Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis

ACAA SNPRM

Accessible Kiosks and Web sites

Contract No.:

GS-10F-0269K

Order No.:

DTOS59-09-F-10094

Project No.:

1030-000

Submitted To:

Office of the Assistant General Counsel

Aviation Enforcement and Proceedings

U.S. Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE

West Building

Washington, DC 20590-0001

Submitted By:

Econometrica, Inc.

4416 East-West Highway

Suite 215

Bethesda, Maryland 20814

August 30, 2011
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis 1030-000/DTOS59-09-F-10094

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Econometrica, Inc. August 30, 2011

Table of Contents

Introduction and Summary ......................................................................................................... 1

1. Need for the Proposed Requirements ................................................................................... 3

2. Objectives and Legal Basis for the Proposed Rule .............................................................. 4

3. Types and Numbers of Potentially Affected Small Entities................................................ 5

3.1. Small U.S. Air Carriers....................................................................................................... 5

3.2. Airports............................................................................................................................... 6

3.3. Travel Agencies and Tour Operators.................................................................................. 7

4. Nature and Impact of Proposed Requirements on Small Entities ..................................... 8

5. Other Applicable Federal Regulations.................................................................................. 9
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List of Tables

Table 1 - Accessibility Testing of Carrier Web Site Home Pages.................................................. 4

Table 2 - Number of U.S. Carriers by Size Class, 2009 ................................................................. 6

Table 3 - Passenger Enplanements by Size of Airport, 2009 ......................................................... 7

Table 4 - Travel Agencies and Tour Operators, 2007 .................................................................... 7
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Introduction and Summary

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) is issuing a Supplemental Notice of Proposed 

Rulemaking (SNPRM) to ensure that automated airport kiosks and air travel Web sites are 

accessible to disabled air travelers. Carriers and airports (in the case of shared-use kiosks) would 

be required to begin ordering and installing accessible kiosks that comply with the technical 

standards set forth in the proposed rule.1 The primary Web sites of U.S. carriers and those of 

foreign carriers that market air transportation to the general public in the U.S. would be required 

to meet the Level A and AA criteria included in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines

(WCAG) 2.0 standards for Web site accessibility. U.S. carriers and foreign carriers would be 

required to ensure that the Web sites of large travel agencies and tour operators selling air 

transportation on their behalf also meet the proposed accessibility standard. They would not be 

required to ensure that the Web sites of small travel agencies and tour operators acting as their 

agents are accessible, but would be required to ensure that these small entities provide Webbased discounts and Web-based amenities upon request to individuals with disabilities who are 

cannot use their Web sites due to their disability.

The Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended, requires Federal agencies to conduct a 

separate analysis of the economic impact of rules on small entities. The Regulatory Flexibility 

Act requires that Federal agencies take the particular concerns of small entities into account 

when developing, writing, publicizing, promulgating, and enforcing regulations. To this end, the 

Act requires that agencies detail how they have met these concerns by including a Regulatory 

Flexibility Analysis (RFA). An initial RFA, which accompanies an NPRM or SNPRM, must 

include the following five elements:

1. A description of the reasons why action by the Agency is being considered.

2. A succinct statement of the objectives of, and legal basis for, the proposed rule.

3. A description of, and, where feasible, an estimate of the number of small entities to which 

the proposed rule would apply.

4. A description of the proposed reporting, recordkeeping, and other compliance 

requirements of the proposed rule, including an estimate of the classes of small entities 

that would be subject to the requirements and the type of professional skills necessary for

preparing the report or record.

5. Identification, to the extent practicable, of all Federal rules that may duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with the proposed rule.

In this Initial RFA, we provide the information on each of these five elements:

 1 Throughout this analysis, the term “kiosk” is specifically used to refer to an automated self-service transaction 

machine that is owned, operated, or leased by U.S. and foreign air carriers at a U.S. airport on either a proprietary or 

shared-use basis to enable customers to independently obtain flight-related services. The proposed requirements in 

the accompanying SNPRM would not apply to other types of electronic kiosks located in airports (e.g., ATMs, 

traveler information displays, vending machines).
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1. In Section 1, we describe the current obstacles faced by travelers with disabilities who 

wish to use automated airport kiosks or air travel Web sites and summarize results from 

our review of the accessibility characteristics of U.S. and foreign carrier Web sites.

