IIB 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 915 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 1, 2009 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

and Transportation 

AN ACT 

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

fiscal years 2010 through 2012, to improve aviation safety and capacity, to provide stable funding for the national aviation system, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009’’. 

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

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. 

Sec. 3. Effective date. 

TITLE I—AUTHORIZATIONS 

Subtitle A—Funding of FAA Programs 

Sec. 101. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning 

and programs. 

Sec. 102. Air navigation facilities and equipment. 

Sec. 103. FAA operations. 

Sec. 104. Research, engineering, and development. 

Sec. 105. Funding for aviation programs. 

Subtitle B—Passenger Facility Charges 

Sec. 111. PFC authority. 

Sec. 112. PFC eligibility for bicycle storage. 

Sec. 113. Award of architectural and engineering contracts for airside projects. 

Sec. 114. Intermodal ground access project pilot program. 

Sec. 115. Participation of disadvantaged business enterprises in contracts, subcontracts, and business opportunities funded using passenger 

facility revenues and in airport concessions. 

Sec. 116. Impacts on airports of accommodating connecting passengers. 

Subtitle C—Fees for FAA Services 

Sec. 121. Update on overflights. 

Sec. 122. Registration fees. 

Subtitle D—AIP Modifications 

Sec. 131. Amendments to AIP definitions. 

Sec. 132. Solid waste recycling plans. 

Sec. 133. Amendments to grant assurances. 

Sec. 134. Government share of project costs. 

Sec. 135. Amendments to allowable costs. 

Sec. 136. Preference for small business concerns owned and controlled by disabled veterans. 

Sec. 137. Airport disadvantaged business enterprise program. 

Sec. 138. Training program for certification of disadvantaged business enterprises. 

Sec. 139. Calculation of State apportionment fund. 

Sec. 140. Reducing apportionments. 

Sec. 141. Minimum amount for discretionary fund. 

Sec. 142. Marshall Islands, Micronesia, and Palau. 


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Sec. 143. Use of apportioned amounts. 

Sec. 144. Sale of private airport to public sponsor. 

Sec. 145. Airport privatization pilot program. 

Sec. 146. Airport security program. 

Sec. 147. Sunset of pilot program for purchase of airport development rights. 

Sec. 148. Extension of grant authority for compatible land use planning and 

projects by State and local governments. 

Sec. 149. Repeal of limitations on Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. 

Sec. 150. Midway Island Airport. 

Sec. 151. Puerto Rico minimum guarantee. 

Sec. 152. Miscellaneous amendments. 

Sec. 153. Airport Master Plans. 

TITLE II—NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM 

AND AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL MODERNIZATION 

Sec. 201. Mission statement; sense of Congress. 

Sec. 202. Next Generation Air Transportation System Joint Planning and Development Office. 

Sec. 203. Next Generation Air Transportation Senior Policy Committee. 

Sec. 204. Automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast services. 

Sec. 205. Inclusion of stakeholders in air traffic control modernization projects. 

Sec. 206. GAO review of challenges associated with transforming to the Next 

Generation Air Transportation System. 

Sec. 207. GAO review of Next Generation Air Transportation System acquisition and procedures development. 

Sec. 208. DOT inspector general review of operational and approach procedures 

by a third party. 

Sec. 209. Expert review of enterprise architecture for Next Generation Air 

Transportation System. 

Sec. 210. NextGen technology testbed. 

Sec. 211. Clarification of authority to enter into reimbursable agreements. 

Sec. 212. Definition of air navigation facility. 

Sec. 213. Improved management of property inventory. 

Sec. 214. Clarification to acquisition reform authority. 

Sec. 215. Assistance to foreign aviation authorities. 

Sec. 216. Front line manager staffing. 

Sec. 217. Flight service stations. 

Sec. 218. NextGen Research and Development Center of Excellence. 

Sec. 219. Airspace redesign. 

TITLE III—SAFETY 

Subtitle A—General Provisions 

Sec. 301. Judicial review of denial of airman certificates. 

Sec. 302. Release of data relating to abandoned type certificates and supplemental type certificates. 

Sec. 303. Inspection of foreign repair stations. 

Sec. 304. Runway safety. 

Sec. 305. Improved pilot licenses. 

Sec. 306. Flight crew fatigue. 

Sec. 307. Occupational safety and health standards for flight attendants on 

board aircraft. 

Sec. 308. Aircraft surveillance in mountainous areas. 

Sec. 309. Off-airport, low-altitude aircraft weather observation technology. 


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Sec. 310. Noncertificated maintenance providers. 

Sec. 311. Aircraft rescue and firefighting standards. 

Sec. 312. Cockpit smoke. 

Sec. 313. Safety of helicopter air ambulance operations. 

Sec. 314. Feasibility of requiring helicopter pilots to use night vision goggles. 

Sec. 315. Study of helicopter and fixed wing air ambulance services. 

Subtitle B—Unmanned Aircraft Systems 

Sec. 321. Commercial unmanned aircraft systems integration plan. 

Sec. 322. Special rules for certain unmanned aircraft systems. 

Sec. 323. Public unmanned aircraft systems. 

Sec. 324. Definitions. 

Subtitle C—Safety and Protections 

Sec. 331. Aviation safety whistleblower investigation office. 

Sec. 332. Modification of customer service initiative. 

Sec. 333. Post-employment restrictions for flight standards inspectors. 

Sec. 334. Assignment of principal supervisory inspectors. 

Sec. 335. Headquarters review of air transportation oversight system database. 

Sec. 336. Improved voluntary disclosure reporting system. 

TITLE IV—AIR SERVICE IMPROVEMENTS 

Sec. 401. Smoking prohibition. 

Sec. 402. Monthly air carrier reports. 

Sec. 403. Flight operations at Reagan National Airport. 

Sec. 404. EAS contract guidelines. 

Sec. 405. Essential air service reform. 

Sec. 406. Small community air service. 

Sec. 407. Air passenger service improvements. 

Sec. 408. Contents of competition plans. 

Sec. 409. Extension of competitive access reports. 

Sec. 410. Contract tower program. 

Sec. 411. Airfares for members of the Armed Forces. 

Sec. 412. Repeal of essential air service local participation program. 

Sec. 413. Adjustment to subsidy cap to reflect increased fuel costs. 

Sec. 414. Notice to communities prior to termination of eligibility for subsidized 

essential air service. 

Sec. 415. Restoration of eligibility to a place determined by the Secretary to 

be ineligible for subsidized essential air service. 

Sec. 416. Office of Rural Aviation. 

Sec. 417. Adjustments to compensation for significantly increased costs. 

Sec. 418. Review of air carrier flight delays, cancellations, and associated 

causes. 

Sec. 419. European Union rules for passenger rights. 

Sec. 420. Establishment of advisory committee for aviation consumer protection. 

Sec. 421. Denied boarding compensation. 

Sec. 422. Compensation for delayed baggage. 

Sec. 423. Schedule reduction. 

Sec. 424. Expansion of DOT airline consumer complaint investigations. 

Sec. 425. Prohibitions against voice communications using mobile communications devices on scheduled flights. 

Sec. 426. Antitrust exemptions. 


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Sec. 427. Musical instruments. 

TITLE V—ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP AND STREAMLINING 

Sec. 501. Amendments to air tour management program. 

Sec. 502. State block grant program. 

Sec. 503. Airport funding of special studies or reviews. 

Sec. 504. Grant eligibility for assessment of flight procedures. 

Sec. 505. Determination of fair market value of residential properties. 

Sec. 506. Soundproofing of residences. 

Sec. 507. CLEEN research, development, and implementation partnership. 

Sec. 508. Prohibition on operating certain aircraft weighing 75,000 pounds or 

less not complying with stage 3 noise levels. 

Sec. 509. Environmental mitigation pilot program. 

Sec. 510. Aircraft departure queue management pilot program. 

Sec. 511. High performance and sustainable air traffic control facilities. 

Sec. 512. Regulatory responsibility for aircraft engine noise and emissions 

standards. 

Sec. 513. Cabin air quality technology. 

Sec. 514. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 515. Airport noise compatibility planning study, Port Authority of New 

York and New Jersey. 

Sec. 516. GAO study on compliance with FAA record of decision. 

Sec. 517. Westchester County Airport, New York. 

Sec. 518. Aviation noise complaints. 

TITLE VI—FAA EMPLOYEES AND ORGANIZATION 

Sec. 601. Federal Aviation Administration personnel management system. 

Sec. 602. Merit system principles and prohibited personnel practices. 

Sec. 603. Applicability of back pay requirements. 

Sec. 604. FAA technical training and staffing. 

Sec. 605. Designee program. 

