II

104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION S. 1801

To amend title 49, United States Code, to authorize appropriations for

the Federal Aviation Administration for fiscal year 1997, to reform

the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MAY 23, 1996

Mr. MCCAIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

A BILL

To amend title 49, United States Code, to authorize appropriations for the Federal Aviation Administration for

fiscal year 1997, to reform the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Omnibus Aviation Act of 1996’’.

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for

7 this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Definitions.
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TITLE I—FEDERAL AVIATION AUTHORIZATION

PART I—AUTHORIZATIONS

Sec. 101. Short title.

Sec. 102. Amendments to title 49, United States Code.

Sec. 103. Federal Aviation Administration operations.

Sec. 104. Air navigation facilities.

Sec. 105. Research and development.

Sec. 106. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning

and programs.

PART II—AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM MODIFICATIONS

Sec. 121. Definitions; pavement maintenance.

Sec. 122. Military airport program.

Sec. 123. State block grant program.

Sec. 124. Use of noise set-aside funds by non-airport sponsors.

PART III—EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND

EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY

Sec. 131. Expenditures from Airport and Airway Trust fund.

PART IV—COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSPORTATION

Sec. 141. Conforming amendments.

Sec. 142. Amendments to findings and purposes.

Sec. 143. Definitions.

Sec. 144. General authority.

Sec. 145. Restrictions on launches, reentries, and operations.

Sec. 146. License applications and requirements.

Sec. 147. Monitoring activities.

Sec. 148. Prohibition, suspension, and end of launches; operations of launch or

reentry sites; reentries.

Sec. 149. Preemption of scheduled launches.

Sec. 150. Administrative hearings and judicial review.

Sec. 151. Acquiring United States Government property and services.

Sec. 152. Liability insurance and financial responsibility requirements.

Sec. 153. Paying claims exceeding liability insurance and financial responsibility requirements.

Sec. 154. Enforcement and penalty.

Sec. 155. Relationship to other executive agencies, laws, and international obligations.

Sec. 156. License applications.

Sec. 157. Nonapplication.

Sec. 158. User fees.

PART V—AVIATION INSURANCE PROGRAM

Sec. 161. Extension of program.

Sec. 162. Technical amendment.

Sec. 163. Presidential determination.

Sec. 164. Premiums and limitations on coverage and claims.

Sec. 165. Revolving fund.
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PART VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

Sec. 171. Housing.

Sec. 172. Discretionary authority for criminal history records checks.

Sec. 173. Protection of voluntarily provided information.

TITLE II—AIRPORT REVENUE PROTECTION

Sec. 201. Short title.

Sec. 202. Findings; purpose.

Sec. 203. Definitions.

Sec. 204. Restriction on use of airport revenues.

Sec. 205. Regulations; audits and accountability.

Sec. 206. Elimination of certain exceptions.

Sec. 207. Whistleblower protection and payments.

Sec. 208. Qui tam actions.

Sec. 209. Conforming amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

TITLE III—AIR TRAFFIC MANAGEMENT SYSTEM PERFORMANCE

IMPROVEMENT

PART I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 301. Short title.

Sec. 302. Findings.

Sec. 303. Purposes.

Sec. 304. Effective date.

Sec. 305. Regulation of civilian air transportation and related services by the

Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Transportation.

Sec. 306. Regulations.

Sec. 307. Personnel and services.

Sec. 308. Contracts.

Sec. 309. Budget.

Sec. 310. Facilities.

Sec. 311. Property.

Sec. 312. Select panel to review innovative funding mechanisms.

Sec. 313. Transfers of funds from other Federal agencies.

Sec. 314. Management advisory council.

Sec. 315. Aircraft engine standards.

Sec. 316. Rural air fare study.

PART II—FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION STREAMLINING PROGRAMS

Sec. 321. Innovative program for air traffic control modernization.

Sec. 322. Air traffic control modernization reviews.

Sec. 323. Innovative program for Federal Aviation Administration services.

Sec. 324. Conforming amendment.

PART III—SYSTEM TO FUND CERTAIN FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

FUNCTIONS

Sec. 331. Findings.

Sec. 332. Purposes.

Sec. 333. User fees for various Federal aviation administration services.

Sec. 334. User fees for air traffic control services.

Sec. 335. Administrative provisions.
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Sec. 336. Increase in spending caps under trust fund.

Sec. 337. Advance appropriations for Airport and Airway Trust Fund activities.

Sec. 338. Sense of the Senate.

Sec. 339. Rural Air Service Survival Act.

TITLE IV—PILOT RECORDS

Sec. 401. Short title.

Sec. 402. Employment investigations of pilot applicants.

Sec. 403. Study of minimum standards for pilot qualifications.

TITLE V—ABOLITION OF BOARD OF REVIEW AND RELATED

AUTHORITY

Sec. 501. Abolition of Board of Review and related authority.

Sec. 502. Sense of the Senate.

Sec. 503. Conforming amendments in other law.

Sec. 504. Definitions.

Sec. 505. Increase in number of Presidentially-appointed members of board.

Sec. 506. Reconstituted board to function without interruption.

Sec. 507. Status unaffected.

Sec. 508. Operational slots at National Airport.

TITLE VI—FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION FUNDING

Sec. 601. Sense of the Senate regarding the funding of the Federal aviation administration.

1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

2 For the purposes of this Act the following definitions

3 shall apply:

4 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—The term ‘‘Administra5 tion’’ means the Federal Aviation Administration.

6 (2) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis7 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal

8 Aviation Administration.

9 (3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

10 the Secretary of Transportation.
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1 TITLE I—FEDERAL AVIATION

2 AUTHORIZATION

3 PART I—AUTHORIZATIONS

4 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Aviation Au6 thorization Act of 1996’’.

7 SEC. 102. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES

8 CODE.

9 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in

10 this title an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms

11 of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other

12 provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to

13 a section or other provision of title 49, United States

14 Code.

15 SEC. 103. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION OPER16 ATIONS.

17 (a) Section 106 is amended—

18 (1) in subsection (k), by striking ‘‘the Adminis19 tration’’ and all that follows and inserting

20 ‘‘$4,920,000,000 for fiscal year 1997.’’; and

21 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub22 section:

23 ‘‘(l) INTERACCOUNT FLEXIBILITY.—(1) Except as

24 provided in paragraph (2), the Administrator may transfer

25 budget authority derived from trust funds among appro-
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1 priations authorized by subsection (k) and sections 48101

2 and 48102, if the aggregate estimated outlays in such ac3 counts in the fiscal year in which the transfers are made

4 will not be increased as a result of such transfer.

5 ‘‘(2) The transfer of budget authority under para6 graph (1) may be made only to the extent that outlays

7 do not exceed the aggregate estimated outlays.

8 ‘‘(3) A transfer of budget authority under paragraph

9 (1) may not result in a net decrease of more than 5 per10 cent, or a net increase of more than 10 percent, in the

11 budget authority available under any appropriation in12 volved in that transfer.

13 ‘‘(4) Any action taken pursuant to this section shall

14 be treated as a reprogramming of funds that is subject

15 to review by the appropriate committees of the Congress.’’.

16 (b) Section 48104(b) is amended—

17 (1) by striking ‘‘(b) LIMITATION FOR FISCAL

18 YEARS 1993’’ and inserting ‘‘(b) LIMITATION’’; and

19 (2) by striking ‘‘for fiscal year 1993’’.

20 (c) Section 48108 is amended by striking subsection

21 (c).

22 SEC. 104. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES.

23 Section 48101(a) is amended—

24 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at

25 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and
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1 (2) by adding at the end the following new

2 paragraph:

3 ‘‘(5) For the fiscal years ending September 30,

4 1991–1997, $17,918,000,000.’’.

5 SEC. 105. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

6 Section 48102(a) is amended by striking ‘‘title:’’ and

7 all that follows through the end of the subsection and in8 serting ‘‘title, for fiscal year 1997, $195,700,000.’’.

9 SEC. 106. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND

10 NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PRO11 GRAMS.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 48103 is amended—

13 (1) by striking ‘‘and $21,958,500,000’’ and in14 serting ‘‘$19,864,500,000 (which reflects the fiscal

15 year 1995 rescission of $2,094,000,000)’’; and

16 (2) by inserting ‘‘, and $21,664,500,000 for fis17 cal years ending before October 1, 1997’’ after ‘‘Oc18 tober 1, 1996’’.

19 (b) PROJECT GRANT AUTHORITY.—Section 47104(c)

20 is amended by striking ‘‘1996’’ and inserting ‘‘1997’’.

21 PART II—AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM

22 MODIFICATIONS

23 SEC. 121. DEFINITIONS; PAVEMENT MAINTENANCE.

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47102(3)—

25 (1) in subparagraph (A)—
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1 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’ after

2 ‘‘hazard;’’;

3 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period

4 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

5 (C) by adding at the end the following new

6 clause:

7 ‘‘(iii) maintaining runways under a

8 project sponsored by a State pursuant to

9 section 47132.’’;

10 (2) in subparagraph (E), by inserting ‘‘or under

11 section 40117’’ before the period at the end; and

12 (3) in subparagraph (F), by striking ‘‘paid for

13 by a grant under this subchapter and’’.

14 (b) PAVEMENT MAINTENANCE.—

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 471 of title 49 is

16 amended by adding the following section at the end

17 of subchapter I:

18 ‘‘§ 47132. Pavement maintenance

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed20 eral Aviation Administration shall prescribe regulations to

21 carry out a pavement maintenance pilot project to pre22 serve and extend the useful life of runways and taxiways

23 at airports for which apportionments are made under sec24 tion 47114(d). The regulations shall provide that the Ad25 ministrator may designate not more than 10 projects an-
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1 nually. The regulations shall provide criteria for the Ad2 ministrator to use in choosing the projects. Such criteria

3 shall include provisions for ensuring that the projects cho4 sen are from areas with different climates and soil types.

5 ‘‘(b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall be effec6 tive beginning on the date of enactment of the Omnibus

7 Aviation Act of 1996 and ending on September 30,

8 1999.’’.

9 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter

10 analysis for subchapter I of chapter 471 is amended

11 by inserting after the item relating to section 47131

12 the following new item:

‘‘47132. Pavement maintenance.’’.

13 (c) DEFINITION OF ELIGIBLE AIRPORT-RELATED

14 PROJECT.—Section 40117(a)(3) is amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘; and’’ at the end of subpara16 graph (E) and inserting a period by striking sub17 paragraph (F).

18 SEC. 122. MILITARY AIRPORT PROGRAM.

19 (a) SPECIAL APPORTIONMENT CATEGORIES.—Sec20 tion 47117(e)(1)(E) is amended by striking ‘‘and 1996’’

21 and inserting ‘‘1996, and 1997’’.

22 (b) PARKING LOTS, FUEL FARMS, AND UTILITIES.—

23 Subsection (f) of section 47118 is amended by striking

24 ‘‘the fiscal years ending September 30, 1993–1996,’’ and
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1 inserting ‘‘for fiscal years beginning after September 30,

2 1992,’’.

3 SEC. 123. STATE BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM.

4 Section 47128 is amended in subsection (d) by strik5 ing ‘‘1996’’ and inserting ‘‘1997’’.

6 SEC. 124. USE OF NOISE SET-ASIDE FUNDS BY NON-AIR7 PORT SPONSORS.

8 Section 47505 is amended by—

9 (1) redesignating subsection (b) as subsection

10 (c);

11 (2) in subsection (c), as so redesignated, by

12 striking ‘‘subsection (a) of’’; and

13 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the follow14 ing new subsection:

15 ‘‘(b) GRANTS TO NON-AIRPORT SPONSORS.—

16 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY.—The Secretary may make a

17 grant to a State or unit of local government for

18 preparation of a land use compatibility plan or im19 plementation of a land use compatibility project.

20 ‘‘(2) ELIGIBILITY.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible

22 to receive a grant under this subsection for a

23 land use compatibility plan or project, a State

24 or unit of local government may not be the
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1 owner or operator of the airport with which the

2 plan or project is associated.

3 ‘‘(B) PLANNING AUTHORITY.—In order to

4 be eligible to receive a grant under this sub5 section for a land use compatibility plan, a

6 State or unit of local government must have au7 thority to plan and adopt land use control

8 measures, including zoning, in the planning

9 area.

10 ‘‘(3) COORDINATION OF PLANNING ACTIVI11 TIES.—A land use compatibility plan prepared by a

12 State or unit of local government using amounts

13 from grants made available under this subsection

14 may not duplicate or be inconsistent with an airport

15 noise compatibility program prepared by an airport

16 operator under this chapter or with other planning

17 carried out by the airport. The State or unit of local

18 government shall consult with the owner or operator

19 of the airport with which the plan is associated re20 garding any recommended land use compatibility

21 measure identified in the plan and any aviation data

22 on which such recommendation is made.

23 ‘‘(4) APPROVAL OF AIRPORT OWNER OR OPERA24 TOR REQUIRED.—The Administrator may make a

25 grant to a State or unit of local government under
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1 this subsection for a land use compatibility plan or

2 project only after receiving the approval of the owner

3 or operator of the airport with which the plan or

4 project is associated. Such approval shall be based

5 on whether the plan or program, including the use

6 of any noise exposure contours on which land use

7 planning or projects are based, has been coordinated

8 with the airport and is consistent with airport oper9 ation and planning.

10 ‘‘(5) WRITTEN ASSURANCES.—The Adminis11 trator may make a grant to a State or unit of local

12 government under this subsection only after receiv13 ing from the State or unit of local government such

14 written assurances as the Administrator determines

15 to be necessary to achieve the purposes of this sub16 section.

17 ‘‘(6) GUIDELINES.—The Administrator may es18 tablish guidelines in carrying out this subsection.

19 ‘‘(7) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol20 lowing definitions apply:

21 ‘‘(A) COMPATIBLE LAND USE.—The term

22 ‘compatible land use’ means land use that is

23 normally compatible with—

24 ‘‘(i) the noise levels associated with an

25 airport, as established under this chapter;
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1 ‘‘(ii) airport design standards issued

2 by the Administrator; and

3 ‘‘(iii) regulations promulgated under

4 section 44718 of this title.

5 ‘‘(B) LAND USE COMPATIBILITY PLAN.—

6 The term ‘land use compatibility plan’ means

7 the product of a process to determine the ex8 tent, type, nature, location, and timing of meas9 ures to improve the compatibility of land use

10 with the existing forecast level of aviation activ11 ity at an airport.

12 ‘‘(C) LAND USE COMPATIBILITY

13 PROJECT.—The term ‘land use compatibility

14 project’ means a project that is contained in a

15 land use compatibility plan and determined by

16 the Administrator to enhance compatible land

17 use.’’.

18 PART III—EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND

19 AIRWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY

20 SEC. 131. EXPENDITURES FROM AIRPORT AND AIRWAY

21 TRUST FUND.

22 Section 9502(d)(1) of the Internal Revenue Code of

23 1986 (relating to expenditures from Airport and Airway

24 Trust Fund) is amended—
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1 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A),

2 by striking ‘‘1996’’ and inserting ‘‘1997’’; and

3 (2) in subparagraph (A) by inserting ‘‘or under

4 the Federal Aviation Authorization Act of 1996’’

5 after ‘‘Administration Authorization Act of 1994’’.

6 PART IV—COMMERCIAL SPACE

7 TRANSPORTATION

8 SEC. 141. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

9 The chapter analysis for chapter 701 is amended—

10 (1) by striking the item relating to section

11 70104 and inserting the following:

‘‘70104. Restrictions on launches, operations, and reentries.’’;

12 (2) by striking the item relating to section

13 70108 and inserting the following:

‘‘70108. Prohibition, suspension, and end of launches; operation of launch sites

and reentry sites; reentries.’’;

14 and

15 (3) by striking the item relating to section

16 70109 and inserting the following:

‘‘70109. Preemption of scheduled launches and reentries.’’.

17 SEC. 142. AMENDMENTS TO FINDINGS AND PURPOSES.

18 Section 70101 is amended—

19 (1) in subsection (a)—

20 (A) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘micro21 gravity research,’’ after ‘‘information services,’’;

22 (B) in paragraph (4)—
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1 (i) by inserting ‘‘commercial space

2 transportation services, including’’ after

3 ‘‘providing’’; and

4 (ii) by inserting a comma after ‘‘asso5 ciated services’’;

6 (C) in paragraph (5)—

7 (i) by inserting ‘‘commercial space

8 transportation, including’’ after ‘‘develop9 ment of’’; and

10 (ii) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehicles,’’

11 after ‘‘launch vehicles’’;

12 (D) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘and

13 reentry’’ after ‘‘launch’’;

14 (E) in paragraph (7), by inserting ‘‘, reen15 tries,’’ after ‘‘launches’’ each place that term

16 appears;

17 (F) in paragraph (8)—

18 (i) by inserting ‘‘, reentry sites,’’ after

19 ‘‘launch sites’’; and

20 (ii) by striking the comma after

21 ‘‘launch services’’ and inserting ‘‘and re22 entry services,’’; and

23 (G) in paragraph (9)—

24 (i) by inserting ‘‘reentry sites,’’ after

25 ‘‘launch sites,’’; and
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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and reentry site’’

2 after ‘‘launch site’’;

3 (2) in subsection (b)—

4 (A) in paragraph (2)—

5 (i) in the matter preceding clause

6 (i)—

7 (I) by inserting ‘‘commercial

8 space transportation services, includ9 ing’’ after ‘‘to provide’’;

10 (II) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehi11 cles,’’ after ‘‘launch vehicles’’; and

12 (III) by inserting a comma after

13 ‘‘associated services’’; and

14 (ii) in subparagraph (A), by striking

15 ‘‘commercial launch licenses’’ and inserting

16 ‘‘commercial licenses’’;

17 (3) in paragraph (3)—

18 (A) by inserting ‘‘and reentry’’ after ‘‘com19 mercial launch’’; and

20 (B) by striking ‘‘commercial launch li21 censes’’ and inserting ‘‘commercial licenses’’;

22 and

23 (4) in paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘and develop24 ment of reentry sites,’’ after ‘‘launch-site support fa25 cilities,’’.
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1 SEC. 143. DEFINITIONS.

2 Section 70102 is amended—

3 (1) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘, including

4 a reentry vehicle and its payload, if any’’ after ‘‘any

5 payload’’;

6 (2) in paragraph (8), by inserting ‘‘, including

7 a reentry vehicle and its payload, if any,’’ after ‘‘an

8 object’’;

9 (3) by redesignating paragraphs (10) through

10 (12) as paragraphs (14) through (16), respectively;

11 (4) by inserting after paragraph (9) the follow12 ing new paragraphs:

13 ‘‘(10) ‘reenter’ and ‘reentry’ mean to return or

14 attempt to return, purposefully, a reentry vehicle

15 and its payload, if any, from Earth orbit or outer

16 space to Earth.

17 ‘‘(11) ‘reentry services’ means—

18 (A) those activities involved in the prepara19 tion of a reentry vehicle and its payload, if any,

20 for reentry; and

21 (B) the conduct of a reentry.

22 ‘‘(12) ‘reentry site’ means the location on Earth

23 to which a reentry vehicle is intended to return (as

24 defined in a license the Secretary of Transportation

25 issues or transfers under this chapter).
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1 ‘‘(13) ‘reentry vehicle’ means a vehicle designed

2 to reenter from Earth orbit or outer space to Earth

3 substantially intact.’’; and

4 (5) in paragraph (15), as so redesignated, by

5 inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘launch’’ each place it

6 appears.

