[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 136 (Tuesday, July 16, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 34044-34045]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-15033]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration

[U.S. DOT Docket No. NHTSA-2019-0019]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Submission to the 
Office of Management and Budget for Review and Approval; Request for 
Comment; Prevalence of Alcohol and Other Drug Use Among Motor Vehicle 
Crash Victims Admitted to Select Trauma Centers.

AGENCY: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 
Department of Transportation.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments on a new information 
collection.

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SUMMARY: In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this 
notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
abstracted below is being submitted to the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of 
the information collection and its expected burden. A Federal Register 
notice with a 60-day comment

[[Page 34045]]

period soliciting comments on the information collection was published 
on April 24, 2019. NHTSA received one comment, from the National 
Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), that was supportive of the proposed 
information collection.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before August 15, 2019.

ADDRESSES: Send comments regarding the burden estimate, including 
suggestions for reducing the burden, to the Office of Management and 
Budget, Attention: Desk Officer for NHTSA, 725 17th Street NW, 
Washington, DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Amy Berning, Contracting Officer's 
Representative, NHTSA-NPD-130, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, W44-237, 
Washington, DC 20590. Ms. Berning's phone number is 202-366-5587, and 
her email address is amy.berning@dot.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Before a Federal agency can collect certain 
information from the public, it must receive approval from the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB). In compliance with these requirements, 
this notice announces that the following information collection request 
has been forwarded to OMB.
    A Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting 
comments on the information collection was published on April 24, 
2019.\1\ NHTSA received one comment,\2\ from the NTSB, that was 
supportive of the information collection. NTSB stated that it found the 
proposed collection of information to be necessary, proper, and useful; 
the methodology to be valid; the quality and clarity of the proposed 
collected information to be appropriate; and the collection techniques 
to be suitable. The comment expressed NTSB's support for NHTSA's 
research efforts to better understand the prevalence of alcohol and 
other drug use among crash victims admitted to selected trauma centers 
and morgues and stated that NHTSA's work on drugs and driving is 
crucial to NHTSA's proper performance of its agency functions, 
particularly addressing the safety hazards caused by driver impairment. 
In further support, NTSB referenced its own safety recommendation to 
NHTSA to develop and disseminate a common standard of practice for drug 
toxicology testing.\3\ NTSB also noted that because the blood specimens 
will be left over from those already drawn and used for medical care 
and that demographic data will be deidentified, there will be no 
evident burden placed on the public or the individuals involved in the 
research. NHTSA is not making any changes to the information collection 
based on the comment received.
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    \1\ 84 FR 17233.
    \2\ The docket number for the 60-day notice was mistakenly used 
twice, and the docket also included nine comments that were related 
to a shoulder belt requirement for side-facing seats on 
motorcoaches.
    \3\ See the NTSB's November 21, 2012, letter to NHTSA issuing 
Safety Recommendations H-12-32 and -33. Safety Recommendation H-12-
33 is classified ``Open--Acceptable Response.''
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    Title: Prevalence of Alcohol and Other Drug Use Among Motor Vehicle 
Crash Victims Admitted to Select Trauma Centers.
    OMB Control Number: 2127--New.
    Affected Public: Seriously- or fatally-injured victims of motor 
vehicle crashes presenting directly to the selected trauma centers or 
morgues shortly after a crash.
    Form Number: No forms.
    Abstract: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 
(NHTSA) seeks to examine the prevalence of legal and illegal drugs in 
the systems of seriously- and fatally-injured drivers and other crash-
involved road users (e.g., passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists, and 
scooter riders) presenting directly to the selected trauma centers or 
morgues. The participating trauma centers and medical examiners will 
provide the study with de-identified blood samples, when available, 
that were already collected during their routine clinical treatment 
activities. The study will then conduct independent drug toxicology 
testing to determine the prevalence of alcohol and other drugs in the 
systems of the participants. The trauma centers and medical examiners 
will also provide the study with other de-identified participant 
classification information such as patient demographics, cause of 
injury, and injury severity. The trauma centers and medical examiners 
will provide this already-collected and de-identified information to 
the study in accordance with all applicable Federal, State, and local 
regulations governing the sharing of such information and as approved 
by the study IRB. The trauma centers and medical examiners at the 
selected study sites universally draw patients' blood for clinical 
treatment or autopsy purposes. The trauma centers and medical examiners 
also collect other information such as patient demographics, cause of 
injury, injury severity, and drugs administered during treatment as 
part of their normal operating procedures. Therefore, there is no 
estimated time burden on the participants as the trauma centers and 
medical examiners will be providing the study with de-identified blood 
samples already collected, but not used, during their routine clinical 
procedures, and other de-identified information that was already 
collected as part of their routine clinical documentation procedures.
    Total Estimated Annual Burden Hours: 0.00 hours per year.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: The study anticipates collecting 
de-identified information on approximately 7,500 seriously- or fatally-
injured victims of crashes.
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including (a) whether the proposed 
collection of information is necessary for the Department's 
performance; (b) the accuracy of the estimated burden; (c) ways for the 
department to enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the 
information collection; and (d) ways that the burden could be minimized 
without reducing the quality of the collected information.

    Authority: 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A).

    Issued in Washington, DC.
Jon Krohmer,
Associate Administrator, Acting, Research and Program Development.
[FR Doc. 2019-15033 Filed 7-15-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-59-P