Sec. 606. Staffing model for aviation safety inspectors. 

Sec. 607. Safety critical staffing. 

Sec. 608. FAA air traffic controller staffing. 

Sec. 609. Assessment of training programs for air traffic controllers. 

Sec. 610. Collegiate training initiative study. 

Sec. 611. FAA Task Force on Air Traffic Control Facility Conditions. 

TITLE VII—AVIATION INSURANCE 

Sec. 701. General authority. 

Sec. 702. Extension of authority to limit third party liability of air carriers 

arising out of acts of terrorism. 

Sec. 703. Clarification of reinsurance authority. 

Sec. 704. Use of independent claims adjusters. 

Sec. 705. Extension of program authority. 

TITLE VIII—MISCELLANEOUS 

Sec. 801. Air carrier citizenship. 

Sec. 802. Disclosure of data to Federal agencies in interest of national security. 

Sec. 803. FAA access to criminal history records and database systems. 

Sec. 804. Clarification of air carrier fee disputes. 

Sec. 805. Study on national plan of integrated airport systems. 

Sec. 806. Express carrier employee protection. 


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Sec. 807. Consolidation and realignment of FAA facilities. 

Sec. 808. Accidental death and dismemberment insurance for National Transportation Safety Board employees. 

Sec. 809. GAO study on cooperation of airline industry in international child 

abduction cases. 

Sec. 810. Lost Nation Airport, Ohio. 

Sec. 811. Pollock Municipal Airport, Louisiana. 

Sec. 812. Human intervention and motivation study program. 

Sec. 813. Washington, DC, Air Defense Identification Zone. 

Sec. 814. Merrill Field Airport, Anchorage, Alaska. 

Sec. 815. 1940 Air Terminal Museum at William P. Hobby Airport, Houston, 

Texas. 

Sec. 816. Duty periods and flight time limitations applicable to flight crewmembers. 

Sec. 817. Pilot program for redevelopment of airport properties. 

Sec. 818. Helicopter operations over Long Island and Staten Island, New York. 

Sec. 819. Cabin temperature and humidity standards study. 

Sec. 820. Civil penalties technical amendments. 

Sec. 821. Study and report on alleviating congestion. 

Sec. 822. Airline personnel training enhancement. 

Sec. 823. Study on Feasibility of Development of a Public Internet Web-based 

Search Engine on Wind Turbine Installation Obstruction. 

Sec. 824. FAA radar signal locations. 

Sec. 825. Wind turbine lighting. 

Sec. 826. Prohibition on use of certain funds. 

Sec. 827. Limiting access to flight decks of all-cargo aircraft. 

Sec. 828. Whistleblowers at FAA. 

Sec. 829. College Point Marine Transfer Station, New York. 

Sec. 830. Pilot training and certification. 

Sec. 831. St. George, Utah. 

Sec. 832. Replacement of terminal radar approach control at Palm Beach 

International Airport. 

Sec. 833. Santa Monica Airport, California. 

TITLE IX—FEDERAL AVIATION RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

Sec. 901. Short title. 

Sec. 902. Definitions. 

Sec. 903. Interagency research initiative on the impact of aviation on the climate. 

Sec. 904. Research program on runways. 

Sec. 905. Research on design for certification. 

Sec. 906. Centers of excellence. 

Sec. 907. Airport cooperative research program. 

Sec. 908. Unmanned aircraft systems. 

Sec. 909. Research grants program involving undergraduate students. 

Sec. 910. Aviation gas research and development program. 

Sec. 911. Review of FAA’s Energy- and Environment-Related Research Programs. 

Sec. 912. Review of FAA’s aviation safety-related research programs. 

Sec. 913. Research program on alternative jet fuel technology for civil aircraft. 

Sec. 914. Center for excellence in aviation employment. 

TITLE X—AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND FINANCING 

Sec. 1001. Short title. 


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Sec. 1002. Extension and modification of taxes funding airport and airway 

trust fund. 

1 SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. 

2 Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in 

3 this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms 

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

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

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

7 Code. 

8 SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 Except as otherwise expressly provided, this Act and 

10 the amendments made by this Act shall apply only to fiscal 

11 years beginning after September 30, 2008. 

12 TITLE I—AUTHORIZATIONS 

13 Subtitle A—Funding of FAA 

14 Programs 

15 SEC. 101. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND 

16 NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PRO17 GRAMS. 

18 (a) AUTHORIZATION.—Section 48103 is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘September 30, 2003’’ and in20 serting ‘‘September 30, 2008’’; and 

21 (2) by striking paragraphs (1) through (6) and 

22 inserting the following: 

23 ‘‘(1) $4,000,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 

24 ‘‘(2) $4,100,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) $4,200,000,000 for fiscal year 2012.’’. 

2 (b) ALLOCATIONS OF FUNDS.—Section 48103 is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘The total amounts’’ and insert5 ing ‘‘(a) AVAILABILITY OF AMOUNTS.—The total 

6 amounts’’; and 

7 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(b) AIRPORT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PRO9 GRAM.—Of the amounts made available under subsection 

10 (a), $15,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 

11 2012 may be used for carrying out the Airport Coopera12 tive Research Program. 

13 ‘‘(c) AIRPORTS TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH.—Of the 

14 amounts made available under subsection (a), 

15 $19,348,000 for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2012 

16 may be used for carrying out airports technology re17 search.’’. 

18 (c) OBLIGATIONAL AUTHORITY.—Section 47104(c) is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘September 30, 2009’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

21 (d) RESCISSION OF UNOBLIGATED BALANCES.—Of 

22 the amounts authorized under sections 48103 and 48112 

23 of title 49, United States Code, for fiscal year 2009, 

24 $305,500,000 are hereby rescinded. Of the unobligated 

25 balances from funds available under such sections for fisVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 cal years prior to fiscal year 2009, $102,000,000 are here2 by rescinded. 

3 SEC. 102. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT. 

4 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

5 48101(a) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) through 

6 (5) and inserting the following: 

7 ‘‘(1) $3,259,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

8 ‘‘(2) $3,353,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

9 ‘‘(3) $3,506,000,000 for fiscal year 2012.’’. 

10 (b) USE OF FUNDS.—Section 48101 is amended by 

11 striking subsections (c) through (i) and inserting the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(c) WAKE VORTEX MITIGATION.—Of amounts ap14 propriated under subsection (a), such sums as may be nec15 essary for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2012 may 

16 be used for the development and analysis of wake vortex 

17 mitigation, including advisory systems. 

18 ‘‘(d) WEATHER HAZARDS.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Of amounts appropriated 

20 under subsection (a), such sums as may be nec21 essary for each of fiscal years 2010 through 2012 

22 may be used for the development of in-flight and 

23 ground-based weather threat mitigation systems, in24 cluding ground de-icing and anti-icing systems and 

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1 gating the effects of certain weather conditions on 

2 both airframes and engines. 

3 ‘‘(2) SPECIFIC HAZARDS.—Weather conditions 

4 referred to in paragraph (1) include— 

5 ‘‘(A) ground-based icing threats such as 

6 ice pellets and freezing drizzle; 

7 ‘‘(B) oceanic weather, including convective 

8 weather, and other hazards associated with oce9 anic operations (where commercial traffic is 

10 high and only rudimentary satellite sensing is 

11 available) to reduce the hazards presented to 

12 commercial aviation, including convective 

13 weather ice crystal ingestion threats; and 

14 ‘‘(C) en route turbulence prediction. 

15 ‘‘(e) SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS.—Of amounts 

16 appropriated under subsection (a) and section 106(k)(1), 

17 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

18 2010 through 2012 may be used to advance the develop19 ment and implementation of safety management systems. 

20 ‘‘(f) RUNWAY INCURSION REDUCTION PROGRAMS.— 

21 Of amounts appropriated under subsection (a), 

22 $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, $12,000,000 for fiscal 

23 year 2011, and $12,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 may be 

24 used for the development and implementation of runway 

25 incursion reduction programs. 


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1 ‘‘(g) RUNWAY STATUS LIGHTS.—Of amounts appro2 priated under subsection (a), $125,000,000 for fiscal year 

3 2010, $100,000,000 for 2011, and $50,000,000 for fiscal 

4 year 2012 may be used for the acquisition and installation 

5 of runway status lights. 

6 ‘‘(h) NEXTGEN SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT PRO7 GRAMS.—Of amounts appropriated under subsection (a), 

8 $102,900,000 for fiscal year 2010, $104,000,000 for fis9 cal year 2011, and $105,300,000 for fiscal year 2012 may 

10 be used for systems development activities associated with 

11 NextGen. 

12 ‘‘(i) NEXTGEN DEMONSTRATION PROGRAMS.—Of 

13 amounts appropriated under subsection (a), $30,000,000 

14 for fiscal year 2010, $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, and 

15 $30,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 may be used for dem16 onstration activities associated with NextGen. 

