Guide to Federal Records

Records of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration [NHTSA]


(Record Group 416)
1966-91

Overview of Records Locations

Table of Contents
  • 416.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY
  • 416.2 RECORDS OF THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION 1966-91
  • 416.2.1 General records
  • 416.2.2 Records of the Office of Chief Counsel
  • 416.2.3 Records of the Office of Driver and Pedestrian Programs
  • 416.2.4 Records of the Office of Public and Consumer Affairs
  • 416.2.5 Records of the Office of Standards Enforcement
  • 416.2.6 Records of the Office of Vehicle Research
  • 416.2.7 Records of the National Center for Statistics and Analysis
  • 416.3 RECORDS OF ADVISORY BODIES 1967-80
  • 416.4 MOTION PICTURES (GENERAL)
  • 416.5 SOUND RECORDINGS (GENERAL)
  • 416.6 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL) 1976
  • 416.7 MACHINE-READABLE RECORDS (GENERAL)
 416.1 ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY

Established: In the Department of Transportation (DOT) by the Highway Safety Act of 1970 (84 Stat. 1739), December 31, 1970.

Predecessor Agencies:

In the Office of the Under Secretary for Transportation, Department of Commerce:

  • National Traffic Safety Agency (NTSA, 1966-67)
  • National Highway Safety Agency (NHSA, 1966-67)

In the Department of Transportation:

  • NTSA, Federal Highway Administration (FHWA, 1967)
  • NHSA, FHWA (1967)
  • National Highway Safety Bureau (NHSB), FHWA (1967-70)
  • NHSB (1970)

Functions: Executes programs relating to the safety performance of motor vehicles and drivers and of related equipment. Fosters competition in the motor vehicle industry, establishes diagnostic inspection projects, administers the federal odometer law, and certifies the consistency of Environmental Protection Agency state grants with highway safety programs.

Related Records: Record copies of publications of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in RG 287, Publications of the U.S. Government. Records of the Bureau of Public Roads, RG 30.
General Records of the Department of Transportation, RG 398. Records of the Federal Highway Administration, RG 406.

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 416.2 RECORDS OF THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY
ADMINISTRATION
1966-91

History: NTSA and NHSA concurrently established in the Office of the Under Secretary for Transportation, Department of Commerce, by the Motor Vehicle Safety Act and the National Highway Safety Act (80 Stat. 718 and 80 Stat. 731), September 9, 1966. Transferred to the Department of Transportation and assigned to the newly established FHWA by the Department of Transportation Act, October 15, 1966, effective April 1, 1967. NTSA and NHSA consolidated to form NHSB, FHWA by EO 11357, June 6, 1967. NHSB designated an autonomous operating unit under the Department of Transportation, March 22, 1970. Abolished, with functions to NHTSA, 1970. SEE 416.1.

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416.2.1 General records

Textual Records: Subject files of the NHSB director, 1966-68. Records of the Executive Secretary including project files, 1967; organization and planning files, 1970-72; records relating to the traffic safety program, 1971; and correspondence, 1981-84. Microfilm copy of selected subject correspondence relating to motor vehicle safety standards, 1966-70 (13 rolls). Numbered files relating to fuel economy standards, 1974-82, with subject index. Docket files relating to vehicle safety standards, 1966-80 (188 ft.).

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416.2.2 Records of the Office of Chief Counsel

Textual Records: Subject files, 1970-78. Records relating to federal motor vehicle safety standards and regulations, 1979-83. Litigation case files relating to the display and availability of gas mileage guides, 1982.

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 416.2.3 Records of the Office of Driver and Pedestrian Programs

Motion Pictures (2 reels): Films used in the driver training program "Survival in the Traffic Jungle," 1971-85, including One Every Two Minutes: Driver Errors and Emergency Situations. SEE ALSO 416.4

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 416.2.4 Records of the Office of Public and Consumer Affairs

Motion Pictures (36 reels): Educational and promotional films, 1978-81, including public service announcements and road-handling and crash-impact tests of mini-cars.
SEE ALSO 416.4.

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 416.2.5 Records of the Office of Standards Enforcement

Textual Records: Investigatory files relating to federal motor vehicle safety standards enforcement, 1974-83.

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 416.2.6 Records of the Office of Vehicle Research

Textual Records: Records relating to the Voluntary Truck and Bus Fuel Economy Program, 1976-83, including historical files, newsletters, and publications.

Motion Pictures (2 reels): Double Nickel Challenge-Race to the Fuel Pump, 1979 (1 reel). Owner-Operator Fuel Conservation for Profit, 1981 (1 reel). SEE ALSO 416.4.

Sound Recordings (2 reels): Soundtrack to "Ease on Down the Road," 1981.

Slides (214 images): Voluntary Truck and Bus Fuel Economy Program presentation "Ease on Down the Road," 1981 (S).
SEE ALSO 64.6.

Posters (1 image): Voluntary Truck and Bus Fuel Economy Program poster "We're Saving Fuel How About You?," 1976 (VP).
SEE ALSO 64.6.

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 416.2.7 Records of the National Center for Statistics and Analysis

Machine-Readable Records (51 data sets): Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS), 1975-91, with supporting documentation.

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 416.3 RECORDS OF ADVISORY BODIES
1967-80

Textual Records: Minutes, with background correspondence and reports, of the National Motor Vehicle Safety Advisory Council (NMVSAC) and its component committees, 1967-73. Minutes and background materials of the National Highway Safety Advisory Committee (NHSAC) and its component committees, 1967-73. Technical committee and board files, 1971-80, including NMVSAC, NHSAC, Biomedical Advisory Committee, National Accident Sampling System, and Sole Source Review Board.

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 416.4 MOTION PICTURES (GENERAL)

SEE UNDER 416.2.3, 416.2.4, and 416.2.6.

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 416.5 SOUND RECORDINGS (GENERAL)

SEE UNDER 416.2.6

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 416.6 STILL PICTURES (GENERAL) 1976

SEE Slides UNDER 416.2.6
SEE Posters UNDER 416.2.6

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 416.7 MACHINE-READABLE RECORDS (GENERAL)

SEE UNDER 416.2.6

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Bibliographic note: Web version based on Guide to Federal Records in the National Archives of the United States. Compiled by Robert B. Matchette et al. Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration, 1995.
3 volumes, 2428 pages.

Ordering information

This Web version is updated from time to time to include records processed since 1995.


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