WA CPS Update
COMMUNITY EVENTS
Much has been happening around the State with child passenger safety. You continue to demonstrate your commitment to children in your community. My heartfelt appreciation comes with this message. A special thanks goes to those who have shared a recap of outreach efforts along with photos. I am excited to recognize your work and help others gain insight on approaches they can use. Check it out! https://wacarseats.com/community-events/
NATIONAL DIGITAL CHECK FORM (NDCF)
DATA: Quarterly seat check and distribution data is available from the raw data file. Yearly reporting is conducted on the clean data file and includes mis-use. https://wacarseats.com/car-seat-data/
TIMELY input of your seat checks is critical to gathering data and activity reports. Ensure your data is uploaded to the system regularly to meet the following:
| NDCF SEAT CHECKS | ALL DATA DUE TO SYSTEM |
| October, November, December | January 10th |
| January, February, March | April 10th |
| April, May, June | July 10th |
| July, August, September | October 10th |
ACCOUNT: Every CPS technician should have an account in the NDCF system. Create a user account at www.carseatcheckform.org and have a copy of your CPST certification card to submit. Each time you recertify, you will need to upload your certification card into the NDCF system.
TABLET VS HARD COPY: Many are utilizing a tablet for direct input into the system; while others prefer to use a hard copy then enter the data on your desktop. BOTH methods work and are acceptable. Free preprinted forms (English and Spanish) are now available at the state printer for order. Just set up an account and place your order at myprint.wa.gov. Let me know If you would like to share your car seat check services on www.wacarseats.com. By doing so, you may be issued a tablet for conducting seat checks.
NDCF Q&A SESSIONS: In case you missed the two Q&A sessions last quarter, the recordings are available at https://wacarseats.com/technicians-resources/.
SAFE TRAVEL FOR ALL CHILDREN (STAC):
Renee Witmer, CPST-I and Safe Travel for All Children (STAC) Instructor shared an overview for all technicians who have taken the enrichment training. No worries if you missed it. You can watch the extremely informative session at https://wacarseats.com/safe-travel-for-all-children-stac/.
LIFESAVERS CONFERENCE – SPEAKER PROPOSALS
Have you always wanted to present your project, research, countermeasure, or other roadway safety initiative at the Lifesavers Conference? Now is your chance!
Proposals are being accepted for the 2025 Conference workshops to be held March 9-11 in Long Beach, California.
Submit your proposal using the Lifesavers online portal.
Please note the following: Speaker proposals are limited to three submissions per person. The speaker proposal portal will close at midnight on Friday, August 16, 2024. NO speaker proposals will be accepted after this date.
CHILD PASSENGER SAFETY WEEK and SEAT CHECK SATURDAY
September 15-21, 2024: Child Passenger Safety Week
September 21, 2024: National Seat Check Saturday
Let us try our best to provide consistent messaging to help keep all children safe while traveling. There are ready made social media messages available at https://wacarseats.com/posters-graphics/
Many other items are available through NHTSA at Traffic Safety Marketing. Get Material Now
REMINDER: If you have an event planned to coincide with CPS week; take those pictures and provide me a brief description. I would like to share on our community events page.
JOB OPPORTUNITY (sharing on behalf of King County)
Please see our King County Department of Public Health’s Target Zero Traffic Safety Co-Manager position posted below. This posting will close on August 26th.
https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/kingcounty/jobs/newprint/4607085
BACK TO SCHOOL
Across the country, many children are headed back to school, and regardless of how they get there, we want them to get there safely.
Keep your community safe — use these resources to increase timely safety messaging across all platforms.
⇨ School Bus Safety
⇨ Pedestrian Safety
⇨ Bicycle Safety
⇨ Car Seat and Seat Belt Safety
On behalf of the NHTSA team, thanks for your proactive support of traffic safety.
HEATSTROKE AWARENESS
Thank you to everyone who helped share the messaging to prevent heatstroke back in May. Let’s be consistent and continue to bring awareness to this important topic. We have been experiencing some unusually warm weather which puts children and pets at risk. NEVER leave a child or pet unattended in a vehicle. Keep up the good work and share from
https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/safety-topics/child-safety/vehicular-heatstroke-prevention or Heatstroke or Heatstroke.
COMING SOON!
MINI-GRANT PROGRAM: I have been working on the mini-grant program for fiscal year 2025. There should be an announcement towards the end of August. I am very excited for the opportunity to support your local programs!
THE SAFEST RIDE: This program was very successful in past years so we are bringing it back. This will help us focus on ensuring children ride in the back seat and remain in boosters until its safe to use the seat belt.