2. Under the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA), the Department is obligated to take 

affirmative action to ensure that travelers with disabilities are provided equal access to air 

transportation services. Section 2 describes the ways in which the proposed requirements 

would help to meet this obligation.

3. Section 3 provides information on the types and numbers of small U.S. carriers, airports, 

travel agencies, and tour operators that would need to comply with the proposed 

accessibility requirements for kiosks or Web sites.

4. Small carriers that currently own, lease, or operate proprietary or shared-use automated

kiosks would be responsible for the purchase, installation, operation, and maintenance of 

accessible kiosks after the effective date of the rule. A shared-use automated kiosk is a 

self-service transaction machine provided by an airport, a carrier, or an independent 

service provider with which any carrier having a compliant data set can collaborate to 

enable its customers to independently access the flight-related services it offers. Small 

carriers and small airports would also need to enter into agreements which delineate 

responsibilities for ensuring that shared-use kiosks ordered for each location in an airport 

comply with the proposed accessibility standard for automated kiosks. In some instances,

these entities would be responsible for the purchase, installation, operation, and 

maintenance of accessible kiosks. Small U.S. carriers that market air transportation to the 

general public would also need to comply with the proposed Web site accessibility 

requirements. U.S. and foreign carriers would be responsible to ensure that small travel 

agencies and tour operators acting as their agents make discounted Web-based fares and 

other Web-based amenities available upon request to passengers who are unable to use 

their Web sites due to their disability. An expanded discussion of these requirements and 

the entities potentially affected by each of them is provided in Section 4.

5. In Section 5, we provide a brief summary of other applicable Federal standards and 

guidelines relating to self-service machines and Web sites that could potentially 

duplicate, overlap, or conflict with the proposed rule. It should be noted that the 

Department has coordinated, and continues to coordinate, the proposed technical 

standards for automated kiosks and air travel Web sites with the U.S. Access Board and 

the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to ensure that they will be consistent with other 

potentially relevant standards.
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1. Need for the Proposed Requirements

Kiosk Accessibility

Carriers and airport operators are not currently required to ensure that automated airport kiosks 

are accessible and usable by travelers with various types of disabilities. As noted in the 

preliminary regulatory impact analysis (RIA):

Use of airport kiosks typically reduces check-in waits and, in some cases, reduces 

the fees paid by passengers for checked baggage. However, current-generation 

kiosk systems pose significant obstacles to use by travelers with various types of 

disabilities. The installation configurations often make access by passengers in 

wheelchairs difficult or impossible. Typical automated kiosks also pose some 

specific challenges to air passengers with visual impairments, cognitive 

disabilities, or problems with motor skills.

At present, none of the estimated 11,000 automated kiosks in U.S. airports are accessible to 

persons with severe vision disabilities or to those in wheelchairs, although at least one vendor is 

currently marketing a demonstration version of an automated airport kiosk that has a variety of 

accessibility features.

Web Site Accessibility

Only one of the 12 reporting U.S. carriers that markets air transportation to the general public 

appears to have a specific option which converts its default home page into a version adapted for 

screen readers and other technologies that make it more accessible for blind people and those 

with severe vision impairments. The current full versions of other carrier and ticket agent Web 

sites afford different degrees of accessibility for consumers with various types of disabilities.