7 SEC. 144. GENERAL AUTHORITY.

8 Section 70103(b) is amended—

9 (1) by striking the subsection heading and in10 serting the following:

11 ‘‘(b) FACILITATING SPACE TRANSPORTATION.—’’;

12 and

13 (2) in paragraph (1)—

14 (A) by inserting ‘‘the provision of’’ after

15 ‘‘promote’’; and

16 (B) by striking ‘‘launches’’ and inserting

17 ‘‘transportation services’’.

18 SEC. 145. RESTRICTIONS ON LAUNCHES, REENTRIES, AND

19 OPERATIONS.

20 Section 70104 is amended—

21 (1) by striking the section heading and insert22 ing the following:

23 ‘‘§ 70104. Restrictions on launches, operations, and

24 reentries’’;

25 (2) in subsection (a)—
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1 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or re2 entry site or to reenter a reentry vehicle,’’ after

3 ‘‘operate a launch site’’ each place it appears;

4 and

5 (B) in paragraphs (3) and (4), by inserting

6 ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘over the launch or oper7 ation’’ each place it appears;

8 (3) in subsection (b)—

9 (A) by striking ‘‘launch license’’ and in10 serting ‘‘license’’;

11 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reenter’’ after ‘‘may

12 launch’’; and

13 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentering’’ after ‘‘re14 lated to launching’’; and

15 (4) in subsection (c)—

16 (A) by striking the subsection heading and

17 inserting the following:

18 ‘‘(c) PREVENTING LAUNCHES OR REEN19 TRIES.—’’; and

20 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘the

21 launch’’ each place that term appears.

22 SEC. 146. LICENSE APPLICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS.

23 Section 70105(b) is amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or reentry

2 site or the reentry of a reentry vehicle’’ after ‘‘oper3 ation of a launch site’’; and

4 (2) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ‘‘or re5 entry’’ after ‘‘or operation’’.

6 SEC. 147. MONITORING ACTIVITIES.

7 Section 70106(a) is amended—

8 (1) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site’’ after ‘‘at a

9 launch site’’; and

10 (2) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after ‘‘a

11 launch vehicle’’ each place that term appears.

12 SEC. 148. PROHIBITION, SUSPENSION, AND END OF

13 LAUNCHES; OPERATIONS OF LAUNCH OR RE14 ENTRY SITES; REENTRIES.

15 Section 70108 is amended—

16 (1) by striking the section heading and insert17 ing the following:

18 ‘‘§ 70108. Prohibition, suspension, and end of

19 launches; operation of launch or reentry

20 sites; reentries’’; and

21 (2) in subsection (a)—

22 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site, or re23 entry of a reentry vehicle,’’ after ‘‘operation of

24 a launch site’’; and
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘launch or operation’’ and

2 inserting ‘‘launch, reentry, or operation’’.

3 SEC. 149. PREEMPTION OF SCHEDULED LAUNCHES.

4 Section 70109 is amended—

5 (1) by striking the section heading and insert6 ing the following:

7 ‘‘§ 70109. Preemption of scheduled launches and re8 entries’’;

9 (2) in subsection (a)—

10 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘ensure

11 that a launch’’;

12 (B) by inserting ‘‘, reentry site,’’ after

13 ‘‘Government launch site’’;

14 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry date commit15 ment’’ after ‘‘launch date commitment’’;

16 (D) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘ob17 tained for a launch’’; and

18 (E) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘A

19 licensee or transferee preempted from access to

20 a reentry site shall not be required to pay the

21 Government agency responsible for the preemp22 tion any amount for reentry services attrib23 utable only to the scheduled reentry prevented

24 by the preemption.’’; and
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1 (3) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’

2 after ‘‘prompt launching’’.

3 SEC. 150. ADMINISTRATIVE HEARINGS AND JUDICIAL RE4 VIEW.

5 Section 70110 is amended in subsection (a)—

6 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’

7 after ‘‘prevent the launch’’; and

8 (2) in paragraph (3)(B), by inserting ‘‘or re9 entry site, or reentry of a reentry vehicle,’’ after

10 ‘‘operation of a launch site’’.

11 SEC. 151. ACQUIRING UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PROP12 ERTY AND SERVICES.

13 Section 70111 is amended—

14 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or reentry

15 services’’ after ‘‘launch services’’ each place it ap16 pears;

17 (2) in subsection (b)—

18 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or re19 entry’’ after ‘‘commercial launch’’ each place it

20 appears; and

21 (B) in paragraph (2)(C), by inserting ‘‘or

22 reentry services’’ after ‘‘launch services’’; and

23 (3) in subsection (d)—

24 (A) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle,’’ after

25 ‘‘launch vehicle’’ each place it appears;
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1 (B) by striking ‘‘its payload’’ and inserting

2 ‘‘or the payload of that vehicle’’; and

3 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘for

4 launch’’.

5 SEC. 152. LIABILITY INSURANCE AND FINANCIAL RESPON6 SIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.

7 Section 70112 is amended—

8 (1) in subsection (a)(3), by inserting ‘‘or re9 entry’’ after ‘‘to one launch’’;

10 (2) in subsections (a)(4) and (b) (1) and (2), by

11 inserting ‘‘or reentry services’’ after ‘‘launch serv12 ices’’ each place it appears;

13 (3) in subsection (b) (1) and (2), by inserting

14 ‘‘applicable’’ after ‘‘carried out under the’’;

15 (4) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘Committee

16 on Science, Space, and Technology’’ and inserting

17 ‘‘Science Committee’’; and

18 (5) in subsection (e)—

19 (A) by striking the subsection heading and

20 inserting the following:

21 ‘‘(e) LAUNCHES INVOLVING GOVERNMENT FACILI22 TIES AND PERSONNEL.—’’; and

23 (B) by inserting ‘‘or reentry site or a re24 entry’’ after ‘‘operation of a launch site’’.
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1 SEC. 153. PAYING CLAIMS EXCEEDING LIABILITY INSUR2 ANCE AND FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY RE3 QUIREMENTS.

4 Section 70113 is amended—

5 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’

6 after ‘‘related to one launch’’; and

7 (2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’

8 after ‘‘one launch’’ each place it appears.

9 SEC. 154. ENFORCEMENT AND PENALTY.

10 Section 70115(b)(1)(D)(i) is amended—

11 (1) by inserting ‘‘reentry site,’’ after ‘‘launch

12 site,’’; and

13 (2) by inserting ‘‘or reentry vehicle’’ after

14 ‘‘launch vehicle’’ each place it appears.

15 SEC. 155. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER EXECUTIVE AGENCIES,

16 LAWS, AND INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS.

17 Section 70117 is amended—

18 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or reentry

19 site or reenter a reentry vehicle’’ after ‘‘operate a

20 launch site’’;

21 (2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’

22 after ‘‘space launch’’;

23 (3) in subsection (f)—

24 (A) by striking the subsection heading and

25 inserting the following:
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1 ‘‘(f) LAUNCH NOT AN EXPORT AND REENTRY NOT

2 AN IMPORT.—’’;

3 (B) by inserting ‘‘, reentry vehicle,’’ after

4 ‘‘A launch vehicle’’;

5 (C) by inserting ‘‘or reentered’’ after ‘‘is

6 launched’’;

7 (D) by inserting ‘‘or reentry’’ after ‘‘of the

8 launch’’;

9 (E) by inserting ‘‘or import, respectively,’’

10 after ‘‘an export’’; and

11 (F) by inserting ‘‘or imports’’ after ‘‘law

12 controlling exports’’; and

13 (4) in subsection (g)—

14 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘a

15 launch, operation of a launch vehicle or launch

16 site,’’ and inserting ‘‘a launch, reentry, oper17 ation of a launch vehicle or reentry vehicle, or

18 of a launch site or reentry site,’’; and

19 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘re20 entry,’’ after ‘‘launch,’’.

21 SEC. 156. LICENSE APPLICATIONS.

22 Section 70105, as amended by section 146 of this

23 title, is further amended—

24 (1) in subsection (a)—
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1 (A) by striking the subsection heading and

2 inserting the following:

3 ‘‘(a) LICENSE APPLICATIONS.—’’;

4 (B) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘A person

5 may apply’’;

6 (C) by striking ‘‘receiving an application’’

7 both places it appears and inserting ‘‘accepting

8 an application in accordance with subsection

9 (b)(2)(D)’’; and

10 (D) by adding at the end the following new

11 paragraph:

12 ‘‘(2) In carrying out the responsibilities under para13 graph (1), the Secretary may establish procedures for a

14 person to request a safety approval for a launch vehicle,

15 reentry vehicle, or a safety system, procedure, service or

16 personnel that may be used in conducting licensed com17 mercial space transportation activities.’’; and

18 (2) in subsection (b)—

19 (A) in paragraph (2)—

20 (i) in subparagraph (B), by striking

21 ‘‘and;’’ and inserting a semicolon;

22 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking

23 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘;

24 and’’; and
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1 (iii) by adding at the end the follow2 ing new subparagraph:

3 ‘‘(D) regulations establishing criteria for

4 accepting an application for a license under this

5 chapter.’’; and

6 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘waive a

7 requirement’’ and inserting ‘‘waive a require8 ment to obtain a license or any other require9 ment under this subsection’’.

10 SEC. 157. NONAPPLICATION.

11 Section 70117(g) is amended—

12 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of paragraph

13 (1);

14 (2) by striking the period at the end of para15 graph (2) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

16 (3) by adding at the end the following new

17 paragraph:

18 ‘‘(3) any amateur and similar small rocket ac19 tivities, as defined by the Secretary in regulations.’’.

20 SEC. 158. USER FEES.

21 Section 70119 is amended to read as follows:

22 ‘‘§ 70119. Authorization of appropriations

23 ‘‘Such sums as are necessary to carry out this chap24 ter are authorized to be appropriated to the Department

25 of Transportation.’’.
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1 PART V—AVIATION INSURANCE PROGRAM

2 SEC. 161. EXTENSION OF PROGRAM.

3 Section 44310 is amended by striking ‘‘1997’’ and

4 inserting ‘‘2002’’.

5 SEC. 162. TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.

6 Section 44302(a)(2) is amended in the first sentence

7 by striking ‘‘as determined by the Secretary’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘, as determined in accordance with reasonable busi9 ness practices in the commercial insurance industry’’.

10 SEC. 163. PRESIDENTIAL DETERMINATION.

11 Section 44302(b) is amended to read as follows:

12 ‘‘(b) CONDITION FOR PROVISION OF INSURANCE OR

13 REINSURANCE.—The Secretary may provide insurance or

14 reinsurance under subsection (a) only after the President

15 makes a determination that the continued operation of the

16 American aircraft or foreign-flag aircraft to be insured or

17 reinsured is necessary to carry out the foreign policy of

18 the United States Government.’’.

19 SEC. 164. PREMIUMS AND LIMITATIONS ON COVERAGE AND

20 CLAIMS.

21 Section 44306(b) is amended by striking ‘‘if the

22 President decides,’’ and inserting ‘‘after the Secretary no23 tifies the President and consults with appropriate officials

24 of interested departments, agencies, and instrumentalities

25 of the United States Government,’’.
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1 SEC. 165. REVOLVING FUND.

2 Section 44307 is amended by adding at the end the

3 following new subsection:

4 ‘‘(e) AUTHORITY TO BORROW FUNDS.—

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor6 tation is authorized to borrow from the Treasury

7 such sums as may be necessary to pay amounts of

8 any verified insurance claims for insurance issued

9 under this chapter in excess of the funds that are

10 available from the revolving fund under this section.

11 ‘‘(2) PAYMENT.—Upon receipt of a request of

12 the Secretary of Transportation to borrow funds

13 under paragraph (1), the Secretary of the Treasury

14 shall pay the Secretary the amount specified in that

15 paragraph.

16 ‘‘(3) NOTIFICATION.—Before exercising the

17 borrowing authority under paragraph (1), the Sec18 retary of Transportation shall notify the Committee

19 on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House

20 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,

21 Science, and Transportation of the Senate.’’.

22 PART VI—MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

23 SEC. 171. HOUSING.

24 Section 40110(a) is amended—

25 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

26 (2);
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•S 1801 IS

1 (2) by striking the period at the end of para2 graph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and

3 (3) by adding at the end the following new

4 paragraph:

5 ‘‘(4) may—

6 ‘‘(A) acquire interests in housing units

7 outside the contiguous United States, even if

8 there is an obligation after that acquisition to

9 pay necessary and reasonable fees duly assessed

10 upon such units, including fees related to oper11 ation, maintenance, taxes, and insurance, not12 withstanding section 1341 of title 31, if the Ad13 ministrator determines that acquisition of an

14 interest in a housing unit with such continuing

15 obligation is the most cost-beneficial means of

16 providing such accommodation; and

17 ‘‘(B) pay such fees, when due, from any

18 amounts made available to the Administrator.’’.

19 SEC. 172. DISCRETIONARY AUTHORITY FOR CRIMINAL HIS20 TORY RECORDS CHECKS.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 44936(a)(1) is amend22 ed—

23 (1) by striking ‘‘(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘(1)(A)’’;

24 (2) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and

25 (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; and
31

•S 1801 IS

1 (3) by adding at the end the following:

2 ‘‘(B) The Administrator may require by

3 regulation that an employment investigation, in4 cluding a criminal history record check in cases

5 in which the employment investigation reveals a

6 gap in employment, be conducted for individ7 uals who will be responsible for screening pas8 sengers and property under section 44901 of

9 this title.’’.

10 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub11 section (a)(3) shall not apply to individuals hired before

12 the date of the enactment of this Act.

13 SEC. 173. PROTECTION OF VOLUNTARILY PROVIDED IN14 FORMATION.

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 40119 is amended—

16 (1) by striking the section heading and insert17 ing the following:

18 ‘‘§ 40119. Safety, security, and research analysis’’;

19 (2) in subsection (b)(1)—

20 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph

21 (A)—

22 (i) by inserting ‘‘safety,’’ before ‘‘secu23 rity or research and development activi24 ties’’; and
32

•S 1801 IS

1 (ii) by striking ‘‘under section

2 44501(a)’’ and all that follows through ‘‘of

3 this title’’;

4 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking the

5 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and

6 (C) by adding at the end the following new

7 subparagraph:

8 ‘‘(D) inhibit the submission to the Admin9 istrator of information that—

10 ‘‘(i) is provided voluntarily; and

11 ‘‘(ii) the Administrator finds could

12 promote aviation safety or security.’’.

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy14 sis of chapter 401 is amended by striking the item relating

15 to section 40119 and inserting the following:

‘‘40119. Safety, security, and research analysis.’’.

16 TITLE II—AIRPORT REVENUE

17 PROTECTION

18 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

19 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Airport Revenue Pro20 tection Act of 1996’’.

21 SEC. 202. FINDINGS; PURPOSE.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Congress finds that—

23 (1) section 47107 of title 49, United States

24 Code, prohibits the diversion of certain revenue gen-
33

•S 1801 IS

1 erated by a public airport as a condition of receiving

2 a project grant;

3 (2) a grant recipient that uses airport revenue

4 for purposes that are not airport related in a man5 ner inconsistent with chapter 471 of title 49, United

6 States Code, illegally diverts airport revenues;

7 (3) any diversion of airport revenues in viola8 tion of the condition referred to in paragraph (1)

9 undermines the interest of the United States in pro10 moting a strong national air transportation system

11 that is responsive to the needs of airport users;

12 (4) the Secretary and the Administrator have

13 not enforced airport revenue diversion rules ade14 quately;

15 (5) despite attempts by the Congress to halt the

16 illegal diversion of revenues referred to in paragraph

17 (1), including the enactment of laws to strengthen

18 the enforcement authority of the Department of

19 Transportation (including the Federal Aviation Ad20 ministration), such illegal airport revenue diversion

21 continues to occur;

22 (6) sponsors who have been found to have ille23 gally diverted airport revenues have not reimbursed

24 airports in a timely manner;
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•S 1801 IS

1 (7) sponsors are openly and publicly seeking

2 ways to divert additional airport revenues; and

3 (8) to the detriment of the United States

4 Treasury, the Secretary and the Administrator have

5 failed to seek adequately the return of illegally di6 verted airport revenues referred to in paragraph (1).

7 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this title is to ensure

8 that airport users are not burdened with hidden taxation

9 for unrelated municipal services and activities by—

10 (1) eliminating the ability of any State or politi11 cal subdivision thereof that is a recipient of a project

12 grant to divert airport revenues for purposes that

13 are not related to an airport, in violation of section

14 47107 of title 49, United States Code;

15 (2) imposing financial reporting requirements

16 that are designed to identify instances of illegal di17 versions referred to in paragraph (1);

18 (3) establishing a statute of limitations for air19 port revenue diversion actions;

20 (4) clarifying limitations on revenue diversion

21 that is permitted under chapter 471 of title 49,

22 United States Code; and

23 (5) establishing clear penalties and enforcement

24 mechanisms for identifying and prosecuting airport

25 revenue diversion.
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1 SEC. 203. DEFINITIONS.

2 For purposes of this title, the following definitions

3 shall apply:

4 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis5 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal

6 Aviation Administration.

7 (2) AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘airport’’ has the

8 meaning provided that term in section 47102(2) of

9 title 49, United States Code.

10 (3) PROJECT GRANT.—The term ‘‘project

11 grant’’ has the meaning provided that term in sec12 tion 47102(14) of title 49, United States Code.

13 (4) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means

14 the Secretary of Transportation.

15 (5) SPONSOR.—The term ‘‘sponsor’’ has the

16 meaning provided that term in section 47102(19) of

17 title 49, United States Code.

18 SEC. 204. RESTRICTION ON USE OF AIRPORT REVENUES.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 471 of title 49, United

20 States Code, as amended by section 121(b) of this Act,

21 is further amended by adding at the end of subchapter

22 I the following new section:

23 ‘‘§ 47133. Restriction on use of revenues

24 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—Local taxes on aviation fuel (ex25 cept taxes in effect on December 30, 1987) or the revenues

26 generated by an airport that is the subject of Federal as-
36

•S 1801 IS

1 sistance or that operates pursuant to an airport operating

2 certificate issued under section 44706 may not be ex3 pended for any purpose other than the capital or operating

4 costs of—

5 ‘‘(1) the airport;

6 ‘‘(2) the local airport system; or

7 ‘‘(3) any other local facility that is owned or op8 erated by the person or entity that owns or operates

9 the airport that is directly and substantially related

10 to the air transportation of passengers or property.

11 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTIONS.—

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) shall not

13 apply with respect to any provision of law enacted

14 before September 3, 1982, that—

15 ‘‘(A) controls financing by the owner or

16 operator, or a covenant or assurance in a debt

17 obligation issued not later than September 2,

18 1982, by the owner or operator; and

19 ‘‘(B) provides that the revenues, including

20 local taxes on aviation fuel at public airports,

21 from any of the facilities of the owner or opera22 tor involved (including the airport of the owner

23 or operator) be used to support both the airport

24 and general debt obligations of other facilities

25 of the owner or operator.
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1 ‘‘(2) SUNSET.—This subsection shall have no

2 force and effect beginning on the earlier of—

3 ‘‘(A) the date on which all debt obligations

4 covered under this subsection are either retired

5 or refinanced; or

6 ‘‘(B) the date that is 10 years after the

7 date of enactment of the Airport Revenue Pro8 tection Act of 1996.

9 ‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec10 tion may be construed to prevent the use of a State tax

11 on aviation fuel to support a State aviation program or

12 the use of airport revenue on or off the airport for a noise

13 mitigation purpose.’’.

