CPS WEEK PLANNER

SAMPLE PROCLAMATION:

WHEREAS, February 11-17, 2007, has been declared Child Passenger Safety Week; and

WHEREAS, February 11, 2007, has been declared [State or Community Name] National Seat Check Sunday; and

WHEREAS, All fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the United States territories have enacted laws requiring the use of child passenger safety systems; and

WHEREAS, In 2005, an average of five children ages 14 and younger were killed and 640 were injured in motor vehicle crashes every single day; and

WHEREAS, According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), while 98 percent of America's infants and 93 percent of children ages 1 to 3 are now regularly restrained, not enough children ages 4 through 7 are restrained properly for their size and age; and

WHEREAS, Only 10 to 20 percent of children ages 4 through 7 who should be using booster seats to protect them are actually in them, and this puts children at an unnecessary risk of being injured or killed in crashes because they are simply in the wrong restraint for their size; and

WHEREAS, According to a study by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), children ages 4 to 8 who use booster seats are 59 percent less likely to be injured in a car crash than children who are restrained only by a seat belt; and

WHEREAS, The 4 Steps for Kids start at birth, with rear-facing child safety seats, a forward-facing child safety seat (when at least 20 pounds), a forward-facing booster seat (when at least 40 pounds) and finally an adult seat belt (when at least 4'9” tall); and

WHEREAS, The safest place for all children up to age 13 is in the back seat; and

WHEREAS, Child Passenger Safety Week [and National Seat Check Sunday] provides communities and organizations an opportunity to join together through public information, education and enforcement efforts to work toward increasing the correct use of safety seats and booster seats by focusing public attention on the lifesaving benefits that will help to significantly reduce death and serious injury to children in [State or Community Name]:

NOW, THEREFORE, I, [GOVERNOR or MAYOR'S NAME], [GOVERNOR/MAYOR] OF [STATE or COMMUNITY NAME], do hereby proclaim February 11-17, 2007 as

Child Passenger Safety Week

And Sunday, February 11, 2007 as

[State or Community Name] National Seat Check Sunday