17 ‘‘(j) CENTER FOR ADVANCED AVIATION SYSTEM DE18 VELOPMENT.—Of amounts appropriated under subsection 

19 (a), $79,000,000 for fiscal year 2010, $79,000,000 for fis20 cal year 2011, and $80,800,000 for fiscal year 2012 may 

21 be used for the Center for Advanced Aviation System De22 velopment. 

23 ‘‘(k) ADDITIONAL PROGRAMS.—Of amounts appro24 priated under subsection (a), $22,500,000 for fiscal year 


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1 2010, $22,500,000 for fiscal year 2011, and $22,500,000 

2 for fiscal year 2012 may be used for— 

3 ‘‘(1) system capacity, planning, and improve4 ment; 

5 ‘‘(2) operations concept validation; 

6 ‘‘(3) NAS weather requirements; and 

7 ‘‘(4) Airspace Management Lab.’’. 

8 SEC. 103. FAA OPERATIONS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 106(k)(1) is amended by 

10 striking subparagraphs (A) through (E) and inserting the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(A) $9,531,272,000 for fiscal year 2010; 

13 ‘‘(B) $9,936,259,000 for fiscal year 2011; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(C) $10,350,155,000 for fiscal year 

16 2012.’’. 

17 (b) AUTHORIZED EXPENDITURES.—Section 

18 106(k)(2) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking subparagraph (A) and inserting 

20 the following: 

21 ‘‘(A) Such sums as may be necessary for 

22 fiscal years 2010 through 2012 to support de23 velopment and maintenance of helicopter ap24 proach procedures, including certification and 

25 recertification of instrument flight rule, global 


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1 positioning system, and point-in-space ap2 proaches to heliports necessary to support all 

3 weather, emergency services.’’; 

4 (2) by striking subparagraphs (B), (C), and 

5 (D); 

6 (3) by redesignating subparagraphs (E), (F), 

7 and (G) as subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D), respec8 tively; and 

9 (4) in subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) (as so 

10 redesignated) by striking ‘‘2004 through 2007’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘2010 through 2012’’. 

12 (c) AIRLINE DATA AND ANALYSIS.—There is author13 ized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation 

14 out of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund established by 

15 section 9502 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 

16 U.S.C. 9502) to fund airline data collection and analysis 

17 by the Bureau of Transportation Statistics in the Re18 search and Innovative Technology Administration of the 

19 Department of Transportation $6,000,000 for each of fis20 cal years 2010, 2011, and 2012. 

21 SEC. 104. RESEARCH, ENGINEERING, AND DEVELOPMENT. 

22 Section 48102(a) is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (11)— 

24 (A) in subparagraph (K) by inserting 

25 ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 


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1 (B) in subparagraph (L) by striking ‘‘and’’ 

2 at the end; 

3 (2) in paragraph (12)(L) by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

4 the end; and 

5 (3) by striking paragraph (13) and inserting 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘(13) for fiscal year 2010, $214,587,000, in8 cluding— 

9 ‘‘(A) $8,546,000 for fire research and safe10 ty; 

11 ‘‘(B) $4,075,000 for propulsion and fuel 

12 systems; 

13 ‘‘(C) $2,965,000 for advanced materials 

14 and structural safety; 

15 ‘‘(D) $4,921,000 for atmospheric hazards 

16 and digital system safety; 

17 ‘‘(E) $14,688,000 for aging aircraft; 

18 ‘‘(F) $2,153,000 for aircraft catastrophic 

19 failure prevention research; 

20 ‘‘(G) $11,000,000 for flightdeck mainte21 nance, system integration, and human factors; 

22 ‘‘(H) $12,589,000 for aviation safety risk 

23 analysis; 

24 ‘‘(I) $15,471,000 for air traffic control, 

25 technical operations, and human factors; 


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1 ‘‘(J) $8,699,000 for aeromedical research; 

2 ‘‘(K) $23,286,000 for weather program; 

3 ‘‘(L) $6,236,000 for unmanned aircraft 

4 systems research; 

5 ‘‘(M) $18,100,000 for the Next Generation 

6 Air Transportation System Joint Planning and 

7 Development Office; 

8 ‘‘(N) $10,412,000 for wake turbulence; 

9 ‘‘(O) $10,400,000 for NextGen—Air 

10 ground integration; 

11 ‘‘(P) $8,000,000 for NextGen—Self sepa12 ration; 

13 ‘‘(Q) $7,567,000 for NextGen—Weather 

14 technology in the cockpit; 

15 ‘‘(R) $20,278,000 for environment and en16 ergy; 

17 ‘‘(S) $19,700,000 for NextGen—Environ18 mental research—Aircraft technologies, fuels, 

19 and metrics; 

20 ‘‘(T) $1,827,000 for system planning and 

21 resource management; and 

22 ‘‘(U) $3,674,000 for the William J. 

23 Hughes Technical Center Laboratory Facility; 

24 ‘‘(14) for fiscal year 2011, $225,993,000, in25 cluding— 


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1 ‘‘(A) $8,815,000 for fire research and safe2 ty; 

3 ‘‘(B) $4,150,000 for propulsion and fuel 

4 systems; 

5 ‘‘(C) $2,975,000 for advanced materials 

6 and structural safety; 

7 ‘‘(D) $4,949,000 for atmospheric hazards 

8 and digital system safety; 

9 ‘‘(E) $14,903,000 for aging aircraft; 

10 ‘‘(F) $2,181,000 for aircraft catastrophic 

11 failure prevention research; 

12 ‘‘(G) $12,000,000 for flightdeck mainte13 nance, system integration, and human factors; 

14 ‘‘(H) $12,497,000 for aviation safety risk 

15 analysis; 

16 ‘‘(I) $15,715,000 for air traffic control, 

17 technical operations, and human factors; 

18 ‘‘(J) $8,976,000 for aeromedical research; 

19 ‘‘(K) $23,638,000 for weather program; 

20 ‘‘(L) $6,295,000 for unmanned aircraft 

21 systems research; 

22 ‘‘(M) $18,100,000 for the Next Generation 

23 Air Transportation System Joint Planning and 

24 Development Office; 

25 ‘‘(N) $10,471,000 for wake turbulence; 


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1 ‘‘(O) $10,600,000 for NextGen—Air 

2 ground integration; 

3 ‘‘(P) $8,300,000 for NextGen—Self sepa4 ration; 

5 ‘‘(Q) $8,345,000 for NextGen—Weather 

6 technology in the cockpit; 

7 ‘‘(R) $27,075,000 for environment and en8 ergy; 

9 ‘‘(S) $20,368,000 for NextGen—Environ10 mental research—Aircraft technologies, fuels, 

11 and metrics; 

12 ‘‘(T) $1,836,000 for system planning and 

13 resource management; and 

14 ‘‘(U) $3,804,000 for the William J. 

15 Hughes Technical Center Laboratory Facility; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(15) for fiscal year 2012, $244,860,000, in18 cluding— 

19 ‘‘(A) $8,957,000 for fire research and safe20 ty; 

21 ‘‘(B) $4,201,000 for propulsion and fuel 

22 systems; 

23 ‘‘(C) $2,986,000 for advanced materials 

24 and structural safety; 


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1 ‘‘(D) $4,979,000 for atmospheric hazards 

2 and digital system safety; 

3 ‘‘(E) $15,013,000 for aging aircraft; 

4 ‘‘(F) $2,192,000 for aircraft catastrophic 

5 failure prevention research; 

6 ‘‘(G) $12,000,000 for flightdeck mainte7 nance, system integration, and human factors; 

8 ‘‘(H) $12,401,000 for aviation safety risk 

9 analysis; 

10 ‘‘(I) $16,000,000 for air traffic control, 

11 technical operations, and human factors; 

12 ‘‘(J) $9,267,000 for aeromedical research; 

13 ‘‘(K) $23,800,000 for weather program; 

14 ‘‘(L) $6,400,000 for unmanned aircraft 

15 systems research; 

16 ‘‘(M) $18,100,000 for the Next Generation 

17 Air Transportation System Joint Planning and 

18 Development Office; 

19 ‘‘(N) $10,471,000 for wake turbulence; 

20 ‘‘(O) $10,800,000 for NextGen—Air 

21 ground integration; 

22 ‘‘(P) $8,500,000 for NextGen—Self sepa23 ration; 

24 ‘‘(Q) $8,569,000 for NextGen—Weather 

25 technology in the cockpit; 


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1 ‘‘(R) $44,409,000 for environment and en2 ergy; 

3 ‘‘(S) $20,034,000 for NextGen—Environ4 mental research—Aircraft technologies, fuels, 

5 and metrics; 

6 ‘‘(T) $1,840,000 for system planning and 

7 resource management; and 

8 ‘‘(U) $3,941,000 for the William J. 