We conducted an evaluation of carrier Web site accessibility characteristics in the course of 

developing the preliminary RIA. The following table summarizes the number of programming 

issues found in various carrier Web site home pages, the number of different WCAG 2.0 

guidelines violated, and the number of issues identified that are specific to the degree of 

conformance (“Level AA”) that the Department is proposing to require:2

 2 This research included reviews of 6 small carrier Web sites and 11 very small carrier Web sites. More information 

on the accessibility reviews conducted is available in the preliminary RIA Appendix.
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Table 1 - Accessibility Testing of Carrier Web Site Home Pages

Carrier Category

Average Number of Violations

(WCAG 2.0 A/AA Level)

Total 

Issues

Total 

Guidelines

AA Level 

Issues

Domestic

reporting carriers 80 11 12 

other large carriers (> 60 seat aircraft) 116 12 31 

small carriers (30-60 seat aircraft) 59 9 6 

very small carriers (only < 30 seat aircraft) 46 8 15 

Foreign carriers with > 1 million U.S. passengers/year 67 9 7 

carriers < 1 million U.S. passengers/year 78 9 20 

Source: Econometrica, Inc., site testing using Qompliance add-in on Firefox 3.6 browser, April-May 2011.

These results indicate that there is a broad spectrum of Web site programming issues that would 

need to be addressed to provide complete access to even the home page of carrier Web sites. This 

conclusion is equally applicable to the Web sites of both large and small U.S. carriers and to 

carriers based in foreign countries as well.

2. Objectives and Legal Basis for the Proposed Rule

The Department issued a final rule in 1990 implementing the 1986 Air Carrier Access Act 

(ACAA), which prohibits discrimination in the provision of airline service on the basis of 

disability. The regulations implementing the statute have been revised and extended on 

numerous occasions, most recently in a final rule published on May 13, 2008. In that rule, the 

Department indicated that it intended to issue a subsequent SNPRM that would address, among 

other issues, accessibility requirements for automated airport kiosks and air travel Web sites.

Kiosk Accessibility

The proposed accessibility requirements for automated airport kiosks will help to mitigate the 

physical barriers faced by travelers with mobility or fine motor skill disabilities, as well as make 

them usable by those with vision disabilities.

Carriers have previously been required to provide equivalent service to disabled passengers who 

cannot use automated airport kiosks under the ACAA (49 U.S.C. § 41705). The implementing 

regulations (14 CFR Part 382) would be amended to require carriers to ensure that all new orders 

for automated airport kiosks are for models that meet the proposed accessibility standard. Airport 

facilities are covered under 49 CFR Part 27, which stipulates that programs or activities that 

receive Federal financial assistance must not discriminate on the basis of disability. The 

Department is proposing to amend these requirements to refer explicitly to automated airport

kiosks as a specific type of airport facility under Part 27 that must meet the accessibility 

standard.
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Web Site Accessibility

The proposed accessibility requirements for air travel Web sites are primarily directed at 

addressing the need to provide those with vision disabilities with access to online information 

and services related to air travel. However, compliance with the WCAG 2.0 Level AA standards 

would improve the usability of carrier and ticket agent Web sites for those with a number of 

other types of disabilities as well.

The Department considers it a violation of the ACAA (49 U.S.C. § 41705), as well as an unfair 

and deceptive trade practice (49 U.S.C. § 41712), for carrier Web sites not to be accessible to 

individuals with disabilities. Further, the Department’s statutory authority under 49 U.S.C. 

§ 41712 to prohibit unfair and deceptive trade practices and unfair methods of competition 

applies not only to carriers but also to “ticket agents.” The Department considers the publication 

of Web sites by ticket agents that are not accessible to individuals with disabilities to be an unfair 

and deceptive practice. However, the Department is not proposing to require small ticket agents

to make their Web sites accessible under these statutes. Rather, the Department proposes to 

require U.S. and foreign carriers to ensure that the small entities acting as their agents provide

Web-based discounts and other Web-based amenities upon request to passengers with a 

disability who are unable to use their Web sites due to their disability.

3. Types and Numbers of Potentially Affected Small Entities

This section describes the types and numbers of small entities in each of the sectors that would 

be affected by the proposed requirements.

3.1. Small U.S. Air Carriers

Kiosk Accessibility

The proposed kiosk accessibility requirements would apply to all U.S. and foreign carriers that 

own, operate, or lease automated kiosks at U.S. airports. Small U.S. and foreign carriers with 

proprietary systems would need to ensure that all new orders for automated airport kiosks are for 

models that meet the proposed accessibility standard. Small carriers may also incur costs 

associated with the installation of shared-use kiosks in certain airport locations. 

