60534 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 195 / Friday, October 8, 2004 / Rules and Regulations 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 91

[Docket No. FAA–2004–19316; Special 

Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) No.

65–1] 

RIN 2120–AI46

Prohibition Against Certain Flights 

Between the United States and Libya

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Final rule; removal.

SUMMARY: This action removes Special 

Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) No. 

65–1. SFAR 65–1 prohibits, with certain 

exceptions, the takeoff from, landing in, 

or overflight of the territory of the 

United States by an aircraft on a flight 

to or from the territory of Libya. In 

addition, SFAR 65–1 prohibits the 

landing in, takeoff from, or overflight of 

the territory of the United States by any 

aircraft on a flight from or to any 

intermediate destination, if the flight’s 

origin or ultimate destination is Libya. 

The FAA is removing SFAR 65–1 in 

response to the decision by the 

President of the United States to revoke 

Executive Order 12801, which serves as 

the basis for SFAR 65–1. This final rule 

informs the public that the restrictions 

on flights between the United States and 

Libya, which are contained in SFAR 65–

1, are removed.

DATES: Effective October 8, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

David Catey, Air Transportation 

Division, Flight Standards Service, 

Federal Aviation Administration, 800 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20591. Telephone: 

(202) 267–3732 or 267–8166.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Availability of Rulemaking Documents 

You can get an electronic copy using 

the Internet by: (1) Searching the 

Department of Transportation’s 

electronic Docket Management System 

(DMS) Web page (http://dms.dot.gov/

search); (2) Visiting the Office of 

Rulemaking’s Web page at http://

www.faa.gov/avr/arm/index.cfm; or (3) 

Accessing the Government Printing 

Office’s Web page at http://

www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/

aces140.html.

You can also get a copy by submitting 

a request to the Federal Aviation 

Administration, Office of Rulemaking, 

ARM–1, 800 Independence Avenue 

SW., Washington, DC 20591, or by 

calling (202) 267–9680. Make sure to 

identify the amendment number or 

docket number of this rulemaking. 

Anyone is able to search the 

electronic form of all comments 

received into any of our dockets by the 

name of the individual submitting the 

comment (or signing the comment, if 

submitted on behalf of an association, 

business, labor union, etc.). You may 

review DOT’s complete Privacy Act 

statement in the Federal Register

published on April 11, 2000 (Volume 

65, Number 70; Pages 19477–78) or you 

may visit http://dms.dot.gov.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 

Fairness Act 

The Small Business Regulatory 

Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) of 

1996 requires FAA to comply with 

small entity requests for information or 

advice about compliance with statutes 

and regulations within its jurisdiction. If 

you are a small entity and you have a 

question regarding this document, you 

may contact your local FAA official, or 

the person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. You can find out 

more about SBREFA on the Internet at 

http://www.faa.gov/avr/arm/sbrefa.htm,

or by e-mailing us at -AWASBREFA@faa.gov.

Background 

The United States Government has 

taken several actions to restrict air 

transportation between the United 

States and Libya. On January 7, 1986, 

the President issued Executive Order 

12543, which prohibits ‘‘[a]ny 

transaction by a United States person 

relating to transportation to or from 

Libya * * * or the sale in the United 

States by any person holding authority 

under the Federal Aviation Act of any 

transportation by air which includes 

any stop in Libya.’’ On January 30, 1986, 

the Secretary of Transportation 

implemented Executive Order 12543 by 

issuing Order 86–2–23, which amended 

all Department of Transportation (DOT) 

certificates issued under section 401 of 

the former Federal Aviation Act, all 

permits issued under section 402 of the 

Act, and all exemptions from sections 

401 and 402 accordingly. 

The President later issued Executive 

Order 12801 on April 15, 1992. Section 

1 of Executive Order 12801 prohibits:

the granting of permission to any aircraft to 

take off from, land in, or overfly the United 

States, if the aircraft, as part of the same 

flight or a continuation of that flight, is 

destined to land in or has taken off from the 

territory of Libya ***.

