B -- Dissemination of Survey Databases and Findings

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) intends to negotiate a cost-reimbursement contract with Schulman, Ronca & Bucuvalas, Inc (SRBI) for the services to prepare existing Motor Vehicle Occupant Safety Survey (MVOSS) databases for use by the public through NHTSA's Web site, and to provide NHTSA in report-form a summary of the findings over time from NHTSA Buckle Up America telephone surveys. The Motor Vehicle Occupant Safety Survey (MVOSS) is a national telephone survey conducted for NHTSA approximately every two years. The survey began in Fall 1994. Subsequent administrations of the survey occurred at the end of calendar years 1996, 1998, and 2000. The most recent MVOSS was in the field the first quarter of calendar year 2003. The MVOSS is primarily a detailed survey of attitudes, knowledge, and self-reported behavior in areas of occupant protection. It is composed of two questionnaires, one of which focuses on safety belts and the other on child restraint use. However, the MVOSS also contains modules on air bags, speeding, alcohol use, EMS, and crash injury experience. Modules initially found on the MVOSS, but since discontinued, include pedestrian safety and motorcyclist issues. The two MVOSS questionnaires are administered to independent probability samples of randomly selected persons age 16 and older, with over-sampling of persons ages 16 through 39. The sample size was approximately 4,000 respondents per questionnaire for the 1994, 1996, and 1998 surveys. After 1998, the sample size was increased to approximately 6,000 respondents per questionnaire. The large sample size, large number of questions, and complexity of questionnaire design make the MVOSS the most comprehensive source of telephone survey data in the occupant protection field. Wide-ranging summary reports have been published following each administration of the survey. However, to date, direct public access to the data is severely limited. Increasingly, requests are being received by NHTSA for access. While some data files for the 2000 MVOSS have been sent to parties requesting the data, this has been an inefficient manner of making the data available. There is a need for NHTSA to provide an efficient mechanism by which researchers, safety professionals, and other interested members of the public can access MVOSS data. This would not only provide a service to the public but would also benefit NHTSA as far greater analyses of data would occur, and far more results having implications for design of traffic safety programs would be published. Besides the MVOSS, NHTSA has been conducting national telephone surveys to assess penetration of enforcement messages during national safety belt mobilizations. The mobilizations began during 1998 under the Buckle Up America Campaign and have been conducted twice a year since then (in May and November). NHTSA-sponsored national telephone surveys have been conducted prior to, and immediately following, almost all of the mobilizations. Each pre- and post mobilization survey wave was administered to a national probability sample of approximately 1200 randomly selected persons age 16 and older (independent Regional and State samples were also interviewed during some of the mobilizations). The survey included questions asking about belt use, perceptions of enforcement, and awareness of media messages. The BUA surveys were largely established to assist the agency in its strategic decision-making for future Buckle Up America activity. Therefore, summary reports of the findings, although submitted to NHTSA by the Contractor after each mobilization, were not published. In recent years, data from the mobilization surveys have been included in published reports summarizing the results of Click It or Ticket Campaigns. Yet there remains no comprehensive documentation of the results of the BUA surveys that is available for view by the public. Both NHTSA and the public would benefit by issuance of a report that presents an historical accounting of how well the national BUA and Click It or Ticket campaigns penetrated public awareness and affected perceptions of enforcement. The objectives of this procurement are to: (1) Prepare all the existing MVOSS databases (1994 through 2003) for use by the public. This shall include developing support documentation and constructing banners for results of high interest. The Contractor also shall work with NHTSA in developing the public access mechanism on NHTSA's Web page. This includes making all data and information files compatible for use through the public access mechanism, and testing the system once NHTSA has set it up. (2) Prepare a report that provides the results from all the national BUA survey waves conducted since 1998, as well as selected Regional surveys corresponding with Regional Click It or Ticket campaigns. The report shall include information pertaining to the level of program activity during each mobilization. Interested firms should identify their capability to provide the necessary services as described above. The written response must include detailed information relating to the specific services being requested. Expressions of interest without sufficient detail to permit evaluation of one's ability to provide the necessary services will not be considered. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations nor is a Request-for-Quotations solicitation document currently available. A determination by the Government not to compete this action based upon responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. Information received will be considered solely for the purpose of determining whether to conduct a competitive acquisition. In the absence of responses from interested firms demonstrating their capability, NHTSA intends to request a quotation from Schulman, Ronca & Bucuvalas, Inc. on a noncompetitive basis for the work described. Responses must be received by the listed procuring office within 15 days from the date of publication of this notice. A period of performance of 12 months is contemplated for this procurement. Electronic copies of the RFP and any other documents related to this procurement will be available over the Internet. These documents will reside on a World Wide Web (WWW) server, which may be accessed using a WWW browser application. The Internet site or URL for the FedBizOpps page is www.fedbizopps.gov or the GSA Electronic Posting Service (EPS) at http://www.eps.gov. It is the Offeror's responsibility to monitor the Internet sites for the release of the solicitation and amendments (if any). Potential Offerors will be responsible for downloading their own copy of the solicitation and amendments (if any). Requests for paper copies of the RFP will not be accepted. Estimated date for release of solicitation is on or about July 23, 2004.