IMPORTANCE OF SUBCOMMITTEE'S WORK Speaking for the National Safety Council and the thousands of individuals and organizations throughout the United States who work with us in behalf of more safety for every man, woman, and child in the county, I want to begin by thanking this committee and you, Senator, for the highly beneficial visibility being given to traffic saftety under your dedicated and able leadership. We respect your objective as being a sincerely determined effort to arrive at a carefully considered and wisely conceived means of assisting in the reduction of traffic accidents, deaths and injuries. In the light of our own experience in this work, you can expect that well-meaning and publicspirited citizens may and undoubtedly will differ in good faith as to what course is best to follow under the circumstances. No matter, your stimulation of pubic discussion and informed focus on this critical and enormously complex problem, and at so high a level of influence, is worthy of the very highest commendation. As for the National Safety Council, we never stop being dissatisfied with the results of our efforts. In turn, we are dissatisfied with the inadequacies of State and local action in behalf of traffic safety. We are dissatisfied with the Federal effort in its appropriate role. We are dissatisfied with the pace of vehicle design improvement by industry and the attitude of the driving public toward automoblie safety equipment. We are dissatisfied with the lack of public understanding of the nature of good driving. We are dissatisfied with the tempo of highway improvement and especially the size of the spot improvement program in Federal, State, and local budgets. We are dissatisfied with the size and quality of the research effort in highway safety and the current status of accident statistics. We are dissatisfied with the strength and effectiveness of the traffic safety community and the reluctance of the private sector of our economy to see to it that traffic safety receives the local financial support it needs. We are not unmindful, or ungrateful, for what has been done and is being done in support of traffic safety, but we are so sure of what could be accomplished with a maximum effort in every area of responsibility that we cannot help being dissatisfied with less. So, with your permission, I would like to place most of our emphasis on the kinds of things that can and should be done rather than taking up your time with what has already been done. As a background to the recommendations we feel should be made, may we submit as appendix 81 a description of the National Safety Council, its congressional charter, and the scope of its operations. As appendix 82 we submit a statement of the traffic safety problem as we see it today. (Appendixes Nos. 81 and 82 follow :) EXHIBIT 81 THE NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCIL The National Safety Council is a voluntary, noncommercial, nonprofit association-the organizing framework of the safety movement in America. The purpose of the council is to reduce the number and severity of accidents. MEMBERSHIP ORGANIZATION The council is chartered as a public service organization by the Congress of the United States, but is completely nonpolitical. It receives no money from city, State, or Federal Government, except through membership dues, purchases of materials and payment for services the same as any private organization pays. The council is governed by its board of directors, a large group of men and women fully representative of the Nation in its social, economic, and geographical composition. The council's trustees are men and women of the highest stature in business and public life. Their responsibility is to conduct solicitation for funds from private and public sources. The council functions through many conferences, sections, and committees, whose members formulate and direct the specific council program activities necessary to discover the underlying causes of accidents and to determine and apply the most effective measures of control. The organization of the council and Federal Government representation is shown in the attached chart. NSC membership is comprised of organizations, companies, and individuals interested in safety. These include industrial, transportation, and insurance companies; schools; local safety councils; trade and labor organizations; farm and civic organizations; and departments of local and National Government. Over 9,000 members are included in these groups from the United States, Canada, and many foreign countries. Local and State safety organizations altogether number about 400-including full-time staff organizations in states and major cities, and volunteer organizations in smaller communities. All are autonomous organizations, but those affiliated with the council must adhere to approved general operating policies. The council's nationwide activities are carried on by a volunteer army of more than 3,000 men and women, who serve without pay as council officers and committeemen, because of their interest in safety. In addition, there are thousands of volunteers engaged in local council work. NSC staff members work as a team with the council's volunteer officers, directors, and members of the various conferences and committees to develop and maintain accident prevention material and programs in specific areas of safety. Those areas include industrial, traffic, home, and public. There are also volunteer staff teams in such areas as public information, publications, membership extension, and field organization. Council headquarters facilities include the largest safety library in the world. SERVICES The National Safety Council serves as a national and international clearinghouse to gather and distribute information about causes of all accidents and way to prevent them. Through its headquarters and regional offices and its affiliated State and local units, it stimulates continuous and coordinated accident prevention programs. In cooperation with other organizations, and Government at all levels, it stimulates interest in safety in all fields. Safety information comes from its members, from Government agencies, from research conducted by universities, from professional groups, and from other sources. Its own staff of statistical, educational, and engineering technicians collects and correlates this information enabling it to define accident problems and to prepare or advise on solutions. This information is published in NSC's many periodicals, pamphlets, booklets, posters, and other educational materials. It offers a complete occupational accident prevention plan, applicable to any industry or organization. The council also issues awards for outstanding work safety achievements made by entire companies or plants, commercial vehicle drivers and others. The council does not manufacture, sell, or approve any safety equipment. Neither does it inspect factories nor write insurance. The council publishes eight nationally distributed magazines with a total circulation of about 2,500,000. They are: National Safety News: A general safety magazine devoted largely to occupational safety. Traffic Safety: Addressed to organizations and leaders in organized traffic work. This magazine has a quarterly supplement, "Research Review." The Industrial Supervisor: Written and edited for foremen in business and industry. School Safety: For elementary school teachers. Safe Worker: For employees in business and industry. Safe Driver: For drivers of industrial and commercial fleets. Family Safety: For home and family. Its contents touch on all aspects of off-the-job safety. Farm Safety Review: For organizations working with the NSC in nationwide farm safety programs. These publications are produced by the council's staff of writers, editors, artists, engineers, and other safety specialists, with the advice and help of members, committeemen, and recognized authorities on the subjects covered. Newsletters, safety poster designs, safety calendars, school lesson units, and safety films are just a few of the other materials published and distributed by the council. FINANCING The direct services that the council provides its members are paid for in membership dues and sales of publications. Industry, business, and individuals contribute funds for activities that are not self-supporting, such as setting up and servicing accident prevention organizations on all levels, and for public service in the fields of traffic, school, home, and farm. In 1964 the National Safety Council's income totaled $6,375,000 with the sources divided as follows: CHARTER, CONSTITUTION, and BY-LAWS of the NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCIL Headquarters Office 425 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611 Organizational History of the NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCIL The National Safety Council was founded September 24, 1913. It operated as an unincorporated association until October 1, 1930, when it was incorporated in the State of Illinois. On August 13, 1953, an Act of Congress created the National Safety Council as a body corporate under federal law. On December 15, 1953, the Illinois corporation voted to transfer its assets, liabilities, members, trustees, officers, employees, and all activities to the federal corporation. The federal incorporators, at a meeting on December 15, 1953, accepted the transfer, effective January 1, 1954, and adopted a Constitution and By-Laws for the new corporation, which were in conformity with the provisions of the federal Act and were substantially similar to the Constitution and By-Laws of the Illinois corporation, which was legally dissolved in January, 1954. In this booklet are printed: (1) the Federal Incorporation Act; (2) the Constitution and By-Laws, with revisions to October 27, 1964. 1083 |