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy15 sis for subchapter I of chapter 471 of title 49, United

16 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow17 ing new item:

‘‘47133. Restriction on use of revenues.’’.

18 SEC. 205. REGULATIONS; AUDITS AND ACCOUNTABILITY.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47107 of title 49, United

20 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow21 ing new subsections:

22 ‘‘(m) AUDIT CERTIFICATION.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor24 tation (hereafter in this section referred to as the

25 ‘Secretary’), acting through the Administrator of the
38

•S 1801 IS

1 Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter in this

2 section referred to as the ‘Administrator’), shall pro3 mulgate regulations that require a recipient of a

4 project grant (or any other recipient of Federal fi5 nancial assistance that is provided for an airport) to

6 include as part of an annual audit conducted under

7 sections 7501 through 7505 of title 31, a review and

8 opinion of the review concerning the funding activi9 ties with respect to an airport that is the subject of

10 the project grant (or other Federal financial assist11 ance) and the sponsors (or other recipients) in12 volved.

13 ‘‘(2) CONTENT OF REVIEW.—A review con14 ducted under paragraph (1) shall provide reasonable

15 assurances that funds paid or transferred to spon16 sors are paid or transferred in a manner consistent

17 with the applicable requirements of this chapter and

18 any other applicable provision of law (including reg19 ulations promulgated by the Secretary or the Admin20 istrator).

21 ‘‘(3) REQUIREMENTS FOR AUDIT REPORT.—

22 The report submitted to the Secretary under this

23 subsection shall include a specific determination and

24 opinion regarding the appropriateness of the disposi-
39

•S 1801 IS

1 tion of airport funds paid or transferred to a spon2 sor.

3 ‘‘(4) CERTIFICATION BY INSPECTOR GEN4 ERAL.—Upon completion of each audit and review

5 conducted under this subsection, the Inspector Gen6 eral of the Department of Transportation shall,

7 upon making a determination that the audit and re8 view meet the requirements of this section, certify

9 that the audit and review meet those requirements.

10 ‘‘(n) RECOVERY OF ILLEGALLY DIVERTED FUNDS.—

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

12 after the issuance of an audit or any other report

13 that identifies an illegal diversion of airport revenues

14 (as determined under subsections (b) and (l) and

15 section 47133), the Secretary, acting through the

16 Administrator, shall—

17 ‘‘(A) review the audit or report;

18 ‘‘(B) perform appropriate factfinding; and

19 ‘‘(C) render a final determination concern20 ing whether the illegal diversion of airport reve21 nues asserted in the audit or report occurred.

22 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION.—Upon making such a

23 finding, the Secretary, acting through the Adminis24 trator, shall provide written notification to the spon25 sor and the airport of—
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1 ‘‘(A) the finding; and

2 ‘‘(B) the obligations of the sponsor to re3 imburse the airport involved under this para4 graph.

5 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.—If a sponsor

6 receives notification that the sponsor is required to

7 reimburse an airport, the Secretary, acting through

8 the Administrator, shall—

9 ‘‘(A) assess an administrative penalty

10 against the sponsor in an amount equal to—

11 ‘‘(i) the amount of the illegal diversion

12 in question;

13 ‘‘(ii) interest (as determined under

14 subsection (o)); and

15 ‘‘(iii) at the discretion of the Sec16 retary, acting through the Administrator,

17 in accordance with procedures established

18 under subsection (q), an amount to make

19 a payment to a petitioner under subsection

20 (q)(4); or

21 ‘‘(B) notwithstanding any other provision

22 of law, withhold an amount calculated in the

23 same manner as provided under subparagraph

24 (A) from funds that would otherwise be made

25 available to the sponsor as part of an appor-
41

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1 tionment under sections 47114 or a grant made

2 from amounts apportioned under section 47114

3 pursuant to section 47117.

4 Any withholding made under subparagraph (B) shall

5 not be subject to section 47106(d) or 47111(d), or

6 the hearing requirement under section 47111(e).

7 ‘‘(4) CIVIL ACTION.—

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a sponsor fails to

9 pay the amount specified in paragraph (3) dur10 ing the 180-day period beginning on the date of

11 notification and the Secretary or the Adminis12 trator is unable to withhold a sufficient amount

13 under paragraph (3)(B), the Secretary, acting

14 through the Administrator, shall initiate a civil

15 action under which the sponsor shall be liable

16 for civil penalty in an amount equal to the ille17 gal diversion in question plus interest (as deter18 mined under subsection (o)).

19 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL AMOUNT.—In addition

20 to the amount determined under subparagraph

21 (A), if applicable, the civil penalty may include

22 an amount that the court shall cause to be

23 transferred to a petitioner under subsection

24 (q)(4).

25 ‘‘(5) DISPOSITION OF PENALTIES.—
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1 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.—The

2 Secretary or the Administrator shall transfer

3 any amounts collected as an administrative pen4 alty under paragraph (3)(A) to the Airport and

5 Airway Trust Fund established under section

6 9502(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.

7 ‘‘(B) AMOUNTS WITHHELD.—The Sec8 retary or the Administrator shall transfer any

9 amounts withheld under paragraph (3)(B) to

10 the Airport and Airway Trust Fund.

11 ‘‘(C) CIVIL PENALTIES.—With respect to

12 any amount collected by a court in a civil action

13 under paragraph (4), the court shall cause to be

14 transferred to the Airport and Airway Trust

15 Fund any amount collected as a civil penalty

16 under paragraph (4).

17 ‘‘(6) REIMBURSEMENT.—The Secretary, acting

18 through the Administrator, shall, as soon as prac19 ticable after any amount is collected from a sponsor

20 under paragraph (3) or (4), cause to be transferred

21 from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to an air22 port affected by a diversion that is the subject of an

23 administrative action under paragraph (3) or a civil

24 action under paragraph (4), reimbursement in an

25 amount equal to the amount that has been collected
43

•S 1801 IS

1 from the sponsor under paragraph (3) or (4) (in2 cluding any amount of interest calculated under sub3 section (o)), other than any amount that has been

4 collected under paragraph (3) or (4) for a payment

5 to a petitioner under subsection (q)(4).

6 ‘‘(7) STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.—No person

7 may bring an action for the recovery of funds ille8 gally diverted in violation of this section (as deter9 mined under subsections (b) and (l)) or section

10 47133 after the date that is 6 years after the date

11 on which the diversion occurred.

12 ‘‘(o) INTEREST.—

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para14 graph (2), the Secretary, acting through the Admin15 istrator, shall charge a minimum annual rate of in16 terest on the amount of any illegal diversion of reve17 nues referred to in subsection (n) in an amount

18 equal to the average investment interest rate for tax

19 and loan accounts of the Department of the Treas20 ury (as determined by the Secretary of the Treas21 ury) for the applicable calendar year, rounded to the

22 nearest whole percentage point.

23 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT OF INTEREST RATES.—If,

24 with respect to a calendar quarter, the average in25 vestment interest rate for tax and loan accounts of
44

•S 1801 IS

1 the Department of the Treasury exceeds the average

2 investment interest rate for the immediately preced3 ing calendar quarter, rounded to the nearest whole

4 percentage point, the Secretary of the Treasury may

5 adjust the interest rate charged under this sub6 section in a manner that reflects that change.

7 ‘‘(3) ACCRUAL.—Interest assessed under sub8 section (n) shall accrue from the date of the actual

9 illegal diversion of revenues referred to in subsection

10 (n).

11 ‘‘(4) DETERMINATION OF APPLICABLE RATE.—

12 The applicable rate of interest charged under para13 graph (1) shall—

14 ‘‘(A) be the rate in effect on the date on

15 which interest begins to accrue under para16 graph (3); and

17 ‘‘(B) remain at a rate fixed under subpara18 graph (A) during the duration of the indebted19 ness.

20 ‘‘(p) PAYMENT BY AIRPORT TO SPONSOR.—If, in the

21 course of an audit or other review conducted under this

22 section, the Secretary determines that an airport owes a

23 sponsor funds as a result of activities conducted by the

24 sponsor or expenditures by the sponsor for the benefit of

25 the airport, interest on that amount shall be determined
45

•S 1801 IS

1 in the same manner as provided in paragraphs (1) through

2 (4) of subsection (o), except that the amount of any inter3 est assessed under this subsection shall be determined

4 from the date on which the Secretary or the Administrator

5 makes that determination.’’.

6 (b) REVISION OF POLICIES AND PROCEDURES;

7 DEADLINES.—

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after

9 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, act10 ing through the Administrator, shall revise the poli11 cies and procedures established under section

12 47107(l) of title 49, United States Code, to take

13 into account the amendments made to that section

14 by this title.

15 (2) DEADLINES.—Section 47107(l) of title 49,

16 United States Code, is amended by adding at the

17 end the following new paragraph:

18 ‘‘(5) DEADLINES.—In addition to the statute of

19 limitations specified in subsection (n)(7), the follow20 ing statutes of limitations and deadlines shall apply

21 with respect to project grants made under this chap22 ter:

23 ‘‘(A) Any request to any airport for addi24 tional payments for services conducted off of
46

•S 1801 IS

1 the airport shall be filed not later than 6 years

2 after the date on which the expense is incurred.

3 ‘‘(B) Any amount of airport funds that are

4 used to make a payment as described in sub5 paragraph (A) after the date specified in that

6 subparagraph shall be considered to be an ille7 gal diversion of airport revenues that is subject

8 to subsection (n).’’.

9 SEC. 206. ELIMINATION OF CERTAIN EXCEPTIONS.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47107(b)(2) of title 49,

11 United States Code, is amended—

12 (1) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ before ‘‘Notwithstanding

13 subsection (b)(1)’’; and

14 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub15 paragraph:

16 ‘‘(B) This paragraph shall have no force and effect

17 beginning on the earlier of—

18 ‘‘(i) the date on which all debt obligations cov19 ered under this paragraph on the day before the

20 date of enactment of the Airport Revenue Protection

21 Act of 1996 are either retired or refinanced; or

22 ‘‘(ii) the date that is 10 years after the date of

23 enactment of the Airport Revenue Protection Act of

24 1996.’’.
47

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1 (b) HAWAII.—Section 47107(j) of title 49, United

2 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow3 ing new paragraph:

4 ‘‘(8) This subsection shall have no force and effect

5 beginning on the earlier of—

6 ‘‘(A) the date on which all debt obligations re7 ferred to in paragraph (2) that are covered under

8 this subsection are either retired or refinanced; or

9 ‘‘(B) the date that is 10 years after the date of

10 enactment of the Airport Revenue Protection Act of

11 1996.’’.

12 SEC. 207. WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION AND PAYMENTS.

13 Section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, as

14 amended by section 205 of this title, is further amended

15 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

16 ‘‘(q) WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION AND PAY17 MENTS.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

19 after the date of enactment of the Airport Revenue

20 Protection Act of 1996, the Secretary, acting

21 through the Administrator, shall establish a process

22 under which a private citizen or other party (other

23 than an employee of the Department of Transpor24 tation and the organization or entity that conducts

25 an audit under subsection (m)) may petition the
48

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1 Secretary or the Administrator for review of an alle2 gation of illegal diversion of airport revenues.

3 ‘‘(2) EVALUATION.—Not later than 30 days

4 after the date on which a petition is made under

5 paragraph (1), the Secretary, acting through the Ad6 ministrator—

7 ‘‘(A) shall evaluate the petition if it asserts

8 that an illegal diversion of airport revenues (as

9 determined under subsections (b) and (l) and

10 section 47133) has occurred in an amount

11 greater than or equal to $10,000 for a calendar

12 year period; and

13 ‘‘(B) may evaluate the petition if it asserts

14 an illegal diversion of airport revenues in an

15 amount less than the amount specified in sub16 paragraph (A).

17 ‘‘(3) ACTION BY THE SECRETARY OF TRANS18 PORTATION.—If the Secretary, acting through the

19 Administrator, reviews a petition described under

20 paragraph (1) and determines that an illegal diver21 sion of revenues (as determined under subsections

22 (b) and (l) and section 47133) has occurred, the

23 Secretary, acting through the Administrator, shall

24 take such action, in accordance with this section, as

25 is necessary to—
49

•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(A) recover the illegally diverted revenues;

2 and

3 ‘‘(B) provide for reimbursement to the air4 port of the amount illegally diverted.

5 ‘‘(4) PAYMENT TO PETITIONER.—Notwith6 standing any other provision of law, in any case in

7 which the Secretary or the Administrator recovers

8 funds under paragraph (3), the Secretary or the Ad9 ministrator shall take such action as may be nec10 essary (including requiring the sponsor to make a

11 payment for the petitioner and transferring funds

12 from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund established

13 under section 9502(d) of the Internal Revenue Code

14 of 1986), to make a payment to the petitioner, in ac15 cordance with procedures that the Secretary, acting

16 through the Administrator, shall establish by regula17 tion (after providing opportunity for notice and pub18 lic comment).

19 ‘‘(5) PROHIBITION ON DISCLOSURE.—Neither

20 the Secretary nor the Administrator may disclose to

21 an airport, a sponsor, or the general public the iden22 tity of a petitioner under this subsection without the

23 consent of the petitioner.’’.
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1 SEC. 208. QUI TAM ACTIONS.

2 Section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, as

3 amended by section 206 of this title, is further amended

4 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

5 ‘‘(r) QUI TAM ACTIONS.—Notwithstanding any other

6 provision of law, a private citizen may bring a civil action

7 for a violation of this section in the same manner as is

8 provided for a civil action for a violation of section 3729

9 of title 31 under section 3730 of that title.’’.

10 SEC. 209. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL

11 REVENUE CODE OF 1986.

12 Section 9502(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of

13 1986 is amended—

14 (1) in subsection (b)—

15 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para16 graph (3);

17 (B) by striking the period at the end of

18 paragraph (4) and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and

19 (C) by adding at the end the following:

20 ‘‘(5) amounts determined by the Secretary of

21 the Treasury to be equivalent to the amounts of ad22 ministrative and civil penalties collected under sec23 tion 47107(n) of title 49, United States Code.’’; and

24 (2) in subsection (d), by adding at the end the

25 following new paragraph:
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1 ‘‘(4) TRANSFERS FROM THE AIRPORT AND AIR2 WAY TRUST FUND ON ACCOUNT OF CERTAIN AIR3 PORTS.—The Secretary of the Treasury may trans4 fer from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to the

5 Secretary of Transportation or the Administrator of

6 the Federal Aviation Administration an amount to

7 make a payment—

8 ‘‘(A) to an airport affected by a diversion

9 that is the subject of an administrative action

10 under paragraph (3) or a civil action under

11 paragraph (4) of section 47107(n) of title 49,

12 United States Code; or

13 ‘‘(B) pursuant to section 47107(q)(4) of

14 title 49, United States Code.’’.

15 TITLE III—AIR TRAFFIC MAN16 AGEMENT SYSTEM PERFORM17 ANCE IMPROVEMENT

18 PART I—GENERAL PROVISIONS

19 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.

20 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Air Traffic Manage21 ment System Performance Act of 1996’’.

22 SEC. 302. FINDINGS.

23 The Congress finds the following:

24 (1) In many respects the Federal Aviation Ad25 ministration is a unique agency, being one of the few
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1 non-defense government agencies that operates 24

2 hours a day, 365 days of the year, while continuing

3 to rely on outdated technology to carry out its re4 sponsibilities for a state-of-the-art industry.

5 (2) The users of the air transportation system

6 now pay 70 percent of the budget of the Federal

7 Aviation Administration, with the remaining 30 per8 cent coming from the general fund of the Treasury

9 (hereafter in this subsection referred to as the ‘‘gen10 eral fund’’). The general fund contribution over the

11 years is one measure of the benefit received by the

12 general public, military, and other users of the Fed13 eral Aviation Administration’s services.

14 (3) The Federal Aviation Administration must

15 become a more efficient, effective, and different or16 ganization to meet future challenges.

17 (4) The need to balance the Federal budget

18 means that it may become more and more difficult

19 to obtain sufficient general fund contributions to

20 meet the Federal Aviation Administration’s future

21 budget needs.

22 (5) Congress must keep its commitment to the

23 users of the national air transportation system by

24 seeking to spend all moneys collected from them

25 each year and deposited into the Airport and Airway
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1 Trust Fund. Existing surpluses representing past re2 ceipts must also be spent for the purposes for which

3 such funds were collected.

4 (6) The aviation community and the employees

5 of the Federal Aviation Administration must come

6 together to improve the system. The Federal Avia7 tion Administration must continue to recognize who

8 its customers are and what their needs are, and

9 must continue to design and redesign the system to

10 make safety improvements and increase productivity.

11 (7) The Federal Aviation Administration

12 projects that commercial operations will increase by

13 18 percent and passenger traffic by 35 percent by

14 the year 2002. Without effective airport expansion

15 and system modernization, these needs cannot be

16 met.

17 (8) By the year 2003, the Federal Aviation Ad18 ministration, to the extent possible, should be user

19 supported and have the ability to make rational

20 short-term and long-term decisions.

21 (9) Absent significant and meaningful reform,

22 future challenges and needs cannot be met.

23 (10) The Federal Aviation Administration must

24 have a new way of doing business.
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1 (11) There is widespread agreement within gov2 ernment and the aviation industry that reform of the

3 Federal Aviation Administration is essential to safe4 ly and efficiently accommodate the projected growth

5 of aviation within the next decade.

6 (12) To the extent that the Congress deter7 mines that certain segments of the aviation commu8 nity are not required to pay all of the costs of the

9 government services which those segments require

10 and benefits which they receive, the Congress should

11 appropriate the difference between such costs and

12 any receipts received from such segments.

13 (13) Prior to the imposition of any new charges

14 or user fees on segments of the industry, an inde15 pendent review must be performed to assess the

16 funding needs and assumptions for operations, cap17 ital spending, and airport infrastructure.

18 (14) An independent, thorough, and complete

19 study and assessment must be performed of the

20 costs to the Federal Aviation Administration driven

21 by each segment of the aviation system for safety

22 and operational services, including the use of the air

23 traffic control system.

24 (15) Because the Federal Aviation Administra25 tion is a unique Federal entity in that it is a partici-
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1 pant in the daily operations of an industry, and be2 cause the national air transportation system faces

3 significant problems without significant changes, the

4 Federal Aviation Administration must be enabled to

5 change the Federal procurement and personnel sys6 tems to ensure that the Federal Aviation Adminis7 tration—

8 (A) has the ability to keep pace with new

9 technology; and

10 (B) is able to match resources with the

11 real personnel needs of the Federal Aviation

12 Administration.

13 (16) The existing budget system does not allow

14 for long-term planning or timely acquisition of tech15 nology by the Federal Aviation Administration.

16 (17) Without reforms in the areas of procure17 ment, personnel, funding, and governance—

18 (A) the Federal Aviation Administration

19 will continue to experience delays and cost over20 runs in its major modernization programs; and

21 (B) needed improvements in the perform22 ance of the air traffic management system will

23 not occur.
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1 (18) All reforms should be designed to help the

2 Federal Aviation Administration become more re3 sponsive to the needs of its customers.

4 (19) General Federal Aviation Administration

5 functions, including inspections and administrative

6 and overhead costs not directly related to service ac7 tivities, should continue to be funded by appropria8 tions.

