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[Federal Register Volume 90, Number 20 (Friday, January 31, 2025)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 8651-8652]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2025-02099]



                        Presidential Documents 



Federal Register / Vol. 90 , No. 20 / Friday, January 31, 2025 / 
Presidential Documents

[[Page 8651]]

                Memorandum of January 21, 2025

                
Keeping Americans Safe in Aviation

                Memorandum for the Secretary of Transportation [and] 
                the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 
                Administration

                Every day, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), 
                within the U.S. Department of Transportation, oversees 
                safety for more than 45,000 flights and 2.9 million 
                airline passengers. These Americans trust the FAA's 
                public servants with their lives, and it is therefore 
                imperative that they maintain a commitment to 
                excellence and efficiency.

                During the prior administration, however, the FAA 
                betrayed its mission by elevating dangerous 
                discrimination over excellence. For example, prior to 
                my Inauguration, the FAA Diversity and Inclusion 
                website revealed that the prior administration sought 
                to specifically recruit and hire individuals with 
                serious infirmities that could impact the execution of 
                their essential life-saving duties.

                Illegal and discriminatory diversity, equity, and 
                inclusion (DEI) hiring, including on the basis of race, 
                sex, disability, or any other criteria other than the 
                safety of airline passengers and overall job 
                excellence, competency, and qualification, harms all 
                Americans, who deserve to fly with confidence. It also 
                penalizes hard-working Americans who want to serve in 
                the FAA but are unable to do so, as they lack a 
                requisite disability or skin color. FAA Federal 
                servants must hold the qualifications and ability to 
                perform their jobs to the highest possible standard of 
                excellence.

                I hereby order the Secretary of Transportation and the 
                Federal Aviation Administrator to immediately return to 
                non-discriminatory, merit-based hiring, as required by 
                law. All so-called DEI initiatives, including all 
                dangerous preferencing policies or practices, shall 
                immediately be rescinded in favor of hiring, promoting, 
                and otherwise treating employees on the basis of 
                individual capability, competence, achievement, and 
                dedication.

[[Page 8652]]

                The Secretary of Transportation and the Federal 
                Aviation Administrator shall review the past 
                performance and performance standards of all 
                individuals in critical safety positions and take all 
                appropriate action to ensure that any individual who 
                fails or has failed to demonstrate requisite capability 
                is replaced by a high-capability individual that will 
                ensure top-notch air safety and efficiency.
                
                
                    (Presidential Sig.)

                THE WHITE HOUSE,

                    Washington, January 21, 2025

[FR Doc. 2025-02099
Filed 1-30-25; 8:45 am]
Billing code 3395-F4-P
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