However, based on a preliminary canvas of airport and carrier Web sites, it does not appear that 

any small U.S. carriers own, lease, or operate proprietary or shared-use automated airport kiosks

at present. 

Web Site Accessibility

The proposed Web site accessibility requirements would apply to all U.S. and foreign carriers 

that operate passenger service flights to and from destinations in the United States. There are as 

many as 12 small domestic carriers that provide passenger service using at least one aircraft with 

between 30 and 60 seats (but none larger than 60 seats). As many as 38 U.S. carriers providing 

passenger service exclusively with planes that have fewer than 30 seats would also be affected 

by these proposed requirements.
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Table 2 - Number of U.S. Carriers by Size Class, 2009

Group

Seat 

Criterion

Total in 

2009 T-100*

Charteronly**Scheduled 

Service

Contract 

Carriers Other

Small 30 - 60 12 0 12 6 6

Very Small < 30 38 10 28 1 27

*Excludes carriers that were no longer operating independently by the end of 2010.

**Six charters offered some scheduled service in 2009; all are very small Alaska or sightseeing tour carriers.

DOT defines small carriers based on the standard published in 14 CFR 399.73: 

For the purposes of the Department’s implementation of chapter 6 of title 5, 

United States Code (Regulatory Flexibility Act), a direct air carrier or foreign air 

carrier is a small business if it provides air transportation only with small aircraft 

as defined in §298.3 of this chapter (up to 60 seats/18,000 pound payload 

capacity).

Small foreign carriers that provide scheduled passenger service only with aircraft with fewer 

than 61 seats would also need to comply with these proposed requirements. It appears that only 

one foreign carrier operating scheduled passenger service to and from the United States with 

aircraft that have between 30 and 60 seats (but none larger than 60 seats) and four that provide 

scheduled or nonscheduled passenger service exclusively with planes that have fewer than 30 

seats.3

3.2. Airports

The Department proposal would require carriers and airports to enter into agreements specifying 

each party’s responsibilities for ensuring that all new orders for automated shared-use airport 

kiosks are for models that meet the proposed accessibility standard. These requirements would 

not apply to automated shared-use kiosks located in commercial airports that have fewer than 

10,000 passenger enplanements annually.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) categorizes airports based on the number of 

passengers departing annually (“enplanements”):

 3 Cite to “The Enhancing Airline Passenger Protections (EAPP) 2 Final RFA.”
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Table 3 - Passenger Enplanements by Size of Airport, 2009

Category

Minimum % or 

# of 

Passengers

# of 

Airports

Passengers 

(millions) % of Total

Average # of 

Passengers/ 

Airport 

Large Hub >1% of total 29 491.7 69.3% 17.0 million

Medium Hub >0.25% of total 37 138.0 19.4% 3.7 million

Small Hub >0.05% of total 69 56.7 8.0% 821,000

Non-Hub >10,000/year 250 22.9 3.2% 91,000

Other Commercial >2,500/year 180 0.9 0.1% 5,000

Total 565 710.1 100.0% 1.3 million

Source: BTS T-100 Segment Database, 2009.

Small Business Administration (SBA) size standards define privately-owned airports as small 

businesses if their annual revenues do not exceed $7 million. Publicly-owned airports are

categorized as small entities if they are owned by jurisdictions with fewer than 50,000

inhabitants. Of the 319 small hub and non-hub airports with more than 10,000 passenger 

enplanements in 2009, 54 met this classification, including 2 small hub airports (Burlington 

International Airport in Vermont and Sanford-Orlando International Airport in Florida).4

Based on a preliminary canvas of carrier and airport Web sites, it does not appear that any small 

airports own, lease, or operate shared-use automated kiosks at this time. However, one or more 

of these airport authorities may begin installing automated kiosks either before or after the 

effective date of the proposed rule.

3.3. Travel Agencies and Tour Operators

The proposed Web site accessibility requirements would not apply directly to small travel 

agencies and tour operators (collectively, “ticket agents”), but carriers would be required to 

ensure that these ticket agents make discounted Web-based fares and other Web-based amenities 

available upon request to passengers who are unable to use an agent’s Web site due to their 

disability.

