Slater Announces $7.5M in Grants For Education on Child Passenger Safety
U.S. Transportation Secretary Rodney E. Slater today announced that 48 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Virgin Islands and Indian tribes will share $7.5 million to implement child passenger protection programs designed to prevent motor vehicle crash deaths and injuries to children.
"The proper use and installation of child safety seats, booster seats and seat belts protect our children, our most precious resource," Secretary Slater said. "Today we have the highest rate of child safety seat usage ever in history, and these grants will help more Americans understand the importance of these safety devices and attest to President Clinton and Vice President Gore's record on safety, which has been this Administration's highest transportation priority."
This is the second year that grants have been awarded to states for promoting child passenger safety education and training activities. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that approximately 20 to 25 percent of children ages 1 through 15 years old ride unrestrained, placing them at more than twice the risk of death and injury as those riding restrained.
"Children are at risk if they are not properly restrained when riding in a vehicle," said NHTSA Administrator Dr. Sue Bailey. "Child safety seats, including booster seats, reduce the risk of fatal injury in a crash by 71 percent for infants and by 54 percent for toddlers. Children ages 12 and under are always safest when properly restrained in the back seat."
The grants are authorized by Section 2003(b) of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century which President Clinton signed into law on June 9, 1998 and thus are often referred to as "Section 2003(b) grants." The award amounts range from $18,938 to $725,657 per recipient.
Funds provided to the states will be used to educate the public on all aspects of child passenger safety, and to train and retrain child passenger safety professionals concerning all aspects of child restraint use.
The following table lists the states receiving grants and their grant amounts.
State Amount
Alabama
$131,524 Alaska
$37,875 Arizona
$104,998 Arkansas
$96,218 California
$725,657 Colorado
$111,064 Connecticut
$81,233 Delaware
$37,875 D.C.
$37,875 Florida
$335,467 Georgia
$193,715 Hawaii
$37,875 Idaho
$43,040 Illinois
$312,890 Indiana
$164,002 Iowa
$112,575 Kansas
$115,766 Kentucky
$114,501 Louisiana
$120,020 Maine
$37,875 Maryland
$118,201 Massachusetts
$147,398 Michigan
$258,728 Minnesota
$156,220 Mississippi
$89,891 Missouri
$168,167 Montana
$49,535 Nebraska
$77,186 Nevada
$42,744 New Hampshire
$37,875 New Jersey
$185,065 New Mexico
$60,646 New York
$444,077 North Carolina
$190,256 North Dakota
$53,857 Ohio
$290,085 Oklahoma
$120,436 Oregon
$92,814 Pennsylvania
$314,023 Rhode Island
$37,875 South Carolina
$105,923 Tennessee
$146,538 Texas
$508,800 Utah
$56,666 Vermont
$37,875 Virginia
$167,290 Washington
$143,076 West Virginia
$55,848 Wisconsin
$158,218 Puerto Rico
$83,580 BIA
$56,813 Am. Samoa
$18,938 Guam
$18,938 N. Marianas
$18,938 Virgin Islands
$18,938 TOTAL
$7,483,500
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