Dear Governor / Mayor / Legislator:

I am the {TITLE} at {ORGANIZATION}, and I am writing to you on behalf of our {# OF EMPLOYEES, MEMBERS} to express my deepest thanks for the efforts that you and our local law enforcement have undertaken to step up enforcement of child passenger safety and seat belt laws in {STATE}. Over the Thanksgiving weekend (November 22-28), Operation ABC Mobilization: America Buckles Up Children, will again launch a coordinated, nationwide high visibility enforcement effort on drivers who don’t buckle up children. {ORGANIZATION} joins over 1,000 organizations nationwide that give their "Endorsement for Enforcement."

A recent survey by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) found that 19 million more Americans buckled up in 1998. If these Americans continue to use their seat belts, an estimated 1,500 lives could be saved each year.

Nationwide, since Operation ABC began in 1996, child restraint use in toddlers has increased 30 percent – now almost 90 percent of toddlers are restrained. In the same time period, the use of seat belts for children ages 5-15 has risen to almost 70 percent. We applaud you for your part in creating these successes and heartily encourage you to keep up the good work until every child is safely restrained. But much remains to be done.

Preserving the health and safety of {CITIZENS OF THE STATE OR LOCALITY} is a priority for {ORGANIZATION}. {Provide a brief explanation of any work you are doing to promote child passenger safety}. Crashes are the leading cause of death to American children, and six out of ten children killed in crashes are completely unrestrained. That’s why we are urging zero tolerance for unbuckled kids – and urge you to use every means at your disposal to get kids buckled up.

Studies consistently show that the best way to get children buckled up is to get adults buckled up. According to surveys by NHTSA, when a driver buckles up, children are buckled up 87 percent of the time. However, when a driver is unbuckled, child belt use drops to only 24 percent.

It is time as a nation that we thank our law enforcement officers and our elected officials for their unwavering dedication to establishing and enforcing seat belt laws – particularly those affecting children. We need to make unbuckled children unacceptable in {STATE} and the nation. On behalf of {ORGANIZATION}, we appreciate your leadership on this critical issue.

Sincerely,

{NAME}
{TITLE}