The numbers of small firms in the travel agency and tour operator sectors have been estimated 

from 2007 Economic Census data, as follows:

Table 4 - Travel Agencies and Tour Operators, 2007

Total Firms

Online 

Sales

Capability

Offline 

Sales Only

Large 

Businesses 

(SBA 

Definition)

Small 

Businesses 

(SBA 

Definition

Travel Agencies 11,953 2,032 9,921 328 11,625

Tour Operators 2,814 478 2,336 94 2,720

Sources: Bureau of the Census, Economic Census, 2007; PhoCusWright, The Role and Value of the Global 

Distribution Systems in Travel Distribution, 2009.

 4 Although the majority of small U.S. airports are located in Alaska, few of the small Alaska airports are considered 

small entities because most are owned by the State Department of Transportation.
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The applicable SBA size standards designate travel agencies with no more than $3.5 million in 

annual revenues and tour operators with no more than $7.0 million as small businesses.

According to the 2007 Economic Census, there were 11,953 travel agencies operating for at least 

part of the year. The largest 220 of these had revenues in excess of $5 million. There were also 

216 firms with revenues in the $2.5-5 million range. Approximately one-half (108) of these firms 

could be expected to have had revenues that exceeded $3.5 million. All of these firms can be 

assumed to have online booking capability. A 2009 white paper on global distribution systems 

(GDSs) estimated that 2,032 travel agencies have online sales capability.5 Subtracting the 328 

large firms identified from the Census data, this means that carriers would have to ensure that an 

estimated 1,704 small travel agencies with online sales capability make discounted Web-based 

fares and other Web-based amenities available upon request to passengers who are unable to use 

the agent’s Web site due to their disability. Carriers would also have to ensure that as many as 

9,921 small travel agencies without online sales capability will make any discounted fares 

advertised on their Web sites and any other amenities that may be offered on these Web sites 

available upon request to passengers who are unable to use the travel agency’s site because of 

their disability.

The 2007 Economic Census estimates that there were 2,814 tour operators in business for at least 

part of the year. The largest 55 of these had revenues in excess of $10 million. There were also 

78 firms with estimated revenues in the $5-10 million range. Approximately one-half (39) of 

these firms could be expected to have had revenues that exceeded $7 million. All of these firms 

can be assumed to have online booking capability. The 2009 GDS white paper estimated that 

there were 478 tour operators which have online sales capability. Subtracting the 94 large firms 

identified from the Census data, this means that carriers would have to ensure that an estimated 

384 small tour operators with online sales capability make discounted Web-based fares and other

Web-based amenities available upon request to passengers who are unable to use the agent’s

Web site due to their disability. Carriers would also have to ensure that as many as 2,336 small 

tour operators without online sales capability will make any discounted fares advertised on their 

Web sites and any other amenities that may be offered on these Web sites available upon request 

to passengers who are unable to use the tour operator’s site because of their disability.

4. Nature and Impact of Proposed Requirements on Small Entities

Kiosk Accessibility

The Department proposal would require carriers and airports to enter into agreements specifying 

each party’s responsibilities for ensuring that all new orders for automated shared-use airport 

kiosks are for models that meet the proposed accessibility standard. Small carriers and small 

airport authorities would potentially need to develop and maintain records and reports in 

connection with executing and implementing these agreements and to verify that all new and 

replacement kiosk purchases comply with the applicable standards.

 5 PhoCusWright, The Role and Value of the Global Distribution Systems in Travel Distribution, 2009.
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As noted above, it does not appear that small carriers or airports currently own, lease or operate 

any automated kiosks. However, it is possible that some small carriers or airports may install 

new automated kiosks either before or after the effective date of the proposed rule. Small entities 

that do so would incur costs associated with purchasing, installing, and maintaining accessible 

automated kiosks. Input and comment on this issue is expressly solicited in the accompanying 

SNPRM.