9 SEC. 303. PURPOSES.

10 The purposes of this title are—

11 (1) to ensure that final action shall be taken on

12 all notices of proposed rulemaking of the Federal

13 Aviation Administration within 18 months after the

14 date of their publication;

15 (2) to permit the Federal Aviation Administra16 tion, with Congressional review, to establish an inno17 vative program for procurement reform;

18 (3) to permit the Federal Aviation Administra19 tion, with Congressional review, to establish an inno20 vative program for personnel reform;

21 (4) to permit the Federal Aviation Administra22 tion, with Congressional review, to establish a pro23 gram to improve air traffic management system per24 formance and to establish appropriate levels of cost
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1 accountability for air traffic management services

2 provided by the Federal Aviation Administration;

3 (5) to establish a more autonomous and ac4 countable Federal Aviation Administration within

5 the Department of Transportation; and

6 (6) to make the Federal Aviation Administra7 tion a more efficient and effective organization, able

8 to meet the needs of a dynamic, growing industry,

9 and to ensure the safety of the traveling public.

10 SEC. 304. EFFECTIVE DATE.

11 Except as otherwise provided in this title, the provi12 sions of this title and the amendments made by this title

13 shall take effect on the date that is 30 days after the date

14 of the enactment of this Act.

15 SEC. 305. REGULATION OF CIVILIAN AIR TRANSPORTATION

16 AND RELATED SERVICES BY THE FEDERAL

17 AVIATION ADMINISTRATION AND DEPART18 MENT OF TRANSPORTATION.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 106 of title 49, United

20 States Code, is amended—

21 (1) by striking ‘‘The Administrator’’ in the fifth

22 sentence of subsection (b) and inserting ‘‘Except as

23 provided in subsection (f) of this section or in other

24 provisions of law, the Administrator’’; and
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1 (2) by striking subsection (f) and inserting the

2 following:

3 ‘‘(f) AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY AND THE AD4 MINISTRATOR.—

5 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY OF THE SECRETARY.—Except

6 as provided in paragraph (2), the Secretary of

7 Transportation shall carry out the duties and powers

8 of the Administration.

9 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.—

10 The Administrator—

11 ‘‘(A) is the final authority for carrying out

12 all functions, powers, and duties of the Admin13 istration relating to—

14 ‘‘(i) the appointment and employment

15 of all officers and employees of the Admin16 istration (other than Presidential and po17 litical appointees);

18 ‘‘(ii) the acquisition, operation, and

19 maintenance of property and equipment of

20 the Administration;

21 ‘‘(iii) except as otherwise provided in

22 paragraph (3), the promulgation of regula23 tions, rules, orders, circulars, bulletins, and

24 other official publications of the Adminis25 tration; and
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1 ‘‘(iv) any obligation imposed on the

2 Administrator, or power conferred on the

3 Administrator, by the Air Traffic Manage4 ment System Performance Improvement

5 Act of 1996 (or any amendment made by

6 that Act);

7 ‘‘(B) shall offer advice and counsel to the

8 President with respect to the appointment and

9 qualifications of any officer or employee of the

10 Administration to be appointed by the Presi11 dent or as a political appointee;

12 ‘‘(C) may delegate, and authorize succes13 sive redelegations of, to an officer or employee

14 of the Administration any function, power, or

15 duty conferred upon the Administrator, unless

16 such delegation is prohibited by law; and

17 ‘‘(D) except as otherwise provided for in

18 this title, and notwithstanding any other provi19 sion of law to the contrary, shall not be re20 quired to coordinate, submit for approval or

21 concurrence, or seek the advice or views of the

22 Secretary or any other officer or employee of

23 the Department of Transportation on any mat24 ter with respect to which the Administrator is

25 the final authority.
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1 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION OF POLITICAL APPOINTEE.—

2 For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘political

3 appointee’ means any individual who—

4 ‘‘(A) is employed in a position on the Ex5 ecutive Schedule under sections 5312 through

6 5316 of title 5;

7 ‘‘(B) is a limited term appointee, limited

8 emergency appointee, or noncareer appointee in

9 the Senior Executive Service as defined under

10 section 3132(a) (5), (6), and (7) of title 5, re11 spectively; or

12 ‘‘(C) is employed in a position in the exec13 utive branch of the Government of a confiden14 tial or policy-determining character under

15 Schedule C of subpart C of part 213 of title 5

16 of the Code of Federal Regulations.’’.

17 (b) PRESERVATION OF EXISTING AUTHORITY.—

18 Nothing in this title or the amendments made by this title

19 limits any authority granted to the Administrator by stat20 ute or by delegation that was in effect on the day before

21 the date of enactment of this Act.

22 SEC. 306. REGULATIONS.

23 Section 106(f) of title 49, United States Code, as

24 amended by section 305 of this title, is further amended—
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1 (1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para2 graph (4); and

3 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the follow4 ing:

5 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the performance of

7 the functions of the Administrator and the Ad8 ministration, the Administrator is authorized to

9 issue, rescind, and revise such regulations as

10 are necessary to carry out those functions. The

11 issuance of such regulations shall be governed

12 by the provisions of chapter 5 of title 5. The

13 Administrator shall act upon all petitions for

14 rulemaking no later than 6 months after the

15 date such petitions are filed by dismissing such

16 petitions, by informing the petitioner of an in17 tention to dismiss, or by issuing a notice of pro18 posed rulemaking or advanced notice of pro19 posed rulemaking. The Administrator shall

20 issue a final regulation, or take other final ac21 tion, not later than 18 months after the date of

22 publication in the Federal Register of a notice

23 of proposed rulemaking or, in the case of an ad24 vanced notice of proposed rulemaking, if issued,

25 not later than 24 months after that date.
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1 ‘‘(B) APPROVAL OF SECRETARY OF TRANS2 PORTATION.—

3 ‘‘(i) The Administrator may not issue

4 a proposed regulation or final regulation

5 that is likely to result in the expenditure

6 by State, local, and tribal governments in

7 the aggregate, or by the private sector, of

8 $50,000,000 or more (adjusted annually

9 for inflation beginning with the year fol10 lowing the date of enactment of the Air

11 Traffic Management System Performance

12 Improvement Act of 1996) in any 1 year,

13 or any regulation which is significant, un14 less the Secretary of Transportation ap15 proves the issuance of the regulation in ad16 vance. For purposes of this paragraph, a

17 regulation is significant if it is likely to—

18 ‘‘(I) have an annual effect on the

19 economy of $100,000,000 or more or

20 adversely affect in a material way the

21 economy, a sector of the economy,

22 productivity, competition, jobs, the en23 vironment, public health or safety, or

24 State, local, or tribal governments or

25 communities;
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1 ‘‘(II) create a serious inconsist2 ency or otherwise interfere with an ac3 tion taken or planned by another

4 agency;

5 ‘‘(III) materially alter the budg6 etary impact of entitlements, grants,

7 user fees, or loan programs or the

8 rights and obligations of recipients

9 thereof; or

10 ‘‘(IV) raise novel legal or policy

11 issues arising out of legal mandates.

12 ‘‘(ii) In an emergency, the Adminis13 trator may issue a regulation described in

14 clause (i) without prior approval by the

15 Secretary, but any such emergency regula16 tion is subject to ratification by the Sec17 retary after it is issued and shall be re18 scinded by the Administrator within 5 days

19 (excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal

20 public holidays) after issuance if the Sec21 retary fails to ratify its issuance.

22 ‘‘(iii) Any regulation that does not

23 meet the criteria of clause (i), and any reg24 ulation or other action that is a routine or

25 frequent action or a procedural action,
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1 may be issued by the Administrator with2 out review or approval by the Secretary.

3 ‘‘(iv) The Administrator shall submit

4 a copy of any regulation requiring approval

5 by the Secretary under clause (i) to the

6 Secretary, who shall either approve it or

7 return it to the Administrator with com8 ments within 45 days after receiving it.

9 ‘‘(C) PERIODIC REVIEW.—(i) Beginning on

10 the date which is 3 years after the date of en11 actment of the Air Traffic Management System

12 Performance Improvement Act of 1996, the Ad13 ministrator shall review any unusually burden14 some regulation issued by the Administrator

15 after the date of enactment of the Air Traffic

16 Management System Performance Improvement

17 Act of 1996 beginning not later than 3 years

18 after the effective date of the regulation to de19 termine if the cost assumptions were accurate,

20 the benefit of the regulations, and the need to

21 continue such regulations in force in their

22 present form.

23 ‘‘(ii) The Administrator may identify for

24 review under the criteria set forth in clause (i)

25 unusually burdensome regulations that were is-
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1 sued before the date of enactment of the Air

2 Traffic Management System Performance Im3 provement Act of 1996 and that have been in

4 force for more than 3 years.

5 ‘‘(iii) For purposes of this subparagraph,

6 the term ‘unusually burdensome regulation’

7 means any regulation that results in the annual

8 expenditure by State, local, and tribal govern9 ments in the aggregate, or by the private sec10 tor, of $25,000,000 or more (adjusted annually

11 for inflation beginning with the year following

12 the date of enactment of the Air Traffic Man13 agement System Performance Act of 1996) in

14 any year.

15 ‘‘(iv) The periodic review of regulations

16 may be performed by advisory committees and

17 the Management Advisory Council established

18 under subsection (p).’’.

19 SEC. 307. PERSONNEL AND SERVICES.

20 Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, is

21 amended by adding at the end the following new sub22 section:

23 ‘‘(l) PERSONNEL AND SERVICES.—

24 ‘‘(1) OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.—Upon devel25 opment of a personnel management system under
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1 section 40122(c), the Administrator is authorized, in

2 the performance of the functions of the Adminis3 trator, to appoint, transfer, and fix the compensa4 tion of such officers and employees, including attor5 neys, as may be necessary to carry out the functions

6 of the Administrator and the Administration. Except

7 as otherwise provided by law, such officers and em8 ployees shall be appointed in accordance with the

9 civil service laws and compensated in accordance

10 with title 5. In fixing compensation and benefits of

11 officers and employees, the Administrator shall not

12 engage in any type of bargaining, except to the ex13 tent provided for in section 40122(c), nor shall the

14 Administrator be bound by any requirement to es15 tablish such compensation or benefits at particular

16 levels.

17 ‘‘(2) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—The Ad18 ministrator is authorized to obtain the services of ex19 perts and consultants in accordance with section

20 3109 of title 5.

21 ‘‘(3) TRANSPORTATION AND PER DIEM EX22 PENSES.—The Administrator is authorized to pay

23 transportation expenses, and per diem in lieu of sub24 sistence expenses, in accordance with chapter 57 of

25 title 5.
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1 ‘‘(4) USE OF PERSONNEL FROM OTHER AGEN2 CIES.—The Administrator is authorized to utilize

3 the services of personnel of any other Federal agen4 cy (as such term is defined under section 551(1) of

5 title 5).

6 ‘‘(5) VOLUNTARY SERVICES.—

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—(i) In exercising the

8 authority to accept gifts and voluntary services

9 under section 326 of this title, and without re10 gard to section 1342 of title 31, the Adminis11 trator may not accept voluntary and uncompen12 sated services if such services are used to dis13 place Federal employees employed on a full14 time, part-time, or seasonal basis.

15 ‘‘(ii) The Administrator is authorized to

16 provide for incidental expenses, including trans17 portation, lodging, and subsistence for volun18 teers who provide voluntary services under this

19 subsection.

20 ‘‘(iii) An individual who provides voluntary

21 services under this subsection shall not be con22 sidered a Federal employee for any purpose

23 other than for purposes of chapter 81 of title

24 5, relating to compensation for work injuries,
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1 and chapter 171 of title 28, relating to tort

2 claims.’’.

3 SEC. 308. CONTRACTS.

4 Section 106(l) of title 49, United States Code, as

5 added by section 307 of this title, is amended by adding

6 at the end the following new paragraph:

7 ‘‘(6) CONTRACTS.—The Administrator is au8 thorized to enter into and perform such contracts,

9 leases, cooperative agreements, or other transactions

10 as may be necessary to carry out the functions of

11 the Administrator and the Administration. The Ad12 ministrator may enter into such contracts, leases,

13 cooperative agreements, and other transactions with

14 any Federal agency (as such term is defined in sec15 tion 551(1) of title 5) or any instrumentality of the

16 United States, any State, territory, or possession, or

17 political subdivision thereof, any other government

18 entity, or any person, firm, associates, corporation,

19 or educational institution, on such terms and condi20 tions as the Administrator may consider appro21 priate.’’.

22 SEC. 309. BUDGET.

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 48109 of title 49, United

24 States Code, is amended to read as follows:
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1 ‘‘§ 48109. Budget information and legislative rec2 ommendations and comments

3 ‘‘(a) PREPARATION.—Beginning with the budget for

4 the first fiscal year beginning after the first fiscal year

5 in which the Federal Aviation Administration is funded

6 entirely by user fees, the Administrator shall prepare a

7 budget for the Administration for each fiscal year.

8 ‘‘(b) SUBMISSION OF BUDGET TO DOT.—At the

9 same time that agencies of the Department of Transpor10 tation having jurisdiction over other modes of transpor11 tation are required to submit their budgets to the Sec12 retary of Transportation, the Administrator shall submit

13 to the Secretary the budget prepared by the Adminis14 trator. The budget submission shall include a statement

15 of income and expenses and analysis of the surplus or defi16 cit in the Airport and Airway Trust Fund established

17 under section 9502 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,

18 and any other such supplementary information as is nec19 essary or desirable to make known about the financial con20 dition and operations of the Administration. The annual

21 budget shall be included in the budget submitted by the

22 President pursuant to chapter 11 of title 31, United

23 States Code. The Secretary shall review the budget and

24 may recommend to the Administrator modifications in the

25 budget necessary to ensure that the budget is consistent

26 with the needs of the national transportation system. The
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1 Administrator may modify the budget to adopt any rec2 ommendation made by the Secretary.

3 ‘‘(c) SUBMISSION OF BUDGET TO CONGRESS.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—When the Administrator

5 submits to the President or the Director of the Of6 fice of Management and Budget any budget infor7 mation, legislative recommendation, or comment on

8 legislation about amounts authorized in section

9 48101 or 48102, the Administrator concurrently

10 shall submit a copy of the information, recommenda11 tion, or comment to the Speaker of the House of

12 Representatives, the Committees on Transportation

13 and Infrastructure and Appropriations of the House

14 of Representatives, the President of the Senate, and

15 the Committees on Commerce, Science, and Trans16 portation and Appropriations of the Senate.

17 ‘‘(2) SPECIAL RULE WITH RESPECT TO ANNUAL

18 BUDGETS.—The annual budget of the Administra19 tion submitted to Congress shall include—

20 ‘‘(A) any modifications made by the Ad21 ministrator under subsection (b) with respect to

22 the budget; and

23 ‘‘(B) if the Administrator does not adopt a

24 recommendation made by the Secretary under

25 subsection (b), a description of the rec-
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1 ommendation and the reasons for not adopting

2 the recommendation.

3 ‘‘(d) COST REDUCTION AND EFFICIENCY REPORT

4 REQUIRED.—Whenever the Administrator submits a re5 port, request, or proposal that contains an increase in ei6 ther the budget of the Administration or any of the fees

7 imposed by the Administration, the Administrator shall

8 submit, as a part of that report, request, or proposal—

9 ‘‘(1) an explanation that states specifically the

10 need for the increase; and

11 ‘‘(2) a statement of any steps taken by the Ad12 ministration to reduce costs and improve efficiency

13 in order to avoid or limit the increase.’’.

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

15 chapter 481 of such title is amended by striking the item

16 relating to section 48109 and inserting the following:

‘‘48109. Budget information and legislative recommendations and comments.’’.

17 SEC. 310. FACILITIES.

18 Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, as

19 amended by section 307 of this title, is further amended

20 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

21 ‘‘(m) COOPERATION BY ADMINISTRATOR.—With the

22 consent of appropriate officials, the Administrator may,

23 with or without reimbursement, use or accept the services,

24 equipment, personnel, and facilities of any other Federal

25 agency (as such term is defined in section 551(1) of title
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1 5) and any other public or private entity. The Adminis2 trator may also cooperate with appropriate officials of

3 other public and private agencies and instrumentalities

4 concerning the use of services, equipment, personnel, and

5 facilities. The head of each Federal agency shall cooperate

6 with the Administrator in making the services, equipment,

7 personnel, and facilities of the Federal agency available

8 to the Administrator. The head of a Federal agency is au9 thorized, notwithstanding any other provision of law, to

10 transfer to or to receive from the Administration, without

11 reimbursement, supplies and equipment other than admin12 istrative supplies or equipment.’’.

13 SEC. 311. PROPERTY.

14 Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, as

15 amended by section 310 of this title, is further amended

16 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

17 ‘‘(n) ACQUISITION.—

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator is au19 thorized—

20 ‘‘(A) to acquire (by purchase, lease, con21 demnation, or otherwise), construct, improve,

22 repair, operate, and maintain—

23 ‘‘(i) air traffic control facilities and

24 equipment;
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1 ‘‘(ii) research and testing sites and fa2 cilities; and

3 ‘‘(iii) such other real and personal

4 property (including office space and pat5 ents), or any interest therein, within and

6 outside the continental United States as

7 the Administrator considers necessary;

8 ‘‘(B) to lease to others such real and per9 sonal property; and

10 ‘‘(C) to provide by contract or otherwise

11 for eating facilities and other necessary facili12 ties for the welfare of employees of the Admin13 istration at the installations of the Administra14 tion, and to acquire, operate, and maintain

15 equipment for these facilities.

16 ‘‘(2) TITLE.—Title to any property or interest

17 therein acquired pursuant to this subsection shall be

18 held by the Government of the United States.’’.

19 SEC. 312. SELECT PANEL TO REVIEW INNOVATIVE FUNDING

20 MECHANISMS.

21 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall es22 tablish a select panel to review and report to Congress re23 garding a limited innovative program to fund specific fa24 cilities and equipment projects, and to provide limited ad25 ditional funding alternatives for airport capacity develop-
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1 ment. The mechanisms to be reviewed shall include loan

2 guarantees, financial partnerships with for-profit private

3 sector entities, government sponsored enterprises, and re4 volving loan funds.

5 (b) APPOINTMENT OF MEMBERS.—The members of

6 the panel established under this section shall consist of

7 appropriate Federal Government officials, and representa8 tives of the aviation industry, Administration employees,

9 the financial community, and State and local governments.

10 (c) TRAVEL AND PER DIEM.—Each member of the

11 panel established under this section shall be paid actual

12 travel expenses, and per diem in lieu of subsistence ex13 penses when away from his or her usual place of residence.

14 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 9 months after the date

15 of the appointment of the last member to the panel under

16 subsection (b), the panel shall submit to the Congress and

17 the Administration a report on the results of the review

18 conducted under this section. Such report shall specifically

19 take into account the independent studies performed pur20 suant to section 45303(a)(6) of title 49, United States

21 Code, as added by section 335 of this title.

22 (e) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT NOT TO

23 APPLY.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C.

24 App.) does not apply to the panel established under this

25 section.
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1 (f) TERMINATION.—The panel established under this

2 section shall terminate on the date that is 30 days after

3 the date of submission of the report under subsection (d).