9 Hughes Technical Center Laboratory Facility.’’. 

10 SEC. 105. FUNDING FOR AVIATION PROGRAMS. 

11 (a) AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND GUAR12 ANTEE.—Section 48114(a)(1)(A) is amended to read as 

13 follows: 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The total budget re15 sources made available from the Airport and 

16 Airway Trust Fund each fiscal year through fis17 cal year 2012 pursuant to sections 48101, 

18 48102, 48103, and 106(k) shall— 

19 ‘‘(i) in fiscal year 2010, be equal to 

20 90 percent of the estimated level of re21 ceipts plus interest credited to the Airport 

22 and Airway Trust Fund for that fiscal 

23 year; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) in each of fiscal years 2011 and 

25 2012, be equal to the sum of— 


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1 ‘‘(I) 90 percent of the estimated 

2 level of receipts plus interest credited 

3 to the Airport and Airway Trust 

4 Fund for that fiscal year; and 

5 ‘‘(II) the actual level of receipts 

6 plus interest credited to the Airport 

7 and Airway Trust Fund for the sec8 ond preceding fiscal year minus the 

9 total amount made available for obli10 gation from the Airport and Airway 

11 Trust Fund for the second preceding 

12 fiscal year. 

13 Such amounts may be used only for aviation in14 vestment programs listed in subsection (b).’’. 

15 (b) ADDITIONAL AUTHORIZATIONS OF APPROPRIA16 TIONS FROM THE GENERAL FUND.—Section 48114(a)(2) 

17 is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

18 (c) ESTIMATED LEVEL OF RECEIPTS PLUS INTER19 EST DEFINED.—Section 48114(b)(2) is amended— 

20 (1) in the paragraph heading by striking 

21 ‘‘LEVEL’’ and inserting ‘‘ESTIMATED LEVEL’’; and 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘level of receipts plus interest’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘estimated level of receipts plus inter24 est’’. 


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1 (d) ENFORCEMENT OF GUARANTEES.—Section 

2 48114(c)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘2007’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘2012’’. 

4 Subtitle B—Passenger Facility 

5 Charges 

6 SEC. 111. PFC AUTHORITY. 

7 (a) PFC DEFINED.—Section 40117(a)(5) is amend8 ed to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(5) PASSENGER FACILITY CHARGE.—The term 

10 ‘passenger facility charge’ means a charge or fee im11 posed under this section.’’. 

12 (b) INCREASE IN PFC MAXIMUM LEVEL.—Section 

13 40117(b)(4) is amended by striking ‘‘$4.00 or $4.50’’ and 

14 inserting ‘‘$4.00, $4.50, $5.00, $6.00, or $7.00’’. 

15 (c) PILOT PROGRAM FOR PFC AT NONHUB AIR16 PORTS.—Section 40117(l) is amended— 

17 (1) by striking paragraph (7); and 

18 (2) by redesignating paragraph (8) as para19 graph (7). 

20 (d) CORRECTION OF REFERENCES.— 

21 (1) SECTION 40117.—Section 40117 is amend22 ed— 

23 (A) in the section heading by striking 

24 ‘‘fees’’ and inserting ‘‘charges’’; 


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1 (B) in the heading for subsection (e) by 

2 striking ‘‘FEES’’ and inserting ‘‘CHARGES’’; 

3 (C) in the heading for subsection (l) by 

4 striking ‘‘FEE’’ and inserting ‘‘CHARGE’’; 

5 (D) in the heading for paragraph (5) of 

6 subsection (l) by striking ‘‘FEE’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘CHARGE’’; 

8 (E) in the heading for subsection (m) by 

9 striking ‘‘FEES’’ and inserting ‘‘CHARGES’’; 

10 (F) in the heading for paragraph (1) of 

11 subsection (m) by striking ‘‘FEES’’ and insert12 ing ‘‘CHARGES’’; 

13 (G) by striking ‘‘fee’’ each place it appears 

14 (other than the second sentence of subsection 

15 (g)(4)) and inserting ‘‘charge’’; and 

16 (H) by striking ‘‘fees’’ each place it ap17 pears and inserting ‘‘charges’’. 

18 (2) OTHER REFERENCES.—Subtitle VII is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘fee’’ and inserting ‘‘charge’’ 

20 each place it appears in each of the following sec21 tions: 

22 (A) Section 47106(f)(1). 

23 (B) Section 47110(e)(5). 

24 (C) Section 47114(f). 

25 (D) Section 47134(g)(1). 


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1 (E) Section 47139(b). 

2 (F) Section 47524(e). 

3 (G) Section 47526(2). 

4 SEC. 112. PFC ELIGIBILITY FOR BICYCLE STORAGE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 40117(a)(3) is amended 

6 by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(H) A project to construct secure bicycle 

8 storage facilities that are to be used by pas9 sengers at the airport and that are in compli10 ance with applicable security standards.’’. 

11 (b) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one year 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

13 of the Federal Aviation Administration shall submit to 

14 Congress a report on the progress being made by airports 

15 to install bicycle parking for airport customers and airport 

16 employees. 

17 SEC. 113. AWARD OF ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING 

18 CONTRACTS FOR AIRSIDE PROJECTS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 40117(d) is amended— 

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

21 (3); 

22 (2) by striking the period at the end of para23 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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


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1 ‘‘(5) in the case of an application to finance a 

2 project to meet the airside needs of the airport, the 

3 application includes written assurances, satisfactory 

4 to the Secretary, that each contract and subcontract 

5 for program management, construction management, 

6 planning studies, feasibility studies, architectural 

7 services, preliminary engineering, design, engineer8 ing, surveying, mapping, and related services will be 

9 awarded in the same way that a contract for archi10 tectural and engineering services is negotiated under 

11 chapter 11 of title 40 or an equivalent qualifications12 based requirement prescribed for or by the eligible 

13 agency.’’. 

14 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub15 section (a) shall apply to an application submitted to the 

16 Secretary of Transportation by an eligible agency under 

17 section 40117 of title 49, United States Code, after the 

18 date of enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 114. INTERMODAL GROUND ACCESS PROJECT PILOT 

20 PROGRAM. 

21 Section 40117 is amended by adding at the end the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(n) PILOT PROGRAM FOR PFC ELIGIBILITY FOR

24 INTERMODAL GROUND ACCESS PROJECTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) PFC ELIGIBILITY.—Subject to the require2 ments of this subsection, the Secretary shall estab3 lish a pilot program under which the Secretary may 

4 authorize, at no more than 5 airports, a passenger 

5 facility charge imposed under subsection (b)(1) or 

6 (b)(4) to be used to finance the eligible cost of an 

7 intermodal ground access project. 

8 ‘‘(2) INTERMODAL GROUND ACCESS PROJECT

9 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘intermodal 

10 ground access project’ means a project for con11 structing a local facility owned or operated by an eli12 gible agency that is directly and substantially related 

13 to the movement of passengers or property traveling 

14 in air transportation. 

15 ‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE COSTS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of para17 graph (1), the eligible cost of an intermodal 

18 ground access project shall be the total cost of 

19 the project multiplied by the ratio that— 

20 ‘‘(i) the number of individuals pro21 jected to use the project to gain access to 

22 or depart from the airport; bears to 

23 ‘‘(ii) the total number of the individ24 uals projected to use the facility. 


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1 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATIONS REGARDING PRO2 JECTED PROJECT USE.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro4 vided by clause (ii), the Secretary shall de5 termine the projected use of a project for 

6 purposes of subparagraph (A) at the time 

7 the project is approved under this sub8 section. 

9 ‘‘(ii) PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

10 PROJECTS.—In the case of a project ap11 proved under this section to be financed in 

12 part using funds administered by the Fed13 eral Transit Administration, the Secretary 

14 shall use the travel forecasting model for 

15 the project at the time such project is ap16 proved by the Federal Transit Administra17 tion to enter preliminary engineering to de18 termine the projected use of the project for 

19 purposes of subparagraph (A).’’. 


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1 SEC. 115. PARTICIPATION OF DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS 

2 ENTERPRISES IN CONTRACTS, SUB3 CONTRACTS, AND BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES 

4 FUNDED USING PASSENGER FACILITY REVE5 NUES AND IN AIRPORT CONCESSIONS. 

6 Section 40117 (as amended by this Act) is further 

7 amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(o) PARTICIPATION BY DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS

9 ENTERPRISES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) APPLICABILITY OF REQUIREMENTS.—Ex11 cept to the extent otherwise provided by the Sec12 retary, requirements relating to disadvantaged busi13 ness enterprises, as set forth in parts 23 and 26 of 

14 title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor 

15 regulation), shall apply to an airport collecting pas16 senger facility revenue. 