Web Site Accessibility

Small carriers will incur direct, indirect, and opportunity costs for increasing Web site

accessibility. There are direct costs associated with programming and site redesign for greater 

accessibility, indirect costs related to program management and training, and potential 

opportunity costs in applying technical resources towards accessibility rather than other Webbased business strategies (e.g., social networking).

Small carriers already have to comply with a number of Web site requirements under current 

Department regulations. It is reasonable to expect that these carriers have staff members or 

contractors with the professional skills to meet the proposed requirements, since small carriers 

already use the services of programmers to publish and maintain their current Web sites. 

However, it is not clear that these employees or contractors have the specific expertise and 

professional skills that may be required to ensure that air travel Web sites would comply with the 

proposed accessibility requirements.

While the Department is not proposing to require carriers to ensure that their small ticket agents 

comply with the Web site accessibility requirements, carriers would be required to ensure that 

these agents make discounted Web-based fares and other Web-based amenities available upon 

request to passengers who are unable to use the agent’s Web site due to their disability. While 

the accompanying regulatory evaluation includes the costs to ticket agents from the proposed 

requirement for carriers to ensure that their agents make their Web sites accessible, it does not 

address any costs incurred by agents in providing Web-based amenities to passengers who 

cannot access their Web sites due to a disability. While a substantial number of small ticket 

agents would be affected indirectly by this requirement on carriers, the economic impact on such 

agents of providing this assistance is not likely to be significant. The Department is seeking 

public comment on this matter in the SNPRM with the intent of addressing the economic impact 

more specifically in the final rule.

5. Other Applicable Federal Regulations

The preliminary RFA provides a brief summary of the current regulatory standards and 

guidelines that are applicable to automatic self-service machines, such as automated kiosks, and 

Web sites. There are two sets of standards for kiosks other than those used for flight-related 

services at airports, each of which applies to different categories of affected entities: 

Section 707 of the ADA Accessibility Guidelines. Revised regulations for Titles II and III of the 

Americans with Disabilities (ADA) were published on September 15, 2010. Requirements for 

automatic teller machines (ATMs) and fare machines are provided in Section 707 of the 2004 
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ADA Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG), which are incorporated into both Title II and Title III 

of the 2010 Standards. While interactive transaction machines (ITMs), other than ATMs, are not 

covered by Section 707, the technical standard that the Department is proposing for automated

airport kiosks is based in large part on the Section 707 requirements.

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. The Access Board’s accessibility standards for electronic 

and information technology are compiled in its regulation implementing Section 508 of the 

Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The requirements in Part 1194.25 of Section 508 pertain to “self 

contained, closed products,” which include automated self-service machines such as kiosks. Part 

1194.22 of Section 508 covers Web-based Intranet and Internet information and applications. In 

2010, the Access Board issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) to 

solicit comment on revising or “refreshing” the current Section 508 standards. However, the 

timeframe for final publication of these revisions is uncertain at present. Elements of Section 508 

standards have been incorporated into the automated airport kiosk requirements proposed in the 

accompanying SNPRM. In addition, in the same ANPRM, the Access Board stated that it was 

giving consideration to harmonizing the section 508 Web site accessibility standard with the 

WCAG 2.0 accessibility standard and sought public comment on a specific technical approach to 

doing so. 

28 CFR Part 35 and 28 CFR Part 36 - ADA Title II and III Regulations. The Department of 

Justice also issued an ANPRM in 2010 seeking comment on requiring Web site accessibility for 

entities covered by ADA titles II and III. DOJ specifically requested comment on applying the 

WCAG 2.0 accessibility standard to the Web sites of covered entities and on an implementation 

schedule that would require full Web site accessibility after two years.

In developing the proposed requirements, the Department has worked to coordinate the 

accessibility standards for both automated kiosks and Web sites with the government agencies 

responsible for developing and enforcing the standards and guidelines that apply to entities 

outside the air transportation sector. This effort has included a series of meetings with the Access 

Board and Department of Justice; development of proposed kiosk accessibility standards based 

on existing requirements in Section 707 of the ADAAG and the applicable parts of Section 508; 

and consultation with both agencies concerning reliance on international consensus standards on 

Web site accessibility (WCAG 2.0) in the proposed requirements.