4 SEC. 313. TRANSFERS OF FUNDS FROM OTHER FEDERAL

5 AGENCIES.

6 Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, as

7 amended by section 311 of this title, is further amended

8 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

9 ‘‘(o) TRANSFERS OF FUNDS.—The Administrator is

10 authorized to accept transfers of unobligated balances and

11 unexpended balances of funds appropriated to other Fed12 eral agencies (as such term is defined in section 551(1)

13 of title 5) to carry out functions transferred by this Act

14 to the Administrator or functions transferred pursuant to

15 law to the Administrator on or after the date of the enact16 ment of the Air Traffic Management System Performance

17 Improvement Act of 1996.’’.

18 SEC. 314. MANAGEMENT ADVISORY COUNCIL.

19 Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, as

20 amended by section 313 of this title, is further amended

21 by adding at the end the following new subsection:

22 ‘‘(p) MANAGEMENT ADVISORY COUNCIL.—

23 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Within 3 months after

24 the date of enactment of the Air Traffic Manage25 ment System Performance Improvement Act of
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1 1996, the Administrator shall establish an advisory

2 council which shall be known as the Federal Aviation

3 Management Advisory Council (in this subsection re4 ferred to as the ‘Council’). With respect to Federal

5 Aviation Administration management, policy, spend6 ing, user fees, and regulatory matters affecting the

7 aviation industry, the Council may submit com8 ments, recommended modifications, and dissenting

9 views to the Administrator. The Administrator shall

10 include in any submission to Congress, the Sec11 retary, or the general public, and in any submission

12 for publication in the Federal Register, a description

13 of the comments, recommended modifications, and

14 dissenting views received from the Council, together

15 with the reasons for any differences between the

16 views of the Council and the views or actions of the

17 Administrator.

18 ‘‘(2) MEMBERSHIP.—The Council shall consist

19 of 15 members, who shall consist of—

20 ‘‘(A) a designee of the Secretary of Trans21 portation;

22 ‘‘(B) a designee of the Secretary of De23 fense; and

24 ‘‘(C) 13 members appointed by the Presi25 dent after consulting the Senate, representing
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1 aviation interests, at least 6 of whom shall rep2 resent the interests of the air carrier industry

3 (of which at least 2 of whom shall represent

4 major air carriers with gross revenues under

5 $4,000,000,000, at least 1 of whom shall rep6 resent the interests of cargo carriers, and at

7 least 1 of whom shall represent the interests of

8 regional air carriers).

9 ‘‘(3) QUALIFICATIONS.—No member appointed

10 under paragraph (2)(C) may serve as an officer or

11 employee of the United States Government while

12 serving as a member of the Council.

13 ‘‘(4) FUNCTIONS.—

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—(i) The Council shall

15 provide advice and counsel to the Administrator

16 on issues which affect or are affected by the op17 erations of the Administrator. The Council shall

18 function as an oversight resource for manage19 ment, policy, spending, and regulatory matters

20 under the jurisdiction of the Administration.

21 ‘‘(ii) The Council shall review the rule22 making cost-benefit analysis process and de23 velop recommendations to improve the analysis

24 and ensure that the public interest is fully pro25 tected.
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1 ‘‘(iii) The Council shall review the process

2 through which the Administration determines to

3 use advisory circulars and service bulletins.

4 ‘‘(B) PANELS AND WORKING GROUPS.—

5 The chairman of the Council shall establish a

6 panel or working group, from among the mem7 bers of the Council, on the development of all

8 fees under sections 45301 and 45302, and may

9 establish such additional panels and working

10 groups, consisting of members of the Council,

11 as may be necessary to carry out the functions

12 of the Council.

13 ‘‘(C) MEETINGS.—The Council shall meet

14 on a regular and periodic basis or at the call of

15 the chairman or of the Administrator.

16 ‘‘(D) ACCESS TO DOCUMENTS AND

17 STAFF.—The Administration may give the

18 Council appropriate access to relevant docu19 ments and personnel of the Administration, and

20 the Administrator shall make available, consist21 ent with the authority to withhold commercial

22 and other proprietary information under section

23 552 of title 5 (commonly known as the ‘Free24 dom of Information Act’), cost data associated

25 with the acquisition and operation of air traffic
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1 service systems. Any member of the Council

2 who receives commercial or other proprietary

3 data from the Administrator shall be subject to

4 the provisions of section 1905 of title 18, per5 taining to unauthorized disclosure of such infor6 mation.

7 ‘‘(5) FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT NOT

8 TO APPLY.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5

9 U.S.C. App.) does not apply to the Council.

10 ‘‘(6) ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS.—

11 ‘‘(A) TERMS OF MEMBERS.—(i) Except as

12 provided in subparagraph (B), members of the

13 Council appointed by the President under para14 graph (2)(C) shall be appointed for a term of

15 3 years.

16 ‘‘(ii) Of the members first appointed by the

17 President—

18 ‘‘(I) 4 shall be appointed for terms of

19 1 year;

20 ‘‘(II) 5 shall be appointed for terms of

21 2 years; and

22 ‘‘(III) 4 shall be appointed for terms

23 of 3 years.
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1 ‘‘(iii) An individual chosen to fill a vacancy

2 shall be appointed for the unexpired term of the

3 member replaced.

4 ‘‘(iv) A member whose term expires shall

5 continue to serve until the date on which the

6 member’s successor takes office.

7 ‘‘(B) CHAIRMAN; VICE CHAIRMAN.—The

8 Council shall elect a chair and a vice chair from

9 among the members appointed under paragraph

10 (2)(C), each of whom shall serve for a term of

11 1 year. The vice chair shall perform the duties

12 of the chairman in the absence of the chairman.

13 ‘‘(C) TRAVEL AND PER DIEM.—Each mem14 ber of the Council shall be paid actual travel ex15 penses, and per diem in lieu of subsistence ex16 penses when away from his or her usual place

17 of residence, in accordance with section 5703 of

18 title 5.

19 ‘‘(D) DETAIL OF PERSONNEL FROM THE

20 ADMINISTRATION.—The Administrator shall

21 make available to the Council such staff, infor22 mation, and administrative services and assist23 ance as may reasonably be required to enable

24 the Council to carry out its responsibilities

25 under this subsection.’’.
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1 SEC. 315. AIRCRAFT ENGINE STANDARDS.

2 Subsection (a)(1) of section 44715 of title 49, United

3 States Code, is amended to read as follows:

4 ‘‘(a) STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS.—(1) To relieve

5 and protect the public health and welfare from aircraft

6 noise, sonic boom, and aircraft engine emissions, the Ad7 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, as he

8 deems necessary, shall prescribe—

9 ‘‘(A) standards to measure aircraft noise and

10 sonic boom;

11 ‘‘(B) regulations to control and abate aircraft

12 noise and sonic boom; and

13 ‘‘(C) emission standards applicable to the emis14 sion of any air pollutant from any class or classes

15 of aircraft engines which, in the judgment of the Ad16 ministrator, cause, or contribute to, air pollution

17 which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger

18 public health or welfare.’’.

19 SEC. 316. RURAL AIR FARE STUDY.

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall conduct a

21 study to—

22 (1) compare air fares paid (calculated as both

23 actual and adjusted air fares) for air transportation

24 on flights conducted by commercial air carriers—

25 (A) between—
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1 (i) nonhub airports located in small

2 communities; and

3 (ii) large hub airports; and

4 (B) between large hub airports;

5 (2) analyze—

6 (A) the extent to which passenger service

7 that is provided from nonhub airports is pro8 vided on—

9 (i) regional commuter commercial air

10 carriers; or

11 (ii) major air carriers;

12 (B) the type of aircraft employed in pro13 viding passenger service at nonhub airports;

14 and

15 (C) whether there is competition among

16 commercial air carriers with respect to the pro17 vision of air service to passengers from nonhub

18 airports.

19 (b) FINDINGS.—The Secretary shall include in the re20 port of the study conducted under subsection (a) findings

21 concerning—

22 (1) whether passengers who use commercial air

23 carriers to and from rural areas (as defined by the

24 Secretary) pay a disproportionately greater price for

25 that transportation than passengers who use com-
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•S 1801 IS

1 mercial air carriers between urban areas (as defined

2 by the Secretary);

3 (2) the nature of competition, if any, in rural

4 markets (as defined by the Secretary) for commer5 cial air carriers;

6 (3) whether a relationship exists between higher

7 air fares and competition among commercial air car8 riers for passengers travelling on jet aircraft from

9 small communities (as defined by the Secretary)

10 and, if such a relation exists, the nature of that rela11 tionship;

12 (4) the number of small communities that have

13 lost air service as a result of the deregulation of

14 commercial air carriers with respect to air fares;

15 (5) the number of small communities served by

16 airports with respect to which, after commercial air

17 carrier fares were deregulated, jet aircraft service

18 was replaced by turboprop aircraft service; and

19 (6) where such replacement occurred, any cor20 responding decreases in available seat capacity for

21 consumers at the airports referred to in that sub22 paragraph.

23 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 60 days after the date

24 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a final

25 report on the study carried out under subsection (a) to
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•S 1801 IS

1 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

2 of the Senate.

3 (d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the

4 following definitions shall apply:

5 (1) ADJUSTED AIR FARE.—The term ‘‘adjusted

6 air fare’’ means an actual air fare that is adjusted

7 for distance travelled by a passenger.

8 (2) AIR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘air carrier’’ is

9 defined in section 40102(a)(2) of title 49, United

10 States Code.

11 (3) AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘airport’’ is defined in

12 section 40102(9) of such title.

13 (4) COMMERCIAL AIR CARRIER.—The term

14 ‘‘commercial air carrier’’ means an air carrier that

15 provides air transportation for commercial purposes

16 (as determined by the Secretary).

17 (5) HUB AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘hub airport’’ is

18 defined in section 41731(a)(2) of such title.

19 (6) LARGE HUB AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘large

20 hub airport’’ shall be defined by the Secretary but

21 the definition may not include a small hub airport,

22 as that term is defined in section 41731(a)(5) of

23 such title.

24 (7) MAJOR AIR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘major air

25 carrier’’ shall be defined by the Secretary.
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•S 1801 IS

1 (8) NONHUB AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘nonhub air2 port’’ is defined in section 41731(a)(4) of such title.

3 (9) REGIONAL COMMUTER AIR CARRIER.—The

4 term ‘‘regional commuter air carrier’’ shall be de5 fined by the Secretary.

6 PART II—FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION

7 STREAMLINING PROGRAMS

8 SEC. 321. INNOVATIVE PROGRAM FOR AIR TRAFFIC CON9 TROL MODERNIZATION.

10 Chapter 401 of title 49, United States Code, is

11 amended—

12 (1) by redesignating section 40120 as section

13 40123; and

14 (2) by inserting after section 40119 the follow15 ing:

16 ‘‘§ 40120. Innovative program for air traffic control

17 modernization

18 ‘‘(a) INNOVATIVE PROGRAM.—The Administrator of

19 the Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter in this sec20 tion referred to as the ‘Administrator’) shall develop and

21 implement an innovative program under which an acquisi22 tion management system is used to procure goods and

23 services by the Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter

24 in this section referred to as the ‘Administration’).

25 ‘‘(b) EXEMPTION FROM PROCUREMENT LAWS.—
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2),

2 in carrying out the acquisition management system

3 used under the innovative program, the Adminis4 trator may waive all or any part of—

5 ‘‘(A) section 3709 of the Revised Statutes

6 (41 U.S.C. 5);

7 ‘‘(B) title III of the Federal Property and

8 Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C.

9 251 through 266);

10 ‘‘(C) the Office of Federal Procurement

11 Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 401 et seq.);

12 ‘‘(D) sections 8, 9, and 15 of the Small

13 Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637, 638, and 644),

14 but the Administrator shall provide resources

15 for the development and implementation of a

16 program that presents the maximum opportuni17 ties, to the extent possible, for small business

18 concerns and small business concerns owned

19 and controlled by socially and economically dis20 advantaged individuals to participate in the per21 formance of contracts awarded by the Adminis22 tration;

23 ‘‘(E) any provision of law that, pursuant to

24 section 34 of the Office of Federal Procurement

25 Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 430), is listed in the Fed-
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•S 1801 IS

1 eral Acquisition Regulation as being inapplica2 ble—

3 ‘‘(i) to contracts for the procurement

4 of commercial items; or

5 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a subcontract

6 under the innovative program, to sub7 contracts for the procurement of commer8 cial items;

9 ‘‘(F) the Federal Acquisition Streamlining

10 Act of 1994 (Public Law 103–355);

11 ‘‘(G) subchapter V of chapter 35 of title

12 31, United States Code, relating to the procure13 ment protest system;

14 ‘‘(H) the Brooks Automatic Data Process15 ing Act (section 111 of the Federal Property

16 and Administrative Services Act of 1949; 40

17 U.S.C. 759);

18 ‘‘(I) the Federal Acquisition Regulation

19 and any law that is not listed in subparagraphs

20 (A) through (G) providing authority to promul21 gate regulations in the Federal Acquisition Reg22 ulation.

23 ‘‘(2) EXEMPTIONS FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF

24 DEFENSE.—The Department of Defense shall have

25 the same exemptions from acquisition laws as are
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1 waived by the Administrator under paragraph (1)

2 when engaged in joint actions to improve or replen3 ish the national air traffic control system. The Ad4 ministration may acquire real property, goods, and

5 services through the Department of Defense, or

6 other appropriate agencies, but is bound by the ac7 quisition laws and regulations governing those cases.

8 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The Administrator

9 may not waive the laws referred to in paragraph (1)

10 until the expiration of the 30-day period referred to

11 in subsection (d)(2).

12 ‘‘(c) DEVELOPMENT OF ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT

13 SYSTEM.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

15 after the date of enactment of the Air Traffic Man16 agement System Performance Improvement Act of

17 1996, the Administrator, in consultation with such

18 governmental and nongovernmental experts in acqui19 sition management systems as the Administrator

20 may employ, shall develop an acquisition manage21 ment system for the Administration. Notwithstand22 ing any other provision of law to the contrary, the

23 Administrator may, for purposes of this section, re24 tain such experts under a contract awarded on a

25 basis other than a competitive basis and without re-
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1 gard to any such provisions requiring competitive

2 bidding or precluding sole source contract authority.

3 In developing the system, the Administrator may

4 utilize the services of experts and consultants under

5 section 3109 of title 5, without regard to the limita6 tion imposed by the last sentence of section 3109(b)

7 of such title, and may contract on a sole source

8 basis, notwithstanding any other provision of law to

9 the contrary.

10 ‘‘(2) REQUIREMENTS.—The acquisition man11 agement system to be developed by the Adminis12 trator under paragraph (1) shall be—

13 ‘‘(A) designed to ensure that new equip14 ment is installed and certified as quickly as pos15 sible without sacrificing safety, principles of

16 fairness, and protection against waste, fraud,

17 and abuse;

18 ‘‘(B) designed to ensure the best prac19 ticable acquisitions in terms of best value; and

20 ‘‘(C) designed to ensure that services are

21 acquired in the most effective and efficient

22 manner.

23 ‘‘(d) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Upon completion of the de25 velopment of the acquisition management system,
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1 the Administrator shall submit a comprehensive plan

2 describing the acquisition management system to the

3 Congress. The Administrator shall also transmit

4 with the plan a copy of all suggestions and com5 ments provided to the Administration by the Depart6 ment of Transportation, and by outside experts (if

7 any), on the acquisition management system.

8 ‘‘(2) DATE OF IMPLEMENTATION.—The Admin9 istrator may begin to implement the acquisition

10 management system only after the expiration of the

11 30-day period that begins on the date on which the

12 plan is submitted to the Congress under paragraph

13 (1).

14 ‘‘(e) EXPERT EVALUATION.—On the date which is 3

15 years after the acquisition management system is imple16 mented, the Administration shall employ outside experts

17 to provide an independent evaluation of the effectiveness

18 of the system within 3 months after such date. The Ad19 ministrator shall transmit a copy of the evaluation to the

20 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of

21 the Senate, and the Committee on Transportation and In22 frastructure of the House of Representatives.

23 ‘‘(f) MODIFICATIONS TO SYSTEM.—The Adminis24 trator may periodically make modifications to the acquisi25 tion management system. Any such modifications shall be
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1 submitted to the Congress under subsection (d) in the

2 same manner as the acquisition management system plan

3 and may not be implemented until after the expiration of

4 the 30-day period beginning on the date of submission.’’.

5 SEC. 322. AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL MODERNIZATION RE6 VIEWS.

7 Chapter 401 of title 49, United States Code, as

8 amended by section 321, is further amended by inserting

9 after section 40120 the following new section:

10 ‘‘§ 40121. Air traffic control modernization reviews

11 ‘‘(a) REQUIRED TERMINATIONS OF ACQUISITIONS.—

12 The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration

13 (hereafter referred to in this section as the ‘Adminis14 trator’) shall terminate any program initiated after the

15 date of enactment of the Air Traffic Management System

16 Performance Improvement Act of 1996 and funded under

17 the Facilities and Equipment account that—

18 ‘‘(1) is more than 50 percent over the cost goal

19 established for the program;

20 ‘‘(2) fails to achieve at least 50 percent of the

21 performance goals established for the program; or

22 ‘‘(3) is more than 50 percent behind schedule

23 as determined in accordance with the schedule goal

24 established for the program.
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1 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZED TERMINATIONS OF ACQUISI2 TIONS.—The Administrator shall consider terminating,

3 under the authority of subsection (a), any substantial ac4 quisition that—

5 ‘‘(1) is more than 10 percent over the cost goal

6 established for the program;

7 ‘‘(2) fails to achieve at least 90 percent of the

8 performance goals established for the program; or

9 ‘‘(3) is more than 10 percent behind schedule

10 as determined in accordance with the schedule goal

11 established for the program.

12 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION AND REPORT.—

13 ‘‘(1) CONTINUANCE OF PROGRAM, ETC.—Not14 withstanding subsection (a), the Administrator may

15 continue an acquisition program required to be ter16 minated under subsection (a) if the Administrator

17 determines that termination would be inconsistent

18 with the development or operation of the national air

19 transportation system in a safe and efficient man20 ner.

21 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—If the Administrator makes a

22 determination under paragraph (1) the Adminis23 trator shall transmit a copy of the determination, to24 gether with a statement of the basis for the deter25 mination, to the Committees on Appropriations of
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1 the Senate and the House of Representatives, the

2 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor3 tation of the Senate, and the Committee on Trans4 portation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep5 resentatives.’’.

6 SEC. 323. INNOVATIVE PROGRAM FOR FEDERAL AVIATION

7 ADMINISTRATION SERVICES.

8 Chapter 401 of title 49, United States Code, as

9 amended by section 322, is further amended by inserting

10 after section 40121 the following new section:

11 ‘‘§ 40122. Innovative program for Federal Aviation

12 Administration services

13 ‘‘(a) INNOVATIVE PROGRAM.—The Administrator of

14 the Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter in this sec15 tion referred to as the ‘Administrator’) shall develop and

16 implement an innovative program under which a personnel

17 management system is used for the management, com18 pensation, and advancement of Federal Aviation Adminis19 tration (hereafter in this section referred to as the ‘Admin20 istration’) employees.

21 ‘‘(b) EXEMPTION FROM CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF

22 TITLE 5.—

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro24 vided in this section, under the innovative program,
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1 the Administration shall be exempt from parts II

2 and III of title 5.

3 ‘‘(2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The exemption pro4 vided by paragraph (1) shall not take effect until the

5 expiration of the 30-day period specified in sub6 section (d)(2).

7 ‘‘(c) DEVELOPMENT OF PERSONNEL MANAGEMENT

8 SYSTEM.—

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days

10 after the date of enactment of the Air Traffic Man11 agement System Performance Improvement Act of

12 1996, the Administrator shall develop a personnel

13 management system for the Administration. Not14 withstanding any other provision of law to the con15 trary, the Administrator may, for purposes of this

16 section, retain such experts under a contract award17 ed on a basis other than a competitive basis and

18 without regard to any such provisions requiring com19 petitive bidding or precluding sole source contract

20 authority. In developing the system, the Adminis21 trator may utilize the services of experts and con22 sultants under section 3109 of title 5 without regard

23 to the limitation imposed by the last sentence of sec24 tion 3109(b) of such title. In developing the system,

25 the Administrator shall ensure that it responds to
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•S 1801 IS

1 the needs of and is consistent with the innovative ac2 quisition management system developed pursuant to

3 section 40120.