17 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall issue 

18 any regulations necessary to implement this sub19 section, including— 

20 ‘‘(A) goal setting requirements for an eligi21 ble agency to ensure that contracts, sub22 contracts, and business opportunities funded 

23 using passenger facility revenues, and airport 

24 concessions, are awarded consistent with the 

25 levels of participation of disadvantaged business 

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1 taged business enterprises that would be ex2 pected in the absence of discrimination; 

3 ‘‘(B) provision for an assurance that re4 quires that an eligible agency will not discrimi5 nate on the basis of race, color, national origin, 

6 or sex in the award and performance of any 

7 contract funded using passenger facility reve8 nues; and 

9 ‘‘(C) a requirement that an eligible agency 

10 will take all necessary and reasonable steps to 

11 ensure nondiscrimination in the award and ad12 ministration of contracts funded using pas13 senger facility revenues. 

14 ‘‘(3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall 

15 take effect on the day following the date on which 

16 the Secretary issues final regulations under para17 graph (2). 

18 ‘‘(4) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection, the fol19 lowing definitions apply: 

20 ‘‘(A) AIRPORT CONCESSIONS DISADVAN21 TAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE.—The term ‘air22 port concessions disadvantaged business enter23 prise’ has the meaning given that term in part 

24 23 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations (or 

25 a successor regulation). 


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1 ‘‘(B) DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTER2 PRISE.—The term ‘disadvantaged business en3 terprise’ has the meaning given that term in 

4 part 26 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations 

5 (or a successor regulation).’’. 

6 SEC. 116. IMPACTS ON AIRPORTS OF ACCOMMODATING 

7 CONNECTING PASSENGERS. 

8 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

9 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation 

10 shall initiate a study to evaluate— 

11 (1) the impacts on airports of accommodating 

12 connecting passengers; and 

13 (2) the treatment of airports at which the ma14 jority of passengers are connecting passengers under 

15 the passenger facility charge program authorized by 

16 section 40117 of title 49, United States Code. 

17 (b) CONTENTS OF STUDY.—In conducting the study, 

18 the Secretary shall review, at a minimum, the following: 

19 (1) the differences in facility needs, and the 

20 costs for constructing, maintaining, and operating 

21 those facilities, for airports at which the majority of 

22 passengers are connecting passengers as compared 

23 to airports at which the majority of passengers are 

24 originating and destination passengers; 


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1 (2) whether the costs to an airport of accommo2 dating additional connecting passengers differs from 

3 the cost of accommodating additional originating 

4 and destination passengers; 

5 (3) for each airport charging a passenger facil6 ity charge, the percentage of passenger facility 

7 charge revenue attributable to connecting passengers 

8 and the percentage of such revenue attributable to 

9 originating and destination passengers; 

10 (4) the potential effects on airport revenues of 

11 requiring airports to charge different levels of pas12 senger facility charges on connecting passengers and 

13 originating and destination passengers; and 

14 (5) the added costs to air carriers of collecting 

15 passenger facility charges under a system in which 

16 different levels of passenger facility charges are im17 posed on connecting passengers and originating and 

18 destination passengers. 

19 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

21 after the date of initiation of the study, the Sec22 retary shall submit to Congress a report on the re23 sults of the study. 

24 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 


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1 (A) the findings of the Secretary on each 

2 of the subjects listed in subsection (b); and 

3 (B) recommendations, if any, of the Sec4 retary based on the results of the study for any 

5 changes to the passenger facility charge pro6 gram, including recommendations as to whether 

7 different levels of passenger facility charges 

8 should be imposed on connecting passengers 

9 and originating and destination passengers. 

10 Subtitle C—Fees for FAA Services 

11 SEC. 121. UPDATE ON OVERFLIGHTS. 

12 (a) ESTABLISHMENT AND ADJUSTMENT OF FEES.— 

13 Section 45301(b) is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(b) ESTABLISHMENT AND ADJUSTMENT OF

15 FEES.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In establishing and adjust17 ing fees under subsection (a), the Administrator 

18 shall ensure that the fees are reasonably related to 

19 the Administration’s costs, as determined by the Ad20 ministrator, of providing the services rendered. Serv21 ices for which costs may be recovered include the 

22 costs of air traffic control, navigation, weather serv23 ices, training, and emergency services which are 

24 available to facilitate safe transportation over the 

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1 vided by the Administrator, or by programs financed 

2 by the Administrator, to flights that neither take off 

3 nor land in the United States. The determination of 

4 such costs by the Administrator, and the allocation 

5 of such costs by the Administrator to services pro6 vided, are not subject to judicial review. 

7 ‘‘(2) ADJUSTMENT OF FEES.—The Adminis8 trator shall adjust the overflight fees established by 

9 subsection (a)(1) by expedited rulemaking and begin 

10 collections under the adjusted fees by May 1, 2010. 

11 In developing the adjusted overflight fees, the Ad12 ministrator may seek and consider the recommenda13 tions offered by an aviation rulemaking committee 

14 for overflight fees that are provided to the Adminis15 trator by September 1, 2009, and are intended to 

16 ensure that overflight fees are reasonably related to 

17 the Administrator’s costs of providing air traffic 

18 control and related services to overflights. 

19 ‘‘(3) AIRCRAFT ALTITUDE.—Nothing in this 

20 section shall require the Administrator to take into 

21 account aircraft altitude in establishing any fee for 

22 aircraft operations in en route or oceanic airspace. 

23 ‘‘(4) COSTS DEFINED.—In this subsection, the 

24 term ‘costs’ includes those costs associated with the 

25 operation, maintenance, leasing costs, and overhead 


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1 expenses of the services provided and the facilities 

2 and equipment used in such services, including the 

3 projected costs for the period during which the serv4 ices will be provided. 

5 ‘‘(5) PUBLICATION; COMMENT.—The Adminis6 trator shall publish in the Federal Register any fee 

7 schedule under this section, including any adjusted 

8 overflight fee schedule, and the associated collection 

9 process as an interim final rule, pursuant to which 

10 public comment will be sought and a final rule 

11 issued.’’. 

12 (b) ADJUSTMENTS.—Section 45301 is amended by 

13 adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(e) ADJUSTMENTS.—In addition to adjustments 

15 under subsection (b), the Administrator may periodically 

16 adjust the fees established under this section.’’. 

17 SEC. 122. REGISTRATION FEES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 453 is amended by add19 ing at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘§ 45305. Registration, certification, and related fees 

21 ‘‘(a) GENERAL AUTHORITY AND FEES.—Subject to 

22 subsection (b), the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 

23 Administration shall establish the following fees for serv24 ices and activities of the Administration: 

25 ‘‘(1) $130 for registering an aircraft. 


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1 ‘‘(2) $45 for replacing an aircraft registration. 

2 ‘‘(3) $130 for issuing an original dealer’s air3 craft certificate. 

4 ‘‘(4) $105 for issuing an aircraft certificate 

5 (other than an original dealer’s aircraft certificate). 

6 ‘‘(5) $80 for issuing a special registration num7 ber. 

8 ‘‘(6) $50 for issuing a renewal of a special reg9 istration number. 

10 ‘‘(7) $130 for recording a security interest in 

11 an aircraft or aircraft part. 

12 ‘‘(8) $50 for issuing an airman certificate. 

13 ‘‘(9) $25 for issuing a replacement airman cer14 tificate. 

15 ‘‘(10) $42 for issuing an airman medical certifi16 cate. 

17 ‘‘(11) $100 for providing a legal opinion per18 taining to aircraft registration or recordation. 

19 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON COLLECTION.—No fee may be 

20 collected under this section unless the expenditure of the 

21 fee to pay the costs of activities and services for which 

22 the fee is imposed is provided for in advance in an appro23 priations Act. 

24 ‘‘(c) FEES CREDITED AS OFFSETTING COLLEC25 TIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 

2 3302 of title 31, any fee authorized to be collected 

3 under this section shall— 

4 ‘‘(A) be credited as offsetting collections to 

5 the account that finances the activities and 

6 services for which the fee is imposed; 

7 ‘‘(B) be available for expenditure only to 

8 pay the costs of activities and services for which 

9 the fee is imposed; and 

10 ‘‘(C) remain available until expended. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONTINUING APPROPRIATIONS.—The Ad12 ministrator may continue to assess, collect, and 

13 spend fees established under this section during any 

14 period in which the funding for the Federal Aviation 

15 Administration is provided under an Act providing 

16 continuing appropriations in lieu of the Administra17 tion’s regular appropriations. 

