National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Budget

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

Overview: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) conducts critical behavioral and vehicle programs, and provides grants to the states for the administration of highway traffic safety programs. In 2001, traffic crashes were the leading cause of death for persons ages 4 through 33, claiming more than 42,000 lives and accounting for over 95 percent of transportation-related deaths. The economic cost of motor vehicle crashes is estimated to be more than $230 billion annually. Emerging demographic trends, such as a continuing increase in the number of drivers and a significant growth in both elderly and teenage drivers, pose increased traffic safety challenges that must be addressed. The President's FY 2004 budget request includes $665 million for NHTSA to carry out its mission. The request reflects an increase of $18 million (4 percent) above the FY 2003 program level, plus the transfer of the safety belt use and impaired-driving law incentive programs from the Federal Highway Administration to NHTSA.

	2002 Actual	2003 1/ Request	2004 1/2/ Request
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Budget (Dollars In Millions)
	2002 Actual	2003 1/ Request
Operations & Research	201	200	218
Highway Traffic Safety Grants	223	225	447
TOTAL	424	425	665
1/ Excludes estimated accrual payments for civil service retirement and health benefits. 2/ Includes $222 million of TEA-21 resources for the Sections 157 and 163 grant programs formerly appropriated to the Federal Highway Administration. NHTSA has always administered these funds; therefore, the budget proposes that the funding be appropriated directly to NHTSA.

FY 2004 Budget

Operations and Research: The FY 2004 budget request includes $218 million for Operations and Research activities to reduce highway fatalities, prevent injuries, and significantly reduce their associated overwhelming economic toll. The request includes:

Children in safety seats with caption "Are you using it right? Four out of five of these children are incorrectly buckled. Do you know which one is correct?"

Research and Analysis - 68 million is dedicated to reducing highway fatalities and injuries by providing leadership in the area of crash causation and crash prevention research, including developing studies and programs to determine the effects that crashes have on the human body. The following initiatives are funded: crashworthiness research for occupant protection and studies on the causes of human injury in highway crashes; crash avoidance research; national crash data systems; a new Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Study; and driver distraction testing.
Highway Safety Programs - $40 million is dedicated to reducing highway fatalities and injuries by funding programs committed to change driver behavior, a critical factor in reducing the number of highway fatalities and injuries. NHTSA will develop and disseminate programs that address impaired driving deterrence, increased safety belt usage, and correct placement of child safety restraints. Funds will provide for emergency medical system development and education, and strategies for strengthening motorcycle safety, pedestrian, bicycle, and pupil transportation safety, as well as occupant protection usage surveys.
Safety Assurance - $17 million is dedicated to reducing highway fatalities and injuries by removing unsafe vehicles from the roadways. Activities include testing of vehicles to ensure compliance with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards and adequately maintaining a legislatively required database to track vehicle defects.
Safety Performance Standards - $11 million is dedicated to reducing highway fatalities and injuries by providing for the following: crash avoidance and crashworthiness testing; initiatives to evaluate child safety seats; braking performance ratings development; and studies to improve seating systems and headlight glare reduction. Through the New Car Assessment Program, consumers will be provided with information on frontal and side impact protection, and rollover resistance of light vehicles.
Salaries and Expenses - $82 million is provided to maintain the existing workforce and to hire, train, and develop safety professionals; maintain critical information systems; design, print and distribute safety-related literature; and cover other operational costs and services.

Highway Traffic Safety Grants: NHTSA's highway traffic safety grant program will help reduce highway fatalities and injuries through many unique and innovative new grant programs. The FY 2004 budget request of $447 million includes: $287 million to support a full range of highway safety programs in every state, territory, and Indian nation, including an impaired driving initiative in which grants are awarded strategically to states where the greatest gains in reducing alcohol-related fatalities can be made; $100 million for Safety Incentive Grants for Primary Safety Belt Laws; $50 million for State Traffic Safety Information Systems Improvement programs to support improvements in highway safety data systems; and $10 million for a new Emergency Medical Services Initiative to assist states in adopting comprehensive wireless emergency and response systems.