4 ‘‘(2) GOAL.—The goal of the personnel manage5 ment system to be developed by the Administrator

6 under this section is to provide, consistent with the

7 requirements of this section, the Administration with

8 the ability—

9 ‘‘(A) to hire, promote, and fire employees

10 as in the private sector;

11 ‘‘(B) to establish a pay structure as needed

12 to conduct the business of the Administration

13 in an efficient and effective manner within

14 available resources;

15 ‘‘(C) to provide salaries designed to attract

16 the best qualified employees within available re17 sources;

18 ‘‘(D) to staff facilities that are difficult to

19 staff;

20 ‘‘(E) to move personnel to those facilities

21 where they are most needed; and

22 ‘‘(F) to continue to provide an appropriate

23 framework for labor-management relations con24 cerning terms and conditions of employment.
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1 ‘‘(3) CONSULTATION AND NEGOTIATION.—In

2 developing the personnel management system, the

3 Administrator shall negotiate with the exclusive bar4 gaining representatives of employees of the Adminis5 tration certified under section 7111 of title 5 and

6 consult with other employees of the Administration.

7 The negotiation with the exclusive bargaining rep8 resentatives shall be completed on or before the 90th

9 day after the date of enactment of the Air Traffic

10 Management System Performance Improvement Act

11 of 1996.

12 ‘‘(4) MEDIATION.—If the Administrator does

13 not reach an agreement under paragraph (3) with

14 the exclusive bargaining representatives on any pro15 vision of the personnel management system, the

16 services of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation

17 Service shall be used to attempt to reach such agree18 ment. If the services of the Federal Mediation and

19 Conciliation Service do not lead to an agreement, the

20 Administrator shall include in the plan to be submit21 ted to Congress under subsection (d) the objections

22 of the exclusive bargaining representatives and the

23 reasons for the objections.

24 ‘‘(5) COST SAVINGS AND PRODUCTIVITY

25 GOALS.—In negotiating a new personnel system, the
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1 Administration and the exclusive bargaining rep2 resentatives of the employees shall use every reason3 able effort to find cost savings and to increase pro4 ductivity within each of the affected bargaining

5 units.

6 ‘‘(6) ANNUAL BUDGET DISCUSSIONS.—The Ad7 ministration and the exclusive bargaining represent8 atives of the employees shall meet annually for the

9 purpose of finding additional cost savings within the

10 Administration’s annual budget as it applies to each

11 of the affected bargaining units and throughout the

12 agency.

13 ‘‘(d) NOTICE TO CONGRESS.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Upon development of the

15 personnel management system under this section,

16 the Administrator shall submit a comprehensive plan

17 describing the personnel management system to the

18 Congress. The Administrator shall also transmit

19 with the plan a copy of all suggestions and com20 ments provided to the Administration by the Depart21 ment of Transportation, and by outside experts (if

22 any), on the personnel management system.

23 ‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION.—The Administration

24 may begin to implement the personnel management

25 system only after the expiration of the 30-day period
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•S 1801 IS

1 that begins on the date the plan is submitted to the

2 Congress.

3 ‘‘(e) EXPERT EVALUATION.—On the date which is 3

4 years after the personnel management system is imple5 mented, the Administration shall employ outside experts

6 to provide an independent evaluation of the effectiveness

7 of the system within 3 months after such date. For this

8 purpose, the Administrator may utilize the services of ex9 perts and consultants under section 3109 of title 5 without

10 regard to the limitation imposed by the last sentence of

11 section 3109(b) of such title, and may contract on a sole

12 source basis, notwithstanding any other provision of law

13 to the contrary.

14 ‘‘(f) EMPLOYEE RIGHTS AND BENEFITS.—The en15 actment of this section shall not result in the exemption

16 of employees of the Administration from any of the follow17 ing provisions of title 5:

18 ‘‘(1) Section 2302(b) (relating to whistleblower

19 protection).

20 ‘‘(2) Sections 3308–3320 (relating to veterans’

21 preference).

22 ‘‘(3) Section 7116(b)(7) (relating to prohibition

23 of the right to strike).

24 ‘‘(4) Section 7204 (relating to antidiscrimina25 tion).
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1 ‘‘(5) Chapter 63 (relating to leave).

2 ‘‘(6) Chapter 71 (relating to labor-management

3 relations).

4 ‘‘(7) Chapter 73 (relating to suitability, secu5 rity, and conduct).

6 ‘‘(8) Chapter 81 (relating to compensation for

7 work injuries).

8 ‘‘(9) Chapter 83 (relating to retirement).

9 ‘‘(10) Chapter 84 (relating to the Federal Em10 ployees’ Retirement System).

11 ‘‘(11) Chapter 85 (relating to unemployment

12 compensation).

13 ‘‘(12) Chapter 87 (relating to life insurance).

14 ‘‘(13) Chapter 89 (relating to health insurance).

15 ‘‘(14) Subchapter II of chapter 53 (with respect

16 to the pay of the Administrator).

17 ‘‘(g) PAY RESTRICTION.—No officer or employee of

18 the Administration may receive an annual rate of basic

19 pay in excess of the annual rate of basic pay payable to

20 the Administrator.

21 ‘‘(h) ETHICS.—The Administration shall be subject

22 to Executive Order 12674 and regulations and opinions

23 promulgated by the Office of Government Ethics, includ24 ing those set forth in section 2635 of title 5 of the Code

25 of Federal Regulations.
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1 ‘‘(i) EMPLOYEE PROTECTIONS.—Employment rights,

2 wages, and benefits of employees of the Administration

3 shall not be adversely affected by reason of the enactment

4 of this section, except for unacceptable performance or by

5 reason of a reduction in force or reorganization, during

6 the period commencing on the effective date of the Air

7 Traffic Management System Performance Improvement

8 Act of 1996 and ending on the date determined under sub9 section (d)(2).

10 ‘‘(j) LABOR-MANAGEMENT AGREEMENTS.—Except

11 as otherwise provided by this title and the Air Traffic

12 Management System Performance Improvement Act of

13 1996, all labor-management agreements covering employ14 ees of the Administration that are in effect on the effective

15 date of the Air Traffic Management System Performance

16 Improvement Act of 1996 shall remain in effect until their

17 normal expiration date, unless the Administrator and the

18 exclusive bargaining representative agree to the contrary.

19 ‘‘(k) MODIFICATIONS TO SYSTEM.—The Adminis20 trator may periodically make modifications to the person21 nel management system. Any such modifications shall be

22 submitted to the Congress under subsection (d) in the

23 same manner as the personnel management system plan

24 and may not be implemented until after the expiration of

25 the 30-day period beginning on the date of submission.’’.
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1 SEC. 324. CONFORMING AMENDMENT.

2 The chapter analysis for chapter 401 of title 49,

3 United States Code, is amended by striking the item relat4 ing to section 40120 and inserting the following new

5 items:

‘‘40120. Innovative program for air traffic control modernization.

‘‘40121. Air traffic control modernization reviews.

‘‘40122. Innovative program for Federal Aviation Administration services.

‘‘40123. Relationship to other laws.’’.

6 PART III—SYSTEM TO FUND CERTAIN FEDERAL

7 AVIATION ADMINISTRATION FUNCTIONS

8 SEC. 331. FINDINGS.

9 The Congress finds the following:

10 (1) The Federal Aviation Administration is rec11 ognized throughout the world as a leader in aviation

12 safety.

13 (2) The Administration certifies aircraft, en14 gines, propellers and other manufactured parts.

15 (3) The Administration certifies more than 650

16 training schools for pilots and non-pilots, more than

17 4,858 repair stations, and more than 193 mainte18 nance schools.

19 (4) The Administration certifies pilot examin20 ers, who are then qualified to determine if a person

21 has the skills necessary to become a pilot.

22 (5) The Administration fully certifies more than

23 6,000 medical examiners, each of whom is then fully
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1 qualified to medically certify the qualifications of pi2 lots and non-pilots.

3 (6) The Administration fully certifies more than

4 470 airports, and provides a limited certification for

5 another 205 airports. Other airports in the United

6 States are also reviewed by the Administration.

7 (7) The Administration each year performs

8 more than 355,000 inspections.

9 (8) The Administration issues more than

10 655,000 pilots licenses and more than 560,000

11 nonpilot licenses (including mechanics).

12 (9) The Administration’s certification means

13 that the product meets world-wide recognized stand14 ards of safety and reliability.

15 (10) The Administration’s certification means

16 aviation-related equipment and services meet world17 wide recognized standards.

18 (11) The Administration’s certification is recog19 nized by governments and businesses throughout the

20 world and as such is a valuable element for any com21 pany desiring to sell aviation-related products

22 throughout the world.

23 (12) The Administration certification con24 stitutes a valuable license, franchise or privilege, and

25 confers many benefits on the holders.
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1 (13) The Administration also is a major pur2 chaser of computers, radars, and other systems

3 needed to run the air traffic control system. The Ad4 ministration’s design, acceptance, commissioning, or

5 certification of such equipment enables the private

6 sector to market those products around the world,

7 and as such confers a benefit on the manufacturer.

8 (14) The Administration provides extensive

9 services to public use aircraft, including the military.

10 Administration cost allocation studies attribute

11 about 15 percent of the cost of the airway system

12 to public use aircraft. The estimated cost of these

13 air traffic services in 1993 was $1,100,000,000.

14 Most of these services were provided to the military.

15 The annual appropriations from the general fund of

16 the Treasury to the Administration have been con17 sidered, in part, payment for the cost of such serv18 ices, but are expected to decline in future years.

19 (15) The Administration must be able to de20 sign, to the maximum extent possible, a perform21 ance-based system to recover its interest and cost in

22 its certification and purchasing systems.

23 SEC. 332. PURPOSES.

24 The purposes of this part are—
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1 (1) to provide a financial structure for the Ad2 ministration so that it will be able to support the fu3 ture growth in the national aviation and airport

4 system;

5 (2) to establish a program of incentive-based

6 fees for services to improve air traffic management

7 system performance and to establish appropriate lev8 els of cost accountability for air traffic management

9 services provided by the Administration;

10 (3) to ensure that the funding obtained by user

11 fees set by this title will be dedicated solely for the

12 use of the Administration;

13 (4) to authorize the Administration to recover

14 the costs of its services from those who benefit from

15 the national aviation system and the services pro16 vided by the Administration;

17 (5) to allow the Administration to develop a fee

18 system based on the cost or value of the services

19 provided;

20 (6) to demonstrate to each segment of the avia21 tion industry the benefits of a cost-based or value22 based user fee system;

23 (7) to replace the existing user charges with a

24 new fee system as a means of achieving a more effi-
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1 cient and effective Administration for the aviation

2 transportation industry; and

3 (8) to have the Administration develop fee sys4 tems that do not directly impinge upon the nonbusi5 ness jet and noncommercial aspects of the general

6 aviation community.

7 SEC. 333. USER FEES FOR VARIOUS FEDERAL AVIATION AD8 MINISTRATION SERVICES.

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 453 of title 49, United

10 States Code, is amended by striking section 45301 and

11 inserting the following new section:

12 ‘‘§ 45301. General provisions

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed14 eral Aviation Administration (hereafter in this section re15 ferred to as the ‘Administrator’) shall submit to the Con16 gress a performance-based fee system, to the maximum

17 extent possible—

18 ‘‘(1) not later than 1 year after the date of en19 actment of the Air Traffic Management System Per20 formance Improvement Act of 1996, for services

21 other than air traffic control services, including

22 training, licensing, regulatory proceedings, and ac23 tivities directly necessary for certification; and

24 ‘‘(2) not later than 6 months after such date of

25 enactment, for—
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1 ‘‘(A) services (other than air traffic control

2 services) provided to a foreign government; and

3 ‘‘(B) air traffic control services for flights

4 over the United States or its territories by air

5 carriers that neither arrive at nor depart from

6 an airport in the United States or its territories

7 (other than such flights by foreign government

8 aircraft engaged on official business).

9 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—To the maximum extent

11 possible, the Administrator, in developing a fee sys12 tem, shall consider—

13 ‘‘(A) the impact on segments of the avia14 tion industry; and

15 ‘‘(B) the fair value, or cost, of the service

16 provided by the Federal Aviation Administra17 tion (hereafter in this section referred to as the

18 ‘Administration’).

19 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL STANDARDS FOR AIRCRAFT

20 MANUFACTURING CERTIFICATION FEES.—In the

21 case of aircraft manufacturing certification services,

22 in establishing fees the Administrator shall—

23 ‘‘(A) not charge fees for administrative

24 and overhead costs not directly related to serv25 ice activities;
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(B) consider the effect, both domestically

2 and internationally, of fees on each industry

3 sector;

4 ‘‘(C) provide a basis for reducing user fees,

5 in appropriate cases, when manufacturers pro6 vide in-kind services, such as training, to the

7 Administration;

8 ‘‘(D) relate user fees to timeliness of Ad9 ministration services;

10 ‘‘(E) create reasonable incentives for the

11 Administration, and for payors, to reduce the

12 amount of Administration costs required to per13 form services; and

14 ‘‘(F) avoid cross-subsidization among in15 dustry sectors.

16 ‘‘(c) CONSULTATION WITH MANAGEMENT ADVISORY

17 COUNCIL.—In developing proposals under this section, the

18 Administrator shall consult with the Management Advi19 sory Council established under section 106(p) and, to the

20 maximum extent possible, seek to develop a consensus.

21 ‘‘(d) USE OF EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—In de22 veloping the system, the Administrator may consult with

23 such nongovernmental experts as the Administrator may

24 employ and the Administrator may utilize the services of

25 experts and consultants under section 3109 of title 5 with-
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•S 1801 IS

1 out regard to the limitation imposed by the last sentence

2 of section 3109(b) of such title, and may contract on a

3 sole source basis, notwithstanding any other provision of

4 law to the contrary. Notwithstanding any other provision

5 of law to the contrary, the Administrator may retain such

6 experts under a contract awarded on a basis other than

7 a competitive basis and without regard to any such provi8 sions requiring competitive bidding or precluding sole

9 source contract authority. The Administrator shall cause

10 a copy of the proposed fee system to be printed in the

11 Federal Register upon its submission to the Congress.

12 ‘‘(e) FEES EFFECTIVE 45 DAYS AFTER SUBMIS13 SION.—

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Unless disapproved by the

15 Congress under section 45303(c), any fees proposed

16 by the Administrator under this section shall take

17 effect 45 days after the date on which the proposal

18 is submitted to the Congress, or on such later date

19 as the Administrator may propose. If a fee proposal

20 is submitted to the Congress less than 45 days be21 fore the date on which the Congress adjourns sine

22 die, or less than 45 days before any 30-day period

23 in which neither House of the Congress is in session,

24 then the fees so proposed shall not take effect unless

25 resubmitted under this section. Any proposal resub-
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•S 1801 IS

1 mitted shall be considered a new submission for ap2 plying the first sentence of this paragraph to the re3 submitted proposal.

4 ‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION DELAYED IF TRUST

5 FUND AMOUNTS ADEQUATE.—Beginning with fiscal

6 year 1998, no fee proposed by the Administrator

7 may be imposed under subsection (a)(1) unless, for

8 the preceding fiscal year, the sum of the outlays

9 from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund exceeds

10 the receipts of the Fund derived from Federal taxes,

11 amounts equivalent to the receipts from which are

12 credited to the Airport and Airway Trust Fund es13 tablished under section 9502 of the Internal Reve14 nue Code of 1986 (hereafter in this chapter referred

15 to as the ‘trust fund taxes’).

16 ‘‘(3) AIRCRAFT MANUFACTURING CERTIFI17 CATION FEES NOT IMPLEMENTED BEFORE AIR

18 TRAFFIC CONTROL FEES.—Notwithstanding any

19 other provision of this Act, the Administrator may

20 not impose a fee under this section for aircraft man21 ufacturing certification services before imposing a

22 fee for air traffic control services under section

23 45302.

24 ‘‘(f) AGREEMENT WITH DEPARTMENT OF DE25 FENSE.—Not later than 6 months after the date of enact-
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•S 1801 IS

1 ment of the Air Traffic Management System Performance

2 Improvement Act of 1996, the Administration shall enter

3 into an agreement with the Department of Defense under

4 which the Administration will be reimbursed for the net

5 cost of air traffic control services provided to the Depart6 ment of Defense.

7 ‘‘(g) TERMINATION.—Fees imposed under subsection

8 (a)(1) shall terminate 3 years after going into effect, but

9 any amounts collected shall remain available until ex10 pended.

11 ‘‘(h) ADDITIONAL SYSTEM PROPOSALS.—Not later

12 than 6 months before the date on which any fee system

13 imposed under this section terminates, the Administrator

14 shall submit to the Congress a proposal for a fee system

15 to replace the terminating system. Any replacement fee

16 system proposed under this subsection shall be developed

17 in consultation with the Management Advisory Council es18 tablished under section 106(p) in the same manner as

19 under subsection (c). The Administrator shall submit to

20 the Congress at the same time as the proposed is submit21 ted, a review of the effectiveness of the standards estab22 lished for the fee system the proposed fee system is in23 tended to replace, conducted by independent experts. The

24 proposed replacement fee system shall take effect upon the

25 termination of the fee system it replaces unless dis-
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•S 1801 IS

1 approved by the Congress under section 45303(c), and

2 shall terminate 3 years after going into effect.

3 ‘‘(i) CERTAIN FEES PROHIBITED.—The Administra4 tion may not impose fees under subsection (a)(1) for the

5 direct cost of accident investigations, or the costs of in6 spections of or enforcement actions initiated against any

7 segment of the aviation industry.’’.

8 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy9 sis for chapter 453 of title 49, United States Code, is

10 amended by striking the item relating to section 45301

11 and inserting the following new item:

‘‘45301. General provisions.’’.

12 (c) REPEAL.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 70118 of title 49,

14 United States Code, is repealed.

15 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter

16 analysis for chapter 701 of title 49, United States

17 Code, is amended by striking the item relating to

18 section 70118.

19 SEC. 334. USER FEES FOR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL SERV20 ICES.

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 453 of title 49, United

22 States Code, as amended by section 333 of this title, is

23 further amended by striking section 45302 and inserting

24 the following:
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1 ‘‘§ 45302. User fees for air traffic control services

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the

3 date of enactment of the Air Traffic Management System

4 Performance Improvement Act of 1996, the Administrator

5 of the Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter in this

6 section referred to as the ‘Administrator’) shall submit to

7 the Congress a proposed fee system for air traffic control

8 services. In developing the proposal, the Administrator

9 may utilize the services of experts and consultants under

10 section 3109 of title 5 without regard to the limitation

11 imposed by the last sentence of section 3109(b) of such

12 title, and may contract on a sole source basis, notwith13 standing any other provision of law to the contrary, to de14 velop air traffic control user fees based on improved sys15 tem performance. The Administrator shall cause a copy

16 of the proposed fee system to be printed in the Federal

17 Register upon its submission to the Congress.

18 ‘‘(b) CONSIDERATIONS.—To the maximum extent

19 feasible, in developing a fee system under this section, the

20 Administrator shall consider—

21 ‘‘(1) the impact on air fares (including low-fare,

22 high-frequency service) and competition;

23 ‘‘(2) the existing contributions provided by indi24 vidual air carriers toward funding of the Federal

25 Aviation Administration and the air traffic control
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•S 1801 IS

1 system (through contributions to the Airport and

2 Airway Trust Fund);

3 ‘‘(3) the continuation of promoting fair and

4 competitive practices;

5 ‘‘(4) the unique circumstances associated with

6 inter island air carrier service in Hawaii;

7 ‘‘(5) the impact on service to small commu8 nities;

9 ‘‘(6) the impact on services provided by regional

10 air carriers; and

11 ‘‘(7) several alternative methodologies for cal12 culating fees so as to achieve as fair and reasonable

13 distribution of the costs of service among users.