18 ‘‘(3) ADJUSTMENTS.—The Administrator shall 

19 periodically adjust the fees established by subsection 

20 (a) when cost data from the cost accounting system 

21 developed pursuant to section 45303(e) reveal that 

22 the cost of providing the service is higher or lower 

23 than the cost data that were used to establish the 

24 fee then in effect.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap2 ter 453 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘45305. Registration, certification, and related fees.’’. 

3 (c) FEES INVOLVING AIRCRAFT NOT PROVIDING AIR

4 TRANSPORTATION.—Section 45302(e) is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘A fee’’ and inserting the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A fee’’; and 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF IMPOSITION OF OTHER

10 FEES.—A fee may not be imposed for a service or 

11 activity under this section during any period in 

12 which a fee for the same service or activity is im13 posed under section 45305.’’. 

14 Subtitle D—AIP Modifications 

15 SEC. 131. AMENDMENTS TO AIP DEFINITIONS. 

16 (a) AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT.—Section 47102(3) is 

17 amended— 

18 (1) in subparagraph (B)(iv) by striking ‘‘20’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘9’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(M) construction of mobile refueler park22 ing within a fuel farm at a nonprimary airport 

23 meeting the requirements of section 112.8 of 

24 title 40, Code of Federal Regulations. 


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1 ‘‘(N) terminal development under section 

2 47119(a). 

3 ‘‘(O) acquiring and installing facilities and 

4 equipment to provide air conditioning, heating, 

5 or electric power from terminal-based, non-ex6 clusive use facilities to aircraft parked at a pub7 lic use airport for the purpose of reducing en8 ergy use or harmful emissions as compared to 

9 the provision of such air conditioning, heating, 

10 or electric power from aircraft-based systems.’’. 

11 (b) AIRPORT PLANNING.—Section 47102(5) is 

12 amended by inserting before the period at the end the fol13 lowing: ‘‘, developing an environmental management sys14 tem’’. 

15 (c) GENERAL AVIATION AIRPORT.—Section 47102 is 

16 amended— 

17 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (23) through 

18 (25) as paragraphs (25) through (27), respectively; 

19 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (8) through 

20 (22) as paragraphs (9) through (23), respectively; 

21 and 

22 (3) by inserting after paragraph (7) the fol23 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(8) ‘general aviation airport’ means a public 

2 airport that is located in a State and that, as deter3 mined by the Secretary— 

4 ‘‘(A) does not have scheduled service; or 

5 ‘‘(B) has scheduled service with less that 

6 2,500 passenger boardings each year.’’. 

7 (d) REVENUE PRODUCING AERONAUTICAL SUPPORT

8 FACILITIES.—Section 47102 is amended by inserting 

9 after paragraph (23) (as redesignated by subsection (c)(2) 

10 of this section) the following: 

11 ‘‘(24) ‘revenue producing aeronautical support 

12 facilities’ means fuel farms, hangar buildings, self13 service credit card aeronautical fueling systems, air14 plane wash racks, major rehabilitation of a hangar 

15 owned by a sponsor, or other aeronautical support 

16 facilities that the Secretary determines will increase 

17 the revenue producing ability of the airport.’’. 

18 (e) TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT.—Section 47102 is 

19 further amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(28) ‘terminal development’ means— 

21 ‘‘(A) development of— 

22 ‘‘(i) an airport passenger terminal 

23 building, including terminal gates; 

24 ‘‘(ii) access roads servicing exclusively 

25 airport traffic that leads directly to or 


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1 from an airport passenger terminal build2 ing; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) walkways that lead directly to or 

4 from an airport passenger terminal build5 ing; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the cost of a vehicle described in sec7 tion 47119(a)(1)(B).’’. 

8 SEC. 132. SOLID WASTE RECYCLING PLANS. 

9 (a) AIRPORT PLANNING.—Section 47102(5) (as 

10 amended by section 131(b) of this Act) is amended by in11 serting before the period at the end the following: ‘‘, and 

12 planning to minimize the generation of, and to recycle, air13 port solid waste in a manner that is consistent with appli14 cable State and local recycling laws’’. 

15 (b) MASTER PLAN.—Section 47106(a) is amended— 

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

17 (4); 

18 (2) by striking the period at the end of para19 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(6) in any case in which the project is for an 

22 airport that has an airport master plan, the master 

23 plan addresses the feasibility of solid waste recycling 

24 at the airport and minimizing the generation of solid 

25 waste at the airport.’’. 


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1 SEC. 133. AMENDMENTS TO GRANT ASSURANCES. 

2 (a) GENERAL WRITTEN ASSURANCES.—Section 

3 47107(a)(16)(D)(ii) is amended by inserting before the 

4 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, except in the case 

5 of a relocation or replacement of an existing airport facil6 ity that meets the conditions of section 47110(d)’’. 

7 (b) WRITTEN ASSURANCES ON ACQUIRING LAND.— 

8 (1) USE OF PROCEEDS.—Section 

9 47107(c)(2)(A)(iii) is amended by striking ‘‘paid to 

10 the Secretary’’ and all that follows before the semi11 colon and inserting ‘‘reinvested in another project at 

12 the airport or transferred to another airport as the 

13 Secretary prescribes under paragraph (4)’’. 

14 (2) ELIGIBLE PROJECTS.—Section 47107(c) is 

15 amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(4) PRIORITIES FOR REINVESTMENT.—In ap17 proving the reinvestment or transfer of proceeds 

18 under subsection (c)(2)(A)(iii), the Secretary shall 

19 give preference, in descending order, to the following 

20 actions: 

21 ‘‘(A) Reinvestment in an approved noise 

22 compatibility project. 

23 ‘‘(B) Reinvestment in an approved project 

24 that is eligible for funding under section 

25 47117(e). 


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1 ‘‘(C) Reinvestment in an approved airport 

2 development project that is eligible for funding 

3 under section 47114, 47115, or 47117. 

4 ‘‘(D) Transfer to a sponsor of another 

5 public airport to be reinvested in an approved 

6 noise compatibility project at such airport. 

7 ‘‘(E) Payment to the Secretary for deposit 

8 in the Airport and Airway Trust Fund.’’. 

9 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 

10 47107(c)(2)(B)(iii) is amended by striking ‘‘the Fund’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘the Airport and Airway Trust Fund estab12 lished under section 9502 of the Internal Revenue Code 

13 of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 9502)’’. 

14 SEC. 134. GOVERNMENT SHARE OF PROJECT COSTS. 

15 Section 47109 is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘provided in 

17 subsection (b) or subsection (c) of this section’’ and 

18 inserting ‘‘otherwise specifically provided in this sec19 tion’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULE FOR TRANSITION FROM SMALL

22 HUB TO MEDIUM HUB STATUS.—If the status of a small 

23 hub airport changes to a medium hub airport, the Govern24 ment’s share of allowable project costs for the airport may 


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1 not exceed 90 percent for the first 2 fiscal years following 

2 such change in hub status. 

3 ‘‘(f) SPECIAL RULE FOR ECONOMICALLY DEPRESSED

4 COMMUNITIES.—The Government’s share of allowable 

5 project costs shall be 95 percent for a project at an airport 

6 that— 

7 ‘‘(1) is receiving subsidized air service under 

8 subchapter II of chapter 417; and 

9 ‘‘(2) is located in an area that meets one or 

10 more of the criteria established in section 301(a) of 

11 the Public Works and Economic Development Act of 

12 1965 (42 U.S.C. 3161(a)), as determined by the 

13 Secretary of Commerce.’’. 

14 SEC. 135. AMENDMENTS TO ALLOWABLE COSTS. 

15 (a) ALLOWABLE PROJECT COSTS.—Section 

16 47110(b)(2)(D) is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(D) if the cost is for airport development and 

18 is incurred before execution of the grant agreement, 

19 but in the same fiscal year as execution of the grant 

20 agreement, and if— 

21 ‘‘(i) the cost was incurred before execution 

22 of the grant agreement due to the short con23 struction season in the vicinity of the airport; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the cost is in accordance with an air25 port layout plan approved by the Secretary and 


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1 with all statutory and administrative require2 ments that would have been applicable to the 

3 project if the project had been carried out after 

4 execution of the grant agreement; 

5 ‘‘(iii) the sponsor notifies the Secretary be6 fore authorizing work to commence on the 

7 project; and 

8 ‘‘(iv) the sponsor’s decision to proceed with 

9 the project in advance of execution of the grant 

10 agreement does not affect the priority assigned 

11 to the project by the Secretary for the alloca12 tion of discretionary funds;’’. 

