PRINTER'S NO. 4270
No. 859 Session of 2008
INTRODUCED BY WATSON, GEIST, MARKOSEK, QUINN, REICHLEY, BOYD, MUSTIO, ADOLPH, ARGALL, BELFANTI, BENNINGHOFF, BEYER, BISHOP, BOBACK, BRENNAN, BROOKS, CALTAGIRONE, CLYMER, COHEN, CREIGHTON, CUTLER, DALLY, DePASQUALE, DiGIROLAMO, DONATUCCI, FLECK, FRANKEL, GEORGE, GIBBONS, GILLESPIE, GINGRICH, GOODMAN, GRUCELA, HARHART, HARPER, HELM, HENNESSEY, HERSHEY, HESS, HICKERNELL, KAUFFMAN, M. KELLER, KENNEY, KILLION, KORTZ, KOTIK, KULA, MACKERETH, MAHONEY, MAJOR, MANN, MANTZ, MARSHALL, MARSICO, McGEEHAN, McILVAINE SMITH, MELIO, MICOZZIE, MILLARD, R. MILLER, MOUL, MOYER, MURT, O'NEILL, PALLONE, PAYNE, PERZEL, PETRI, PETRONE, PHILLIPS, PICKETT, PYLE, RAMALEY, RAPP, READSHAW, ROCK, ROHRER, ROSS, RUBLEY, SAINATO, SANTONI, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO, SIPTROTH, SOLOBAY, STABACK, SWANGER, TRUE, VULAKOVICH AND YOUNGBLOOD, SEPTEMBER 9, 2008
INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, SEPTEMBER 9, 2008
A RESOLUTION 1 Recognizing the week of October 19 through 25, 2008, as 2 "National Teen Driving Safety Week" in Pennsylvania. 3 WHEREAS, Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death 4 for adolescents and young adults in the United States, and many 5 of these deaths are preventable; and 6 WHEREAS, Almost 7,500 drivers between 15 and 20 years of age 7 were involved in fatal crashes in 2005 throughout the United 8 States; and 9 WHEREAS, The fatality rate in the United States for drivers 10 between 16 and 19 years of age, based on miles driven, is four 11 times the fatality rate for drivers between 25 and 69 years of
1 age; and 2 WHEREAS, The majority of teen driver crashes in the United 3 States are due to driver error and speeding, and 15% of the 4 crashes are due to drunk driving; and 5 WHEREAS, Roughly two-thirds of teenagers killed in motor 6 vehicle accidents in the United States each year did not use 7 seatbelts; and 8 WHEREAS, Approximately 63% of teen passenger deaths in the 9 United States occur while other teenagers are driving; and 10 WHEREAS, In Pennsylvania, in 2007, teens 16 to 20 years of 11 age were involved in 32,771 traffic crashes with 34.6% of those 12 crashes involving a single vehicle running off the road and 13 hitting a fixed object, such as a tree, guardrail, etc; and 14 WHEREAS, Young drivers are the least experienced, and 15 therefore traffic crashes involving drivers 16 to 20 years of 16 age are most often the result of driver error, such as speed, 17 distraction and failure to observe driving regulations and 18 conditions; and 19 WHEREAS, It is necessary to explore effective ways to reduce 20 the crash risk for young drivers by focusing research and 21 outreach efforts on areas of teen driving that show the most 22 promise for improving safety; and 23 WHEREAS, The National Teen Driver Survey, developed with 24 input from teenagers and administered by The Children's Hospital 25 of Philadelphia, demonstrates a nationwide need to increase 26 overall awareness about the safe use of electronic handheld 27 devices, the risks of nighttime and fatigued driving, the 28 importance of consistent seatbelt use and the practice of 29 gradually increasing driver privileges over time as a young 30 driver gains more experience under supervised conditions; and 20080H0859R4270 - 2 -
1 WHEREAS, In 2005, 1,553 crash fatalities involving a teen 2 driver occurred in the fall, when teenagers in the first months 3 of the school year were faced with many decisions involving 4 driving, including whether to drive with peer passengers and 5 other distractions; and 6 WHEREAS, Recognizing the third week of October as "National 7 Teen Driving Safety Week" is expected to increase awareness of 8 these important issues among teenagers and adults in this 9 Commonwealth, as additional research is conducted to develop and 10 test effective interventions to boost teen driver safety; 11 therefore be it 12 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the 13 week of October 19 through 25, 2008, as "National Teen Driving 14 Safety Week" in Pennsylvania; and be it further 15 RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives: 16 (1) support the goals and ideas of "National Teen 17 Driving Safety Week"; and 18 (2) encourage the people of Pennsylvania to observe the 19 week with appropriate activities that promote the practice of 20 safe driving among licensed teen drivers in this 21 Commonwealth. H21L82SFL/20080H0859R4270 - 3 -