14 ‘‘(c) LIMITATIONS.—

15 ‘‘(1) TRUST FUND PAYORS.—Fees imposed

16 under this section on any segment of the aviation in17 dustry (other than on flights operated by air carriers

18 within United States territories or between such ter19 ritories and foreign countries) subject to Federal

20 taxes, amounts equivalent to the receipts of which

21 are credited to the Airport and Airway Trust Fund

22 established under section 9502 of the Internal Reve23 nue Code of 1986 (hereafter in this section referred

24 to as ‘trust fund taxes’) shall take effect on the later

25 of—
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(A) the date established under subsection

2 (d) of this section, or

3 ‘‘(B) the date immediately following the

4 date on which the trust fund taxes paid by that

5 segment terminate.

6 ‘‘(2) OTHER USERS.—Notwithstanding para7 graph (1), fees imposed under this section may be

8 imposed on any user of air traffic control services

9 not subject to trust fund taxes, so long as any such

10 fees are consistent with international agreements.

11 ‘‘(3) EXEMPTION FOR CERTAIN AIRCRAFT.—No

12 fee may be imposed under this section on sport and

13 recreation aircraft or on agricultural aircraft.

14 ‘‘(d) FEES EFFECTIVE 45 DAYS AFTER SUBMIS15 SION.—Unless disapproved by the Congress under section

16 45303(c), fees proposed by the Administrator under this

17 section take effect 45 days after the date on which the

18 proposal is submitted to the Congress, or on such later

19 date as the Administrator may propose.

20 ‘‘(e) DEFINITIONS.—For the purposes of this section

21 the following definitions shall apply:

22 ‘‘(1) SEGMENT.—The term ‘segment’ refers

23 to—

24 ‘‘(A) commercial airlines;

25 ‘‘(B) commercial cargo air carriers;
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(C) business jets;

2 ‘‘(D) general aviation; and

3 ‘‘(E) public use.

4 ‘‘(2) BUSINESS JETS.—The term ‘business jets’

5 means turbine engine aircraft other than rotorcraft

6 and aircraft used exclusively in air carrier service.

7 ‘‘(3) SPORT AND RECREATION AIRCRAFT.—The

8 term ‘sport and recreation aircraft’ means non-pow9 ered aircraft, rotorcraft, and reciprocating piston en10 gine aircraft not used to provide air carrier service.

11 ‘‘(f) CONSULTATION WITH MANAGEMENT ADVISORY

12 COUNCIL.—In developing proposals under subsection (a)

13 of this section, the Administrator shall consult with the

14 Management Advisory Council established under section

15 106(p) and, to the maximum extent possible, seek to de16 velop a consensus.

17 ‘‘(g) TERMINATION.—Fees imposed under this sec18 tion shall terminate 3 years after going into effect, but

19 any amounts collected shall remain available until ex20 pended.

21 ‘‘(h) ADDITIONAL SYSTEM PROPOSALS.—Not later

22 than 6 months before the date on which any fee system

23 imposed under this section terminates, the Administrator

24 shall submit to the Congress a proposal for a fee system

25 to replace the terminating system. Any replacement fee
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•S 1801 IS

1 system proposed under this subsection shall be developed

2 in consultation with the Management Advisory Council es3 tablished under section 106(p) in the same manner as

4 under subsection (f). The Administrator shall submit to

5 the Congress at the same time as the proposal is submit6 ted, a review of the effectiveness of the standards estab7 lished for the fee system the proposed fee system is in8 tended to replace, conducted by independent experts. The

9 proposed replacement fee system shall take effect upon the

10 termination of the fee system it replaces unless dis11 approved by the Congress under section 45303(c), and

12 shall terminate 3 years after going into effect.’’.

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy14 sis for chapter 453 of title 49, United States Code, is

15 amended by striking the item relating to section 45302

16 and inserting after the item relating to section 45301 the

17 following:

‘‘45302. User fees for air traffic control services.’’.

18 SEC. 335. ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS.

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 453 of title 49, United

20 States Code, as amended by section 334 of this title, is

21 further amended by—

22 (1) redesignating section 45303 as section

23 45304; and

24 (2) by inserting after section 45302 the follow25 ing:
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘§ 45303. Administrative provisions

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

3 ‘‘(1) FEES PAYABLE TO ADMINISTRATOR.—All

4 fees imposed and amounts collected under this chap5 ter for services performed, or materials furnished, by

6 the Federal Aviation Administration (hereafter in

7 this section referred to as the ‘Administration’) are

8 payable to the Administrator of the Administration.

9 ‘‘(2) REFUNDS.—The Administrator may re10 fund any fee paid by mistake or any amount paid in

11 excess of that required.

12 ‘‘(3) RECEIPTS CREDITED TO ACCOUNT.—Not13 withstanding section 3302 of title 31 all fees and

14 amounts collected by the Administration, except in15 surance premiums and other fees charged for the

16 provision of insurance and deposited in the Aviation

17 Insurance Revolving Fund and interest earned on in18 vestments of such Fund, and except amounts which

19 on the date of enactment of the Air Traffic Manage20 ment System Performance Improvement Act of 1996

21 are required to be credited to the general fund of the

22 Treasury, (whether imposed under this section or

23 not)—

24 ‘‘(A) shall be credited to a separate ac25 count established in the Treasury and made
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•S 1801 IS

1 available for Federal Aviation Administration

2 activities as offsetting collections;

3 ‘‘(B) shall be available immediately for ex4 penditure but only for Congressionally author5 ized and intended purposes; and

6 ‘‘(C) shall remain available until expended.

7 ‘‘(4) ANNUAL BUDGET REPORT BY ADMINIS8 TRATOR.—The Administrator shall, on the same day

9 each year as the President submits the annual budg10 et to the Congress, provide to the Committee on

11 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen12 ate and the Committee on Transportation and Infra13 structure of the House of Representatives—

14 ‘‘(A) a list of fee collections by the Admin15 istration during the preceding fiscal year;

16 ‘‘(B) a list of activities by the Administra17 tion during the preceding fiscal year that were

18 supported by fee expenditures and appropria19 tions;

20 ‘‘(C) budget plans for significant pro21 grams, projects, and activities of the Adminis22 tration, including out-year funding estimates;

23 ‘‘(D) any proposed disposition of surplus

24 fees by the Administration; and
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•S 1801 IS

1 ‘‘(E) such other information as those com2 mittees consider necessary.

3 ‘‘(5) INDEPENDENT STUDIES.—Not later than

4 6 months after the date of enactment of the Air

5 Traffic Management System Performance Improve6 ment Act of 1996, the Administrator shall cause to

7 be prepared by persons having no direct financial in8 terest in the results of such studies, independent

9 studies—

10 ‘‘(A) assessing the costs to the Administra11 tion occasioned by the provision of services to

12 each segment of the aviation system; and

13 ‘‘(B) reviewing the funding needs and as14 sumptions for operations, capital spending, and

15 airport infrastructure of the Administration,

16 taking into account the degree of funding need17 ed, in view of projected workload increases for

18 the agency, for the Administration to maintain,

19 at a minimum, the current levels and types of

20 operational and safety services it provides, both

21 in terms of quality and timeliness, for the bene22 fit of the aviation community and the traveling

23 public.

24 ‘‘(6) FEES NOT IMPOSED UNTIL 6 MONTHS

25 AFTER STUDIES COMPLETED.—Notwithstanding any
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•S 1801 IS

1 provision of law, no fee prescribed by section 45301

2 or 45302 shall be implemented prior to the date

3 which is 6 months after the date upon which the

4 studies performed pursuant to paragraph (5) of this

5 subsection have been submitted to the Congress.

6 ‘‘(7) COMPENSATION TO CARRIERS FOR ACTING

7 AS COLLECTION AGENTS.—The Administration shall

8 prescribe regulations to ensure that any air carrier

9 required, pursuant to the Air Traffic Management

10 System Performance Improvement Act of 1996 or

11 any amendments made by that Act, to collect a fee

12 imposed on another party by the Administrator may

13 collect from such other party an additional uniform

14 amount that the Administrator determines reflects

15 the necessary and reasonable expenses (net of inter16 est accruing to the carrier after collection and before

17 remittance) incurred in collecting and handling the

18 fee.

19 ‘‘(8) COST REDUCTION AND EFFICIENCY RE20 PORT.—

21 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—60 days prior to sub22 mission by the Administrator to the Congress of

23 a proposal for establishment, implementation,

24 or expansion in fees imposed on the aviation in25 dustry, the Administrator shall submit to the
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•S 1801 IS

1 Management Advisory Council established

2 under section 106(p) the report prepared under

3 subparagraph (B).

4 ‘‘(B) Prior to the submission of any pro5 posal for establishment, implementation, or ex6 pansion of any fees imposed on the aviation in7 dustry, the Administrator shall prepare a report

8 which includes—

9 ‘‘(i) a justification of the need for the

10 proposed fees;

11 ‘‘(ii) a statement of steps taken by the

12 Administrator to reduce costs and improve

13 efficiency within the Administration;

14 ‘‘(iii) an analysis of the impact of any

15 fee increase on each sector of the aviation

16 transportation industry; and

17 ‘‘(iv) a comparative analysis of any

18 decrease in taxes amounts equal to the re19 ceipts from which are credited to the Air20 port and Airway Trust Fund established

21 under section 9502 of the Internal Reve22 nue Code of 1986.

23 ‘‘(b) FEE ALLOCATION.—In the fee systems estab24 lished under sections 45301 and 45302, no segment of the
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1 aviation industry shall pay more than its fully allocated

2 costs as determined under subsection (a)(5)(A).

3 ‘‘(c) CONGRESSIONAL PROCEDURE.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—This subsection is enacted

5 by the Congress as an exercise of the rulemaking

6 power of the Senate and the House of Representa7 tives, respectively, and as such these provisions are

8 deemed to be a part of the rules of each House of

9 the Congress, respectively, applicable only to the

10 procedure to be followed in that House for resolu11 tions described in this subsection. These provisions

12 supersede other rules of each House of the Congress

13 only to the extent that they are inconsistent with

14 those other rules, and they are enacted with full rec15 ognition of the constitutional right of each House to

16 change them, to the extent that they relate to the

17 procedure of that House, in the same manner and

18 to the same extent as any other rule of that House.

19 ‘‘(2) RESOLUTION.—For purposes of this sub20 section, the term ‘resolution’ means a joint resolu21 tion relating to the disapproval of a fee proposal

22 submitted by the Administrator under section 45301

23 or 45302, the matter after the resolving clause of

24 which is as follows: ‘That the Congress disapproves

25 the fee proposal submitted by the Administrator of
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•S 1801 IS

1 the Federal Aviation Administration on llll

2 and identified as lll.’, the first blank space

3 being filled with the date on which the proposal was

4 submitted and the second being filled with the title

5 or other description of the proposal. The term does

6 not include a resolution that relates to more than

7 one proposal.

8 ‘‘(3) REFERRAL.—Upon introduction, a resolu9 tion shall be referred to the Committee on Com10 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate or

11 the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

12 of the House of Representatives.

13 ‘‘(4) MOTION TO DISCHARGE.—If the commit14 tee to which a resolution has been referred has not

15 reported it at the end of 20 calendar days after its

16 introduction, it is in order to move to discharge the

17 committee from further consideration of that resolu18 tion.

19 ‘‘(5) RULES FOR MOTION TO DISCHARGE.—A

20 motion to discharge may be made only by an individ21 ual favoring the resolution, is highly privileged (ex22 cept that it may not be made after the committee

23 has reported a resolution with respect to the same

24 proposal), and debate thereon shall be limited to not

25 more than 1 hour, with the time divided equally be-
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•S 1801 IS

1 tween those favoring and those opposing the motion.

2 An amendment to the motion is not in order, and it

3 is not in order to move to reconsider the vote by

4 which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to. Mo5 tions to postpone shall be decided without debate.

6 ‘‘(6) EFFECT OF MOTION.—If the motion to

7 discharge is agreed to or disagreed to, the motion

8 may not be renewed, nor may another motion to dis9 charge the committee be made with respect to any

10 other resolution with respect to the same proposal.

11 ‘‘(7) SENATE PROCEDURE.—

12 ‘‘(A) MOTION TO PROCEED.—When the

13 committee of the Senate has reported, or has

14 been discharged from further consideration of,

15 a resolution, it is at any time thereafter in

16 order (even though a previous motion to the

17 same affect has been disagreed to) to move to

18 proceed to the consideration of the resolution.

19 The motion is highly privileged and is not de20 batable. An amendment to the motion is not in

21 order, and it is not in order to move to recon22 sider the vote by which the motion is agreed to

23 or disagreed to.

24 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION ON DEBATE.—Debate in

25 the Senate on the resolution shall be limited to
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•S 1801 IS

1 not more than 10 hours, which shall be divided

2 equally between those favoring and those oppos3 ing the resolution. A motion further to limit de4 bate is not debatable. An amendment to, or mo5 tion to recommit, the resolution is not in order,

6 and it is not in order to move to reconsider the

7 vote by which the resolution is agreed to or dis8 agreed to.

9 ‘‘(C) NO DEBATE ON CERTAIN MOTIONS.—

10 In the Senate, motions to postpone made with

11 respect to the consideration of a resolution and

12 motions to proceed to the consideration of other

13 business shall be decided without debate.

14 ‘‘(D) APPEALS.—Appeals from the deci15 sions of the Chair relating to the application of

16 the rules of the Senate to the procedure relat17 ing to a resolution shall be decided without de18 bate.

19 ‘‘(8) EFFECT OF ADOPTION OF RESOLUTION BY

20 OTHER HOUSE.—If, before the passage by one

21 House of the Congress of a resolution of that House,

22 it receives from the other House a resolution, then

23 the following procedures apply:

24 ‘‘(A) The resolution of the other House

25 shall not be referred to a committee and may
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1 not be considered in the House receiving it, ex2 cept in the case of final passage as provided in

3 subparagraph (B)(i).

4 ‘‘(B) With respect to the resolution de5 scribed in subparagraph (A) of the House re6 ceiving it—

7 ‘‘(i) the procedure in that House shall

8 be the same as if no joint resolution had

9 been received from the other House; but

10 ‘‘(ii) the vote on final passage shall be

11 on the resolution of the other House.’’.

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy13 sis for chapter 453 of title 49, United States Code, is

14 amended by striking the item relating to section 45303

15 and inserting the following:

‘‘45303. Administrative provisions.

‘‘45304. Maximum fees for private person services.’’.

16 SEC. 336. INCREASE IN SPENDING CAPS UNDER TRUST

17 FUND.

18 Section 48104(c) of title 49, United States Code, is

19 amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ‘‘This

20 subsection shall be applied for fiscal years 1997 and 1998

21 by substituting ‘80 percent’ for ‘50 percent’ in paragraph

22 (1), and by substituting ‘90 percent’ for ‘70 percent’ in

23 paragraph (2).’’.
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1 SEC. 337. ADVANCE APPROPRIATIONS FOR AIRPORT AND

2 AIRWAY TRUST FUND ACTIVITIES.

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part C of subtitle VII of title 49,

4 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the

5 following new chapter:

6 ‘‘CHAPTER 482—ADVANCE APPROPRIA7 TIONS FOR AIRPORT AND AIRWAY

8 TRUST FACILITIES

‘‘Sec.

‘‘48201. Advance appropriations.

9 ‘‘§ 48201. Advance appropriations

10 ‘‘(a) MULTIYEAR AUTHORIZATIONS.—Beginning with

11 fiscal year 1998, any authorization of appropriations for

12 an activity for which amounts are to be appropriated from

13 the Airport and Airway Trust Fund established under sec14 tion 9502 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall pro15 vide funds for a period of not less than 3 fiscal years un16 less the activity for which appropriations are authorized

17 is to be concluded before the end of that period.

18 ‘‘(b) MULTIYEAR APPROPRIATIONS.—Beginning with

19 fiscal year 1998, amounts appropriated from the Airport

20 and Airway Trust Fund shall be appropriated for periods

21 of 3 fiscal years rather than annually.’’.

22 ‘‘(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The analysis for

23 subtitle VIII of title 49, United States Code, is amended

24 by adding at the end the following new item:
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‘‘482. Advance appropriations for airport and airway

trust facilities ............................................................................ 48201.’’.

1 SEC. 338. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

2 It is the sense of the Senate that:

3 (1) The Airport and Airway Trust Fund estab4 lished under section 9502 of the Internal Revenue

5 Code of 1986 contains a surplus. These funds rep6 resent moneys that the entire aviation industry has

7 contributed to support the Administration. These

8 funds remain unobligated. The Congress must make

9 every effort to expend the unobligated balances to

10 keep its compact with the aviation industry.

11 (2) The 1996 Congressional Budget Resolution

12 prescribes funding for transportation, which, if pro13 vided to the several transportation modes based on

14 precedent, will result in severely cutting funds for

15 the aviation system. Such cuts, absent Congressional

16 action, and if not addressed, could have a substan17 tial impact on the ability of the Administration to

18 meet future needs of the aviation industry. Such

19 cuts are likely despite the current surplus in the

20 Trust Fund.

21 (3) In conjunction with any fee systems devel22 oped pursuant to this title and the amendments

23 made by this title, the Congress must make every ef-
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1 fort to apply the unobligated surplus for use by the

2 Administration.

3 SEC. 339. RURAL AIR SERVICE SURVIVAL ACT.

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This section may be cited as the

5 ‘‘Rural Air Service Survival Act’’.

6 (b) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

7 (1) air service in rural areas is essential to a

8 national transportation network;

9 (2) the rural air service infrastructure supports

10 the safe operation of all air travel;

11 (3) rural air service creates economic benefits

12 for all air carriers by making the national aviation

13 system available to passengers from rural areas;

14 (4) rural air service has suffered since deregula15 tion;

16 (5) the essential air service program under the

17 Department of Transportation—

18 (A) provides essential airline access to

19 rural and isolated rural communities through20 out the Nation;

21 (B) is necessary for the economic growth

22 and development of rural communities;

23 (C) is a critical component of the national

24 transportation system of the United States; and
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1 (D) has endured serious funding cuts in

2 recent years; and

3 (6) a reliable source of funding must be estab4 lished to maintain air service in rural areas and the

5 essential air service program.

6 (c) ESSENTIAL AIR SERVICE AUTHORIZATION.—Sec7 tion 41742 of title 49, United States Code, is amended

8 to read as follows:

9 ‘‘§ 41742. Essential air service authorization

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Out of the amounts received by

11 the Administration from the fees authorized by sections

12 45301 through 45303 or otherwise provided to the Admin13 istration, the sum of $50,000,000 is authorized and shall

14 be made available immediately for obligation and expendi15 ture to carry out the essential air service program under

16 this subchapter for each fiscal year.