13 (b) RELOCATION OF AIRPORT-OWNED FACILITIES.— 

14 Section 47110(d) is amended to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(d) RELOCATION OF AIRPORT-OWNED FACILI16 TIES.—The Secretary may determine that the costs of re17 locating or replacing an airport-owned facility are allow18 able for an airport development project at an airport only 

19 if— 

20 ‘‘(1) the Government’s share of such costs will 

21 be paid with funds apportioned to the airport spon22 sor under section 47114(c)(1) or 47114(d); 

23 ‘‘(2) the Secretary determines that the reloca24 tion or replacement is required due to a change in 

25 the Secretary’s design standards; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) the Secretary determines that the change 

2 is beyond the control of the airport sponsor.’’. 

3 (c) NONPRIMARY AIRPORTS.—Section 47110(h) is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by inserting ‘‘construction of’’ before ‘‘rev6 enue producing’’; and 

7 (2) by striking ‘‘, including fuel farms and 

8 hangars,’’. 

9 SEC. 136. PREFERENCE FOR SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS 

10 OWNED AND CONTROLLED BY DISABLED 

11 VETERANS. 

12 Section 47112(c) is amended by adding at the end 

13 the following: 

14 ‘‘(3) A contract involving labor for carrying out an 

15 airport development project under a grant agreement 

16 under this subchapter must require that a preference be 

17 given to the use of small business concerns (as defined 

18 in section 3 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 632)) 

19 owned and controlled by disabled veterans.’’. 

20 SEC. 137. AIRPORT DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTER21 PRISE PROGRAM. 

22 (a) PURPOSE.—It is the purpose of the airport dis23 advantaged business program to ensure that minority- and 

24 women-owned businesses have a full and fair opportunity 

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1 cessions and to ensure that the Federal Government does 

2 not subsidize discrimination in private or locally funded 

3 airport-related industries. 

4 (b) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

5 (1) While significant progress has occurred due 

6 to the enactment of the airport disadvantaged busi7 ness enterprise program (49 U.S.C. 47107(e) and 

8 47113), discrimination continues to be a significant 

9 barrier for minority- and women-owned businesses 

10 seeking to do business in airport-related markets. 

11 This continuing discrimination merits the continu12 ation of the airport disadvantaged business enter13 prise program. 

14 (2) Discrimination poses serious barriers to the 

15 full participation in airport-related businesses of 

16 women business owners and minority business own17 ers, including African Americans, Hispanic Ameri18 cans, Asian Americans, and Native Americans. 

19 (3) Discrimination impacts minority and women 

20 business owners in every geographic region of the 

21 United States and in every airport-related industry. 

22 (4) Discrimination has impacted many aspects 

23 of airport-related business, including— 

24 (A) the availability of venture capital and 

25 credit; 


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1 (B) the availability of bonding and insur2 ance; 

3 (C) the ability to obtain licensing and cer4 tification; 

5 (D) public and private bidding and quoting 

6 procedures; 

7 (E) the pricing of supplies and services; 

8 (F) business training, education, and ap9 prenticeship programs; and 

10 (G) professional support organizations and 

11 informal networks through which business op12 portunities are often established. 

13 (5) Congress has received voluminous evidence 

14 of discrimination against minority and women busi15 ness owners in airport-related industries, includ16 ing— 

17 (A) statistical analyses demonstrating sig18 nificant disparities in the utilization of 

19 minority- and women-owned businesses in fed20 erally and locally funded airport related con21 tracting; 

22 (B) statistical analyses of private sector 

23 disparities in business success by minority- and 

24 women-owned businesses in airport related in25 dustries; 


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1 (C) research compiling anecdotal reports of 

2 discrimination by individual minority and 

3 women business owners; 

4 (D) individual reports of discrimination by 

5 minority and women business owners and the 

6 organizations and individuals who represent mi7 nority and women business owners; 

8 (E) analyses demonstrating significant re9 ductions in the participation of minority and 

10 women businesses in jurisdictions that have re11 duced or eliminated their minority- and women12 owned business programs; 

13 (F) statistical analyses showing significant 

14 disparities in the credit available to minority15 and women-owned businesses; 

16 (G) research and statistical analyses dem17 onstrating how discrimination negatively im18 pacts firm formation, growth, and success; 

19 (H) experience of airports and other local20 ities demonstrating that race- and gender-neu21 tral efforts alone are insufficient to remedy dis22 crimination; and 

23 (I) other qualitative and quantitative evi24 dence of discrimination against minority- and 


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1 women-owned businesses in airport-related in2 dustries. 

3 (6) All of this evidence provides a strong basis 

4 for the continuation of the airport disadvantaged 

5 business enterprise program and the airport conces6 sions disadvantaged business enterprise program. 

7 (7) Congress has received and reviewed recent 

8 comprehensive and compelling evidence of discrimi9 nation from many different sources, including con10 gressional hearings and roundtables, scientific re11 ports, reports issued by public and private agencies, 

12 news stories, reports of discrimination by organiza13 tions and individuals, and discrimination lawsuits. 

14 (c) DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PER15 SONAL NET WORTH CAP; BONDING REQUIREMENTS.— 

16 Section 47113 is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(e) PERSONAL NET WORTH CAP.— 

19 ‘‘(1) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

21 Secretary shall issue final regulations to adjust the 

22 personal net worth cap used in determining whether 

23 an individual is economically disadvantaged for pur24 poses of qualifying under the definition contained in 

25 subsection (a)(2) and under section 47107(e). The 


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1 regulations shall correct for the impact of inflation 

2 since the Small Business Administration established 

3 the personal net worth cap at $750,000 in 1989. 

4 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL ADJUSTMENT.—Following the ini5 tial adjustment under paragraph (1), the Secretary 

6 shall adjust, on June 30 of each year thereafter, the 

7 personal net worth cap to account for changes, oc8 curring in the preceding 12-month period, in the 

9 Consumer Price Index of All Urban Consumers 

10 (United States city average, all items) published by 

11 the Secretary of Labor. 

12 ‘‘(f) EXCLUSION OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In calculating a business 

14 owner’s personal net worth, any funds held in a 

15 qualified retirement account owned by the business 

16 owner shall be excluded, subject to regulations to be 

17 issued by the Secretary. 

18 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than one year 

19 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

20 Secretary shall issue final regulations to implement 

21 paragraph (1), including consideration of appro22 priate safeguards, such as a limit on the amount of 

23 such accounts, to prevent circumvention of personal 

24 net worth requirements. 


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1 ‘‘(g) PROHIBITION ON EXCESSIVE OR DISCRIMINA2 TORY BONDING REQUIREMENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall estab4 lish a program to eliminate barriers to small busi5 ness participation in airport-related contracts and 

6 concessions by prohibiting excessive, unreasonable, 

7 or discriminatory bonding requirements for any 

8 project funded under this chapter or using passenger 

9 facility revenues under section 40117. 

10 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than one year 

11 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

12 Secretary shall issue a final rule to establish the pro13 gram under paragraph (1).’’. 

14 SEC. 138. TRAINING PROGRAM FOR CERTIFICATION OF DIS15 ADVANTAGED BUSINESS ENTERPRISES. 

16 (a) MANDATORY TRAINING PROGRAM.—Section 

17 47113 (as amended by this Act) is further amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘Secretary’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘Secretary of Transportation’’; and 

20 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(h) MANDATORY TRAINING PROGRAM.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year 

23 after the date of enactment of this subsection, the 

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1 tifying whether a small business concern qualifies as 

2 a small business concern owned and controlled by 

3 socially and economically disadvantaged individuals 

4 under this section and section 47107(e). 

5 ‘‘(2) IMPLEMENTATION.—The training program 

6 may be implemented by one or more private entities 

7 approved by the Secretary. 

8 ‘‘(3) PARTICIPANTS.—A person referred to in 

9 paragraph (1) is an official or agent of an airport 

10 sponsor— 

11 ‘‘(A) who is required to provide a written 

12 assurance under this section or section 

13 47107(e) that the airport owner or operator will 

14 meet the percentage goal of subsection (b) or 

15 section 47107(e)(1); or 

16 ‘‘(B) who is responsible for determining 

17 whether or not a small business concern quali18 fies as a small business concern owned and con19 trolled by socially and economically disadvan20 taged individuals under this section or section 

21 47107(e). 

22 ‘‘(4) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

23 Out of amounts appropriated under section 106(k), 

24 not less than $2,000,000 for each of fiscal years 

25 2010, 2011, and 2012 shall be used to carry out this 


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1 subsection and to support other programs and activi2 ties of the Secretary related to the participation of 

3 small business concerns owned and controlled by so4 cially and economically disadvantaged individuals in 

5 airport related contracts or concessions.’’. 

