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| THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA |
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| HOUSE RESOLUTION |
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| INTRODUCED BY WATSON, GEIST, ADOLPH, RAPP, DiGIROLAMO, BAKER, BEAR, BOBACK, BOYD, BRENNAN, BRIGGS, CALTAGIRONE, CAUSER, COHEN, CONKLIN, CUTLER, DALEY, DAVIS, EVERETT, FLECK, FRANKEL, FREEMAN, GEORGE, GINGRICH, GOODMAN, GRELL, HAHN, HELM, HENNESSEY, HESS, HICKERNELL, JAMES, KAUFFMAN, M. K. KELLER, KILLION, KNOWLES, KORTZ, LONGIETTI, MAHONEY, MAJOR, MANN, MARSHALL, MARSICO, MICOZZIE, MILLARD, MILLER, MILNE, MOUL, MURT, MUSTIO, OBERLANDER, O'NEILL, PARKER, QUINN, READSHAW, ROCK, ROSS, SANTARSIERO, SANTONI, SAYLOR, SCAVELLO, CULVER, SCHMOTZER, SONNEY, STABACK, SWANGER, VEREB, WATERS, YOUNGBLOOD, KULA, DEASY, CLYMER AND D. COSTA, OCTOBER 3, 2012 |
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| INTRODUCED AS NONCONTROVERSIAL RESOLUTION UNDER RULE 35, OCTOBER 3, 2012 |
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| A RESOLUTION |
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1 | Recognizing the week of October 14 through 20, 2012, as |
2 | "National Teen Driver 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 4,585 drivers between 15 and 20 years of age |
7 | were involved in fatal crashes in 2010 throughout the United |
8 | States; and |
9 | WHEREAS, The crash rate in the United States for drivers |
10 | between 16 and 19 years of age, based on miles driven, is nearly |
11 | three times the crash rate for drivers 20 and over; and |
12 | WHEREAS, The majority of teen driver crashes in the United |
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1 | States are due to driver error, making mistakes due to |
2 | inexperience and distractions, and 22% of the fatal teen crashes |
3 | are due to drunk driving; and |
4 | WHEREAS, Roughly two-thirds of teenagers killed in motor |
5 | vehicle accidents in the United States each year did not use |
6 | seat belts; and |
7 | WHEREAS, Approximately 63% of teen passenger deaths in the |
8 | United States occur while other teenagers are driving; and |
9 | WHEREAS, The presence of teen passengers increases the crash |
10 | risk of unsupervised teen drivers, and this risk increases with |
11 | the number of teen passengers; and |
12 | WHEREAS, The crash risk is particularly high during the first |
13 | year that teenagers are eligible to drive; and |
14 | WHEREAS, In Pennsylvania, in 2010, there were 98 teen driver |
15 | fatalities and in 2011, there were 29 deaths among 16 year-old |
16 | drivers, ten more than in 2010. In 2011 in Pennsylvania, drivers |
17 | under 21 years of age were involved in 31,489 traffic crashes |
18 | with 39.9% of those crashes involving a single vehicle running |
19 | off the road and hitting a fixed object, such as a tree or |
20 | guardrail; and |
21 | WHEREAS, Young drivers are the least experienced, and |
22 | therefore traffic crashes involving drivers 16 to 20 years of |
23 | age are most often the result of driver error, such as speed, |
24 | distraction and failure to observe driving regulations and |
25 | conditions; and |
26 | WHEREAS, It is necessary to explore effective ways to reduce |
27 | the crash risk for young drivers by focusing research and |
28 | outreach efforts on areas of teen driving that show the most |
29 | promise for improving safety; and |
30 | WHEREAS, The National Teen Driver Survey, developed with |
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1 | input from teenagers and administered by The Children's Hospital |
2 | of Philadelphia, demonstrates a nationwide need to increase |
3 | overall awareness about the safe use of electronic handheld |
4 | devices, the risks of nighttime and fatigued driving, the |
5 | importance of consistent seatbelt use and the practice of |
6 | gradually increasing driver privileges over time as a young |
7 | driver gains more experience under supervised conditions; and |
8 | WHEREAS, Nationally in 2009, 858 crash fatalities involving a |
9 | teen driver occurred in the fall, when teenagers in the first |
10 | months of the school year were faced with many decisions |
11 | involving driving, including whether to drive with peer |
12 | passengers and other distractions; and |
13 | WHEREAS, Recognizing the third week of October as "National |
14 | Teen Driver Safety Week" is expected to increase awareness of |
15 | these important issues among teenagers and adults in this |
16 | Commonwealth, as additional research is conducted to develop and |
17 | test effective interventions to boost teen driver safety; |
18 | therefore be it |
19 | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives recognize the |
20 | week of October 14 through 20, 2012, as "National Teen Driver |
21 | Safety Week" in Pennsylvania; and be it further |
22 | RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives: |
23 | (1) support the goals and ideals of "National Teen |
24 | Driver Safety Week," specifically to promote the theme of |
25 | "Share, Not Scare"; and |
26 | (2) encourage the people of Pennsylvania to observe the |
27 | week with appropriate activities that promote the practice of |
28 | safe driving among licensed teen drivers in this |
29 | Commonwealth. |
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