: • Administrative license revocation for individuals driving under the influence that suspends an offender’s license for at least 90 days for a first offence, and at least one year for individuals committing a second offense within a 5-year period. • An underage-drinking program that seeks to prevent persons under the age of 21 from obtaining alcohol through actions such as color coding their licenses to make them distinguishable form the licenses of people over 21. • An enforcement program that stops vehicles on “a nondiscriminatory, lawful basis for the purpose of determining whether the operators of such motor 86

Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation-Planning Appendix B: Federal Highway Safety Program Guidance vehicles are driving while under the influence of alcohol,” or a high-publicity traffic enforcement program. • A “3-stage graduated licensing system for young drivers that includes nighttime driving restrictions during the first 2 stages, requires all vehicle occupants to be properly restrained, and makes it unlawful for a person under age 21 to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol concentration of .02 percent or greater.” • Programs aimed to target and penalize people with high blood alcohol level concentrations. • Young adult drinking programs, such as awareness campaigns, traffic safety partnerships with employers, colleges, and the hospitality industry, assessments of first-time offenders, and incorporation of treatment into judicial sentencing, aimed at persons between 21 and 34 years of age. • The development of a system for testing the blood alcohol concentrations of drivers involved in fatal accidents that has a testing rate equal to or greater than the national average. Basic Grant B – States are eligible for funding for meeting each of the following criteria: • Demonstrating a reduction in the number of fatally injured drivers with of BAC of 0.1 or greater during the previous 3-year period. In addition to these basic grants, States can additionally apply for supplemental grants if they meet one or more of the following: • Developing a program to acquire video equipment to be sued for identifying derivers under the influence of alcohol • Developing a self-sustaining drunk driving prevention program that returns fines collected from driving under the influence offenses to communities “which have programs for the prevention of such operations of motor vehicles. • Reducing the amount of driving done by individuals with suspended licenses. “Such law, as determined by the Secretary, may require a ''zebra'' stripe that is clearly visible on the license plate of any motor vehicle owned and operated by a driver with a suspended license.” • Developing a program to acquire passive alcohol sensors to detect persons operating motor vehicles under the influence of alcohol, and provide education to police officers on its use. • Developing a DWI tracking system • Developing other programs to reduce safety problems associated with drivers operating under the influence of alcohol or controlled substances. PASSENGER RESTRAINT-RELATED GUIDELINES AND GRANTS 23 U.S.C. 153: Use of Safety Belts and Motorcycle Helmets 23 U.S.C. 153 and 23 CFR 1215 requires that all states make the operation of a motor vehicle “unlawful” when persons in the front seats of the vehicle are unrestrained by a safety belt, and the operation of a motorcycle “unlawful” in any individual on the motorcycle is not wearing a safety helmet. Persons with medical excuses, emergency vehicles, people in the custody of the police, public and livery vehicles, parade vehicles, postal and utility vehicles and persons in vehicles not equipped with safety belts are to be exempted from this requirement. States not in compliance with this shall have 3% of their funds allocated for the Interstate 87

Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation-Planning Appendix B: Federal Highway Safety Program Guidance Highway system, the CMAQ program, and Surface Transportation program to be transferred to the State’s Highway Safety Program. Under 23 U.S.C. 153, the Secretary of Transportation may additionally provide grants to State agencies to encourage them to provide education on safety belts, motorcycle helmets and child restrain systems, enforcement training to law enforcement officials, to monitor State compliance with this code, and the enforcement of this code. 23 U.S.C 157: Safety Incentive Grants for the Use of Seat Belts 23 U.S.C 157 establishes incentive grants, appropriated from the Highway Trust fund, to encourage increases in the statewide rates of seatbelt use. The funding is allocated from 1999 through 2003 in the amounts of $92,000,000, $102,000,000, $112,000,000, $112,000,000 for each sequential fiscal year. There are two ways in which a State is eligible for an allocation of this funding. First, a state is eligible for these grants if it has a seat belt use rate higher than the national average. Allocations made from surpassing the national average will be based on “Federal medical savings” (23 CFR 1240.10) associated with the increased seatbelt use rate. These Federal medical savings will be determined by NHTSA under the accounting Formula specified in Appendix E of 23 CFR 1240. The second way a state may become eligible for these grant funds is through the development and implementation of “Innovative Seat Belt Projects.” Under 23 U.S.C 157(f), the Secretary of Transportation shall develop guidelines for innovative safety belt plans, and States submitting plans in accordance with these guidelines will be eligible to receive 100% Federal funding for the implementation of the plan. 23 U.S.C. 405: Occupant Protection Incentive Grants 23 U.S.C. 405 allows the Secretary of Transportation to award incentive grants for states engaging in “effective programs to reduce highway deaths and injuries resulting from individuals riding unrestrained or improperly restrained in motor vehicles.” Grants may be renewed for up to six years, with states being able to receive 75% of the total cost of operating the program for the first two years, 50% for years 3 and 4, and 25% for years 5 and 6. The amount of the award may amount to 25% of the total Federal apportionment to the State under Section 402, which provide funding to the Governors’ Highway Safety Programs. To be eligible, States must have enacted at least 4 of the following safety-related programs: • A law requiring the use of a safety belt for all passengers in the vehicle; • A primary safety belt use law, which specifies that the State will provide the primary enforcement of the State’s safety belt use law; • Minimum fine or penalty points assessed against an individual’s driver’s license for failing to comply with the safety belt use law of the state and/or for violating the state’s child passenger protection laws. • A Statewide traffic enforcement program focused on occupant protection. The program must “emphasize publicity.” • A child passenger protection education program aimed at educating drivers about the proper use of child restraint systems. • A child passenger protection law requiring minors in a motor vehicle to be properly secured. 88

Incorporating Safety into Long-Range Transportation-Planning 23 U.S.C 406: School Bus Driver Training Grants 23 U.S.C 406 grants the Secretary of Transportation the power to award grants to the States for enacting School Bus Driver Training programs. The programs should target drivers of both public and private school buses, and should be directed towards establishing and enforcing minimum qualifications for school bus drivers, as well as providing initial and refresher training courses. The State program should submit reports to the Secretary of Transportation detailing the results from their program. 23 U.S.C 407: Innovative Project Grants In addition to the specific grants detailed above, States may be additionally eligible to receive grants for innovative safety projects under 23 U.S.C 407. Appendix B: Federal Highway Safety Program Guidance 89

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