17 ‘‘(b) FUNDING FOR SMALL COMMUNITY AIR SERV18 ICE.—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, fees im19 posed under the authority contained in sections 45301

20 through 45303, including the authority contained in sec21 tion 45302(a)(2), shall be used to carry out the essential

22 air service program under this subchapter. Any amounts

23 from those fees that are not obligated or expended at the

24 end of the fiscal year for the purpose of funding the essen25 tial air service program under this subchapter shall be
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1 made available to the Federal Aviation Administration for

2 use in improving rural air safety under subchapter I of

3 chapter 471 of this title and shall be used exclusively for

4 projects at rural airports under this subchapter.’’.

5 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter analy6 sis for chapter 417 of title 49, United States Code, is

7 amended by striking the item relating to section 41742

8 and inserting the following:

‘‘41742. Essential air service authorization.’’.

9 (e) SECRETARY MAY REQUIRE MATCHING LOCAL

10 FUNDS.—Section 41737 of title 49, United States Code,

11 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following:

12 ‘‘(e) MATCHING FUNDS.—No earlier than 2 years

13 after the effective date of section 309 of the Air Traffic

14 Management System Performance Improvement Act of

15 1996, the Secretary may require an eligible agency, as de16 fined in section 40117(a)(2) of this title, to provide match17 ing funds of up to 10 percent for any payments it receives

18 under this subchapter.’’.

19 (f) TRANSFER OF ESSENTIAL AIR SERVICE PRO20 GRAM TO FAA.—The responsibility for administration of

21 subchapter II of chapter 417 of title 49, United States

22 Code, is transferred from the Secretary of Transportation

23 to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administra24 tion.
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1 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by

2 this section shall take effect on the first day of October

3 next occurring after the date of enactment of this Act.

4 TITLE IV—PILOT RECORDS

5 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

6 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Pilot Records Im7 provement Act of 1996’’.

8 SEC. 402. EMPLOYMENT INVESTIGATIONS OF PILOT APPLI9 CANTS.

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 44936 of title 49, United

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the follow12 ing new subsection:

13 ‘‘(f) RECORDS OF EMPLOYMENT OF PILOT APPLI14 CANTS.—

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Before hiring an individual

16 as a pilot, an air carrier shall request and receive

17 the following information:

18 ‘‘(A) FAA RECORDS.—From the Adminis19 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration

20 (hereafter in this subsection referred to as the

21 ‘Administrator’), records pertaining to the indi22 vidual that are maintained by the Administrator

23 concerning—

24 ‘‘(i) current airman certificates (in25 cluding airman medical certificates) and
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1 associated type ratings, including any limi2 tations to those certificates and ratings;

3 and

4 ‘‘(ii) summaries of legal enforcement

5 actions resulting in a finding by the Ad6 ministrator of a violation of this title or a

7 regulation prescribed or order issued under

8 this title.

9 ‘‘(B) AIR CARRIER AND OTHER

10 RECORDS.—From any air carrier or other per11 son that has employed the individual at any

12 time during the 5-year period preceding the

13 date of the employment application of the indi14 vidual, or from the trustee in bankruptcy for

15 such air carrier or person—

16 ‘‘(i) records pertaining to the individ17 ual that are maintained by an air carrier

18 under regulations set forth in—

19 ‘‘(I) section 121.683 of title 14,

20 Code of Federal Regulations;

21 ‘‘(II) paragraph (A) of section

22 VI, appendix I, part 121 of such title;

23 ‘‘(III) paragraph (A) of section

24 IV, appendix J, part 121 of such title;
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1 ‘‘(IV) section 125.401 of such

2 title; and

3 ‘‘(V) section 135.63(a)(4) of such

4 title; and

5 ‘‘(ii) other records pertaining to the

6 individual that are maintained by the air

7 carrier or person concerning—

8 ‘‘(I) the training, qualifications,

9 proficiency, or professional com10 petence of the individual, including

11 comments and evaluations made by a

12 check airman designated in accord13 ance with section 121.411, 125.295,

14 or 135.337 of such title;

15 ‘‘(II) any disciplinary action

16 taken with respect to the individual;

17 and

18 ‘‘(III) any release from employ19 ment or resignation, termination, or

20 disqualification with respect to em21 ployment.

22 ‘‘(C) PERIODIC REVIEW.—Not later than

23 18 months after the date of enactment of the

24 Pilot Records Improvement Act of 1996, and at

25 least once every 3 years thereafter, the Admin-
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1 istrator shall transmit to the Congress a state2 ment that contains, taking into account recent

3 developments in the aviation industry—

4 ‘‘(i) recommendations by the Adminis5 trator concerning proposed changes to

6 Federal Aviation Administration records,

7 air carrier records, and other records re8 quired to be furnished under subpara9 graphs (A) and (B) of paragraph (1); or

10 ‘‘(ii) reasons why the Administrator

11 does not recommend any proposed changes

12 to the records referred to in clause (i).

13 ‘‘(D) NATIONAL DRIVER REGISTER

14 RECORDS.—In accordance with section

15 30305(b)(7), from the chief driver licensing of16 ficial of a State information concerning the

17 motor vehicle driving record of the individual.

18 ‘‘(2) WRITTEN CONSENT; RELEASE FROM LI19 ABILITY.—An air carrier making a request for

20 records under paragraph (1)—

21 ‘‘(A) shall be required to obtain written

22 consent to the release of those records from the

23 individual that is the subject of the records re24 quested; and
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1 ‘‘(B) may, notwithstanding any other pro2 vision of law or agreement to the contrary, re3 quire the individual who is the subject of the

4 records request to execute a release from liabil5 ity for any claim arising from the furnishing of

6 such records to or the use of such records by

7 such air carrier.

8 ‘‘(3) 5-YEAR REPORTING PERIOD.—A person

9 shall not furnish a record in response to a request

10 made under paragraph (1) if the record was entered

11 more than 5 years before the date of the request,

12 unless the information concerns a revocation or sus13 pension of an airman certificate or motor vehicle li14 cense that is in effect on the date of the request.

15 ‘‘(4) REQUIREMENT TO MAINTAIN RECORDS.—

16 The Administrator shall maintain pilot records de17 scribed in paragraph (1)(A) for a period of at least

18 5 years.

19 ‘‘(5) RECEIPT OF CONSENT; PROVISION OF IN20 FORMATION.—A person shall not furnish a record in

21 response to a request made under paragraph (1)

22 without first obtaining a copy of the written consent

23 of the individual who is the subject of the records re24 quested. A person who receives a request for records

25 under this paragraph shall furnish a copy of all of
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1 such requested records maintained by the person not

2 later than 30 days after receiving the request.

3 ‘‘(6) RIGHT TO RECEIVE NOTICE AND COPY OF

4 ANY RECORD FURNISHED.—A person who receives a

5 request for records under paragraph (1) shall pro6 vide to the individual who is the subject of the

7 records—

8 ‘‘(A) written notice of the request and of

9 the right of that individual to receive a copy of

10 such records; and

11 ‘‘(B) a copy of such records, if requested

12 by the individual.

13 ‘‘(7) REASONABLE CHARGES FOR PROCESSING

14 REQUESTS AND FURNISHING COPIES.—A person who

15 receives a request under paragraph (1) or (6) may

16 establish a reasonable charge for the cost of process17 ing the request and furnishing copies of the re18 quested records.

19 ‘‘(8) STANDARD FORMS.—The Administrator

20 shall promulgate—

21 ‘‘(A) standard forms that may be used by

22 an air carrier to request records under para23 graph (1); and

24 ‘‘(B) standard forms that may be used by

25 an air carrier to—
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1 ‘‘(i) obtain the written consent and re2 lease from liability of the individual who is

3 the subject of a request under paragraph

4 (1); and

5 ‘‘(ii) inform the individual of—

6 ‘‘(I) the request; and

7 ‘‘(II) the individual right of that

8 individual to receive a copy of any

9 records furnished in response to the

10 request.

11 ‘‘(9) RIGHT TO CORRECT INACCURACIES.—An

12 air carrier that requests and receives the records of

13 an individual under paragraph (1) shall provide the

14 individual with a reasonable opportunity to submit

15 written comments to correct any inaccuracies con16 tained in the records before making a final hiring

17 decision with respect to the individual.

18 ‘‘(10) RIGHT OF PILOT TO REVIEW CERTAIN

19 RECORDS.—Notwithstanding any other provision of

20 law or agreement, an air carrier shall, upon written

21 request from a pilot employed by such carrier, make

22 available, within a reasonable time of the request, to

23 the pilot for review any and all employment records

24 referred to in paragraph (1)(B)(i) pertaining to the

25 employment of the pilot.
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1 ‘‘(11) PRIVACY PROTECTIONS.—An air carrier

2 that receives the records of an individual under

3 paragraph (1) may use such records only to assess

4 the qualifications of the individual in deciding

5 whether or not to hire the individual as a pilot. The

6 air carrier shall take such actions as may be nec7 essary to protect the privacy of the pilot and the

8 confidentiality of the records, including ensuring

9 that information contained in the records is not di10 vulged to any individual that is not directly involved

11 in the hiring decision.

12 ‘‘(12) REGULATIONS.—The Administrator may

13 prescribe such regulations as may be necessary—

14 ‘‘(A) to protect—

15 ‘‘(i) the personal privacy of any indi16 vidual whose records are requested under

17 paragraph (1); and

18 ‘‘(ii) the confidentiality of those

19 records;

20 ‘‘(B) to limit the further dissemination of

21 records received under paragraph (1) by the

22 person who requested those records; and

23 ‘‘(C) to ensure prompt compliance with

24 any request made under paragraph (1).
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1 ‘‘(g) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY; PREEMPTION OF

2 STATE LAW.—

3 ‘‘(1) LIMITATION ON LIABILITY.—No action or

4 proceeding may be brought by or on behalf of an in5 dividual who has applied for or is seeking a position

6 with an air carrier as a pilot and who has signed a

7 release from liability, as provided for under para8 graph (2), against—

9 ‘‘(A) the air carrier requesting the records

10 of that individual under subsection (a)(1);

11 ‘‘(B) a person who has complied with such

12 request; or

13 ‘‘(C) an agent or employee of a person de14 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B);

15 in the nature of an action for defamation, invasion

16 of privacy, negligence, interference with contract, or

17 otherwise, or under any State or Federal law with

18 respect to the furnishing or use of such records in

19 accordance with subsection (a).

20 ‘‘(2) PREEMPTION.—No State or political sub21 division thereof may enact, prescribe, issue, continue

22 in effect, or enforce any law (including any regula23 tion, standard, or other provision having the force

24 and effect of law) that prohibits, penalizes, or im-
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1 poses liability for furnishing or using records in ac2 cordance with subsection (a).

3 ‘‘(3) PROVISION OF KNOWINGLY FALSE INFOR4 MATION.—Paragraphs (1) and (2) shall not apply

5 with respect to a person who furnishes information,

6 in response to a request made under subsection

7 (a)(1), that—

8 ‘‘(A) the person knows is false; and

9 ‘‘(B) was maintained in violation of a

10 criminal statute of the United States.’’.

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 30305(b)

12 of such title is amended—

13 (1) by redesignating paragraph (7) as para14 graph (8); and

15 (2) by inserting after paragraph (6) the follow16 ing:

17 ‘‘(7) An individual who is seeking employment

18 by an air carrier as a pilot may request the chief

19 driver licensing official of a State to provide infor20 mation about the individual under paragraph (2) to

21 the prospective employer of the individual or to the

22 Secretary of Transportation. Information may not be

23 obtained from the National Driver Register under

24 this subsection if the information was entered in the

25 Register more than 5 years before the request unless
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1 the information is about a revocation or suspension

2 still in effect on the date of the request.’’.

3 (c) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by this

4 section shall apply to any air carrier hiring an individual

5 as a pilot on or after the 30th day after the date of enact6 ment of this Act.

7 SEC. 403. STUDY OF MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR PILOT

8 QUALIFICATIONS.

9 The Administrator shall, in consultation with, appro10 priate members of the aviation industry conduct a study

11 directed toward development of—

12 (1) standards and criteria for preemployment

13 screening tests measuring the psychomotor coordina14 tion, general intellectual capacity, instrument and

15 mechanical comprehension, and physical and mental

16 fitness of an applicant for employment as a pilot by

17 an air carrier; and

18 (2) standards and criteria for pilot training fa19 cilities to be licensed by the Administrator and

20 which will assure that pilots trained at such facilities

21 meet the preemployment screening standards and

22 criteria described in paragraph (1).
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1 TITLE V—ABOLITION OF BOARD

2 OF REVIEW AND RELATED AU3 THORITY

4 SEC. 501. ABOLITION OF BOARD OF REVIEW AND RELATED

5 AUTHORITY.

6 (a) ABOLITION OF BOARD OF REVIEW.—Section

7 6007 of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Act of

8 1986 (formerly 49 U.S.C. App. 2456) is amended—

9 (1) by striking subsections (f) and (h);

10 (2) by redesignating subsection (g) as sub11 section (f); and

12 (3) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection

13 (g).

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

15 (1) RELATIONSHIP TO AND EFFECT OF OTHER

16 LAWS.—Section 6009(b) of the Metropolitan Wash17 ington Airports Act of 1986 (formerly 49 U.S.C.

18 App. 2458(b)) is amended by striking ‘‘or by reason

19 of the authority’’ and all that follows through the

20 end of the subsection and inserting a period.

21 (2) SEPARABILITY.—Section 6011 of the Met22 ropolitan Washington Airports Act of 1986 (for23 merly 49 U.S.C. App. 2460) is amended by striking

24 ‘‘Except as provided in section 6007(h), if’’ and in25 serting ‘‘If’’.
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1 (c) PROTECTION OF CERTAIN ACTIONS.—Any action

2 taken by the Airports Authority and submitted to the

3 Board of Review pursuant to section 6007(f)(4) of the

4 Metropolitan Washington Airports Act of 1986 before

5 April 1, 1995, shall remain in effect and shall not be set

6 aside solely by reason of a judicial order invalidating cer7 tain functions of the Board of Review.

8 SEC. 502. SENSE OF THE SENATE.

9 It is the sense of the Senate that the Airports Author10 ity—

11 (1) should not provide any reserved parking

12 areas free of charge to Members of Congress, other

13 Government officials, or diplomats at Washington

14 National Airport or Washington Dulles International

15 Airport; and

16 (2) should establish a parking policy for such

17 airports that provides equal access to the public, and

18 does not provide preferential parking privileges to

19 Members of Congress, other Government officials, or

20 diplomats.

21 SEC. 503. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS IN OTHER LAW.

22 Any reference in any Federal law, Executive order,

23 rule, regulation, or delegation of authority to the Board

24 of Review or the provisions of law repealed under this title

25 is hereby repealed.
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1 SEC. 504. DEFINITIONS.

2 For purposes of this title—

3 (1) the terms ‘‘Airports Authority’’, ‘‘Washing4 ton National Airport’’, and ‘‘Washington Dulles

5 International Airport’’ have the same meanings as in

6 section 6004 of the Metropolitan Washington Air7 ports Act of 1986; and

8 (2) the term ‘‘Board of Review’’ means the

9 Board of Review of the Airports Authority.

10 SEC. 505. INCREASE IN NUMBER OF PRESIDENTIALLY-AP11 POINTED MEMBERS OF BOARD.

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6007(e) of the Metropoli13 tan Washington Airports Act of 1986 (formerly 49 U.S.C.

14 App. 2456(e)) is amended—

15 (1) by striking ‘‘11 members,’’ in paragraph (1)

16 and inserting ‘‘13 members’’;

17 (2) by striking ‘‘one member’’ in paragraph

18 (1)(D) and inserting ‘‘3 members’’; and

19 (3) by striking ‘‘Seven’’ in paragraph (5) and

20 inserting ‘‘Eight’’.

21 (b) STAGGERING TERMS FOR PRESIDENTIAL AP22 POINTEES.—Of the members first appointed by the Presi23 dent after the date of enactment of this title—

24 (1) one shall be appointed for a term that ex25 pires simultaneously with the term of the member of

26 the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority
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1 board of directors serving on that date (or, if there

2 is a vacancy in that office, the member appointed to

3 fill the existing vacancy and the member to whom

4 this paragraph applies shall be appointed for 2

5 years);

6 (2) one shall be appointed for a term ending 2

7 years after the term of the member (or members) to

8 whom paragraph (1) applies expires; and

9 (3) one shall be appointed for a term ending 4

10 years after the term of the member (or members) to

11 whom paragraph (1) applies expires.

12 SEC. 506. RECONSTITUTED BOARD TO FUNCTION WITHOUT

13 INTERRUPTION.

14 Notwithstanding any provision of State law, including

15 those provisions establishing, providing for the establish16 ment of, or recognizing the Metropolitan Washington Air17 ports Authority, and based upon the Federal interest in

18 the continued functioning of the Metropolitan Washington

19 Airports (as defined in section 6004(4) of the Metropoli20 tan Washington Airports Authority Act of 1986 (formerly

21 49 U.S.C. App. 2451(4)), the board of directors of such

22 Authority, including any members appointed under the

23 amendments made by section 5, shall continue to meet and

24 act after the date of enactment of this title until such time

25 as any necessary conforming changes in State law are
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1 made in the same manner as if those conforming changes

2 had been enacted on the date of enactment of this title.

3 SEC. 507. STATUS UNAFFECTED.

4 Nothing in this title, or the amendments made by this

5 title, shall affect the treatment of the Metropolitan Wash6 ington Airports Authority under Federal, State, or local

7 tax law.

8 SEC. 508. OPERATIONAL SLOTS AT NATIONAL AIRPORT.

9 Nothing in this title shall affect the number or dis10 tribution of operational slots at National Airport.

11 TITLE VI—FEDERAL AVIATION

12 ADMINISTRATION FUNDING

13 SEC. 601. SENSE OF THE SENATE REGARDING THE FUND14 ING OF THE FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINIS15 TRATION.

16 (a) FINDINGS.—The Senate finds that—

17 (1) the Congress is responsible for ensuring

18 that the financial needs of the Federal Aviation Ad19 ministration, the agency that performs the critical

20 function of overseeing the Nation’s air traffic control

21 system and ensuring the safety of air travelers in

22 the United States, are met;

23 (2) the number of air traffic control equipment

24 and power failures is increasing, which could place
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1 at risk the reliability of our Nation’s air traffic con2 trol system;

3 (3) aviation excise taxes that constitute the Air4 port and Airway Trust Fund, which provides most

5 of the funding for the Federal Aviation Administra6 tion, have expired;

7 (4) the funds in the Airport and Airway Trust

8 Fund will be spent by the Federal Aviation Adminis9 tration by December 1996;

10 (5) the 4.3 cent increase in the aviation fuel tax

11 rate which was enacted in 1993 and does not di12 rectly support the Federal Aviation Administration’s

13 activities has placed a significant financial burden

14 on the aviation industry and should be repealed;

15 (6) the existing system of funding the Federal

16 Aviation Administration will not provide the agency

17 with sufficient short-term or long-term funding;

18 (7) this Act creates a sound process to establish

19 a new funding system to meet the Federal Aviation

20 Administration’s long-term funding needs; and

21 (8) without immediate action by the Congress

22 to ensure that the Federal Aviation Administration’s

23 financial needs are met, air travelers’ confidence in

24 the system could be undermined.
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1 (b) SENSE OF THE SENATE.—It is the sense of the

2 Senate that there should be an immediate enactment of

3 an interim measure to provide short-term funding for the

4 Federal Aviation Administration until the new funding

5 system established in this Act for the Federal Aviation Ad6 ministration is implemented.

Æ