Itasca, IL – The National Safety Council today announced it
plans to present its Excellence in Highway Safety award to two U.S. senators
and two U.S. congressmen for their leadership in teen driving and distracted
driving. NSC will recognize Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Sen. Jay
Rockefeller (D-WV), Rep. Tim Bishop (D-NY) and Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL) for
leading efforts to include state Graduated Driver Licensing and distracted
driving incentive grant provisions in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st
Century Act (MAP-21). President Barack Obama signed
MAP-21 into law last
July.
“We are grateful to Sen. Gillibrand, Sen. Rockefeller, Rep.
Bishop and Rep. Hultgren for recognizing the need for including incentives for
states to strengthen their Graduated Driver Licensing and distracted driving
laws,” said Janet Froetscher, president and CEO at NSC. “We are proud to
present our Excellence in Highway Safety awards to lawmakers who took action on
these important issues.”
MAP-21 is a two-year reauthorization of surface
transportation programs. The bill was the first multi-year transportation
authorization enacted since 2005, and it will provide more than $105 billion to
fund surface transportation programs in 2013 and 2014. Funds from the previous
bill ended in 2009 when the bill expired, but had been extended nine times.
NSC supports Graduated Driver Licensing systems because they
reduce crashes involving teen drivers by as much as 40 percent. Every state and
D.C. has some form of GDL, although no state has all
seven
elements recommended by NSC. Advocating for strong laws to combat
cell
phone distracted driving also is a top
priority for NSC. In 2009, NSC called for a total ban on all
driver cell phone use – handheld and hands-free – after more than 30 research
studies established the significant risk of handheld and hands-free cell phone
use while driving.
This will be the second Excellence in Highway Safety Award
for Rep. Hultgren, who also was recognized in 2003 for his sponsorship of the
first Illinois teen driving passenger restriction law. Excellence in Highway
Safety Awards have been presented to cabinet members, U.S. senators and
representatives, governors, state legislators, law enforcement leaders
and others over the years. Past honorees include President Obama, who was
recognized in 2003 when, as an Illinois state senator, he co-sponsored the
state’s primary seat belt law.
Sen. Gillibrand, Sen. Rockefeller, Rep. Bishop and Rep.
Hultgren will be formally presented with the award in the near future on
Capitol Hill.
About the National
Safety Council
Founded in 1913 and chartered by Congress, the National
Safety Council (
nsc.org) is a nonprofit
organization whose mission is to save lives by preventing injuries and deaths
at work, in homes and communities and on the roads through leadership,
research, education and advocacy. NSC advances this mission by partnering with
businesses, government agencies, elected officials and the public in areas
where we can make the most impact – distracted driving, teen driving, workplace
safety and safety beyond the workplace.