Executive Order 12801 cited the 

President’s authority under the 

International Emergency Economic 

Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), the 

National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 

1601 et seq.), section 1114 of the Federal 

Aviation Act of 1958, as amended 

(formerly codified at 49 U.S.C. app. 

1514, now recodified at 49 U.S.C. 

40106), and section 301 of Title 3, 

United States Code (3 U.S.C. 301). 

Pursuant to Executive Order 12801, 

the FAA adopted SFAR 65 on April 16, 

1992. SFAR 65 prohibited the takeoff 

from, landing in, or overflight of the 

territory of the United States by an 

aircraft on a flight to or from the 

territory of Libya. SFAR 65 also 

prohibited the landing in, takeoff from, 

or overflight of the territory of the 

United States by any aircraft on a flight 

from or to any intermediate destination, 

if the flight is destined to land in or take 

off from the territory of Libya. After 

SFAR 65 expired on April 16, 1993, the 

FAA reinstated the prohibition against 

certain flights between the United States 

and Libya by issuing SFAR 65–1 (60 FR 

48644). SFAR 65–1 became effective on 

September 20, 1995. 

On September 20, 2004, the President 

revoked Executive Orders 12543 and 

12801. With this action, the basis for the 

prohibitions in SFAR 65–1 no longer 

exists. Accordingly, the FAA is taking 

this action to remove the prohibitions 

imposed under SFAR 65–1. This action 

by the FAA has no effect on any other 

requirement or restriction concerning 

Libya that may have been imposed by 

another agency of the United States 

Government under that other agency’s 

authority. 

Justification for Immediate Adoption 

On the basis of the above, I am 

ordering the removal of SFAR 65–1. 

Because this action lifts a prohibition on 

certain flight operations between the 

United States and Libya, I find that 

notice and public comment under 5 

U.S.C. 533(b) are unnecessary and 

contrary to the public interest. Further, 

I find that good cause exists under 5 

U.S.C. 533(d) for making this rule 

effective immediately upon issuance.

Economic Assessment, Regulatory 

Flexibility Determination, Trade Impact 

Assessment, and Unfunded Mandates 

Assessment 

Proposed changes to Federal 

regulations must undergo several 

economic analyses. First, Executive 

Order 12866 directs each Federal agency 

to propose or adopt a regulation only 

upon a reasoned determination that the 

benefits of the intended regulation 

justify its costs. Second, the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act of 1980 requires agencies 

to analyze the economic impact of 

regulatory changes on small entities. 

Third, the Trade Agreements Act (19 

Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 195 / Friday, October 8, 2004 / Rules and Regulations 60535

U.S.C. 2531–2533) prohibits agencies 

from setting standards that create 

unnecessary obstacles to the foreign 

commerce of the United States. In 

developing U.S. standards, this Trade 

Act also requires agencies to consider 

international standards and, where 

appropriate, use them as the basis of 

U.S. standards. Fourth, the Unfunded 

Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Public 

Law 104–4) requires agencies to prepare 

a written assessment of the costs, 

benefits, and other effects of proposed 

or final rules that include a Federal 

mandate likely to result in the 

expenditure by State, local, or tribal 

governments, in the aggregate, or by the 

private sector, of $100 million or more 

annually (adjusted for inflation). 

If it is determined that the expected 

cost impact is so minimal that a 

proposal does not warrant a full 

evaluation, this order permits a 

statement to that effect and the basis for 

it be included in the preamble and full 

regulatory evaluation cost benefit 

evaluation not be prepared. 

Removing this SFAR is the result of 

the President’s decision to withdraw the 

Executive Orders that served as its basis, 

but does not immediately allow for 

flight operations between the United 

States and Libya. Certain restrictions on 

these operations remain effective 

through other government agencies, 

particularly the Department of 

Commerce. Removal of this SFAR may 

eventually lead to an environment 

where operations could be resumed, but 

the removal by itself does not enable 

these operations. For that reason, the 

FAA certifies that this action will not 

have a significant economic impact, and 

the costs and benefits of the rule are 

considered minimal under DOT 

Regulatory Policies and Procedures. 

Regulatory Flexibility Determination 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 

(RFA) establishes ‘‘as principle of 

regulatory issuance that agencies shall 

endeavor, consistent with the objective 

of the rule and of applicable statutes, to 

fit regulatory and informational 

requirements into the scale of the 

business, organizations, and 

governmental jurisdictions subject to 

regulation.’’ To achieve that principle, 

the RFA requires agencies to solicit and 

consider flexible regulatory proposals 

and to explain the rationale for their 

actions. The RFA covers a wide-range of 

small entities, including small 

businesses, not-for-profit organizations 

and small governmental jurisdictions. 

Agencies must perform a review to 

determine whether a proposed or final 

rule will have a significant economic 

impact on a substantial number of small 

entities. If the agency determines that it 

will, the agency must prepare a 

regulatory flexibility analysis as 

described in the RFA. 

However, if an agency determines that 

a proposed or final rule is not expected 

to have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 

entities, section 605(b) of the RFA 

provides that the head of the agency 

may so certify and a regulatory 

flexibility analysis is not required. The 

certification must include a statement 

providing the factual basis for this 

determination, and the reasoning should 

be clear. 

Removal of this SFAR is only a single 

step that may eventually lead to flight 

operations between the United States 

and Libya, but does not by itself provide 

for such operations. Consequently, the 

FAA certifies that the rule will not have 

a significant impact on a substantial 

number of small entities. 

Trade Impact Analysis 

The Trade Agreement Act of 1979 

prohibits Federal agencies from 

establishing any standards or engaging 

in related activities that create 

unnecessary obstacles to foreign 

commerce of the United States. 

Legitimate domestic objectives, such as 

safety, are not considered unnecessary 

obstacles. The statute also requires 

consideration of international standards 

and, where appropriate, that they be the 

basis for U.S. standards. The FAA has 

assessed the potential effect of this final 

rule and determined that it will have no 

impact on international trade. 

Unfunded Mandates Assessment 

The Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

of 1995 (the Act) is intended, among 

other things, to curb the practice of 

imposing unfunded Federal mandates 

on State, local, and tribal governments. 

Title II of the Act requires each Federal 

agency to prepare a written statement 

assessing the effects of any Federal 

mandate in a proposed or final agency 

rule that may result in an expenditure 

of $100 million or more (adjusted 

annually for inflation) in any one year 

by State, local, and tribal governments, 

in the aggregate, or by the private sector; 

such a mandate is deemed to be a 

‘‘significant regulatory action.’’ The 

FAA currently uses an inflationadjusted value of $120.7 million in lieu 

of $100 million. This final rule does not 

contain such a mandate. The 

requirements of Title II do not apply.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 91

Air traffic control, Aircraft, Airmen, 

Airports, Aviation safety, Freight, Libya.

The Amendment

■ For the reasons set forth above, the 

Federal Aviation Administration 

amends part 91 of Title 14 of the Code 

of Federal Regulations as follows:

PART 91—GENERAL OPERATING AND 

FLIGHT RULES

■ 1. The authority citation for part 91 

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 1155, 40103, 

40113, 40120, 44101, 44111, 44701, 44709, 

44711, 44712, 44715, 44716, 44717, 44722, 

46306, 46315, 46316, 46504, 46506–46507, 

47122, 47508, 47528–47531, articles 12 and 

29 of the Convention on International Civil 

Aviation (61 stat. 1180).

Special Federal Aviation Regulation 

No. 65–1—[Removed]

■ 2. Remove Special Federal Aviation 

Regulation No. 65–1—Prohibition 

Against Certain Flights Between the 

United States and Libya from part 91.

Issued in Washington, DC, on September 

27, 2004. 

Marion C. Blakey, 

Administrator.

[FR Doc. 04–22741 Filed 10–5–04; 2:57 pm] 

BILLING CODE 4910–13–P