6 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 24 months after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit 

8 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

9 of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Com10 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, and 

11 other appropriate committees of Congress a report on the 

12 results of the training program conducted under the 

13 amendment made by subsection (b). 

14 SEC. 139. CALCULATION OF STATE APPORTIONMENT FUND. 

15 Section 47114(d) is amended— 

16 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘Except as provided in 

18 paragraph (3), the Secretary’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘The Secretary’’; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘18.5 percent’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘10 percent’’; and 

22 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(3) ADDITIONAL AMOUNT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to 

2 amounts apportioned under paragraph (2), and 

3 subject to subparagraph (B), the Secretary 

4 shall apportion to each airport, excluding pri5 mary airports but including reliever and nonpri6 mary commercial service airports, in States the 

7 lesser of— 

8 ‘‘(i) $150,000; or 

‘‘(ii) 1 9 ⁄5 of the most recently published 

10 estimate of the 5-year costs for airport im11 provement for the airport, as listed in the 

12 national plan of integrated airport systems 

13 developed by the Federal Aviation Admin14 istration under section 47103. 

15 ‘‘(B) REDUCTION.—In any fiscal year in 

16 which the total amount made available for ap17 portionment under paragraph (2) is less than 

18 $300,000,000, the Secretary shall reduce, on a 

19 prorated basis, the amount to be apportioned 

20 under subparagraph (A) and make such reduc21 tion available to be apportioned under para22 graph (2), so as to apportion under paragraph 

23 (2) a minimum of $300,000,000.’’. 

24 SEC. 140. REDUCING APPORTIONMENTS. 

25 Section 47114(f)(1) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara2 graph (A); 

3 (2) in subparagraph (B)— 

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘except as provided by 

5 subparagraph (C),’’ before ‘‘in the case’’; and 

6 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

7 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

9 ‘‘(C) in the case of a charge of more than 

10 $4.50 imposed by the sponsor of an airport en11 planing at least one percent of the total number 

12 of boardings each year in the United States, 

13 100 percent of the projected revenues from the 

14 charge in the fiscal year but not more than 100 

15 percent of the amount that otherwise would be 

16 apportioned under this section.’’. 

17 SEC. 141. MINIMUM AMOUNT FOR DISCRETIONARY FUND. 

18 Section 47115(g)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘sum 

19 of—’’ and all that follows through the period at the end 

20 of subparagraph (B) and inserting ‘‘sum of 

21 $520,000,000.’’. 

22 SEC. 142. MARSHALL ISLANDS, MICRONESIA, AND PALAU. 

23 Section 47115(j) is amended by striking ‘‘fiscal years 

24 2004 through 2009,’’ and inserting ‘‘fiscal years 2010 

25 through 2012,’’. 


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1 SEC. 143. USE OF APPORTIONED AMOUNTS. 

2 Section 47117(e)(1)(A) is amended— 

3 (1) in the first sentence— 

4 (A) by striking ‘‘35 percent’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘$300,000,000’’; 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘and’’ after ‘‘47141,’’; and 

7 (C) by inserting before the period at the 

8 end the following: ‘‘, and for water quality miti9 gation projects to comply with the Federal 

10 Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 1251 et 

11 seq.) as approved in an environmental record of 

12 decision for an airport development project 

13 under this title’’; and 

14 (2) in the second sentence by striking ‘‘such 35 

15 percent requirement is’’ and inserting ‘‘the require16 ments of the preceding sentence are’’. 

17 SEC. 144. SALE OF PRIVATE AIRPORT TO PUBLIC SPONSOR. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47133(b) is amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘Subsection (a) shall not apply 

20 if’’ and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(1) PRIOR LAWS AND AGREEMENTS.—Sub22 section (a) shall not apply if’’; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(2) SALE OF PRIVATE AIRPORT TO PUBLIC

25 SPONSOR.—In the case of a privately owned airport, 


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1 subsection (a) shall not apply to the proceeds from 

2 the sale of the airport to a public sponsor if— 

3 ‘‘(A) the sale is approved by the Secretary; 

4 ‘‘(B) funding is provided under this sub5 title for any portion of the public sponsor’s ac6 quisition of airport land; and 

7 ‘‘(C) an amount equal to the remaining 

8 unamortized portion of any airport improve9 ment grant made to that airport for purposes 

10 other than land acquisition, amortized over a 

11 20-year period, plus an amount equal to the 

12 Federal share of the current fair market value 

13 of any land acquired with an airport improve14 ment grant made to that airport on or after Oc15 tober 1, 1996, is repaid to the Secretary by the 

16 private owner. 

17 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF REPAYMENTS.—Repay18 ments referred to in paragraph (2)(C) shall be treat19 ed as a recovery of prior year obligations.’’. 

20 (b) APPLICABILITY TO GRANTS.—The amendments 

21 made by subsection (a) shall apply to grants issued on 

22 or after October 1, 1996. 

23 SEC. 145. AIRPORT PRIVATIZATION PILOT PROGRAM. 

24 (a) APPROVAL REQUIREMENTS.—Section 47134 is 

25 amended in subsections (b)(1)(A)(i), (b)(1)(A)(ii), 


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1 (c)(4)(A), and (c)(4)(B) by striking ‘‘65 percent’’ each 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘75 percent’’. 

3 (b) PROHIBITION ON RECEIPT OF FUNDS.— 

4 (1) SECTION 47134.—Section 47134 is amended 

5 by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(n) PROHIBITION ON RECEIPT OF CERTAIN

7 FUNDS.—An airport receiving an exemption under sub8 section (b) shall be prohibited from receiving apportion9 ments under section 47114 or discretionary funds under 

10 section 47115.’’. 

11 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

12 47134(g) is amended— 

13 (A) in the subsection heading by striking 

14 ‘‘APPORTIONMENTS;’’; 

15 (B) in paragraph (1) by striking the semi16 colon at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

17 (C) by striking paragraph (2); and 

18 (D) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 

19 paragraph (2). 

20 (c) FEDERAL SHARE OF PROJECT COSTS.—Section 

21 47109(a) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking the semicolon at the end of 

23 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

24 (2) by striking paragraph (4); and 


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1 (3) by redesignating paragraph (5) as para2 graph (4). 

3 SEC. 146. AIRPORT SECURITY PROGRAM. 

4 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Section 47137(a) is 

5 amended by inserting ‘‘, in consultation with the Secretary 

6 of Homeland Security,’’ after ‘‘Transportation’’. 

7 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—Section 47137(b) is amend8 ed to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(b) IMPLEMENTATION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In carrying out this sec11 tion, the Secretary of Transportation shall provide 

12 funding through a grant, contract, or another agree13 ment described in section 106(l)(6) to a nonprofit 

14 consortium that— 

15 ‘‘(A) is composed of public and private per16 sons, including an airport sponsor; and 

17 ‘‘(B) has at least 10 years of demonstrated 

18 experience in testing and evaluating anti-ter19 rorist technologies at airports. 

20 ‘‘(2) PROJECT SELECTION.—The Secretary 

21 shall select projects under this subsection that— 

22 ‘‘(A) evaluate and test the benefits of inno23 vative aviation security systems or related tech24 nology, including explosives detection systems, 

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1 craft physical security, access control, and pas2 senger and baggage screening; and 

3 ‘‘(B) provide testing and evaluation of air4 port security systems and technology in an 

5 operational, testbed environment.’’. 

6 (c) MATCHING SHARE.—Section 47137(c) is amend7 ed by inserting after ‘‘section 47109’’ the following: ‘‘or 

8 any other provision of law’’. 

9 (d) ADMINISTRATION.—Section 47137(e) is amended 

10 by adding at the end the following: ‘‘The Secretary may 

11 enter into an agreement in accordance with section 

12 106(m) to provide for the administration of any project 

13 under the program.’’. 

14 (e) ELIGIBLE SPONSOR.—Section 47137 is amended 

15 by striking subsection (f) and redesignating subsection (g) 

16 as subsection (f). 

17 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

18 47137(f) (as so redesignated) is amended by striking 

19 ‘‘$5,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$8,500,000’’. 

20 SEC. 147. SUNSET OF PILOT PROGRAM FOR PURCHASE OF 

21 AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS. 

22 Section 47138 is amended by adding at the end the 

23 following: 

24 ‘‘(f) SUNSET.—This section shall not be in effect 

25 after September 30, 2008.’’. 


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1 SEC. 148. EXTENSION OF GRANT AUTHORITY FOR COMPAT2 IBLE LAND USE PLANNING AND PROJECTS 

3 BY STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. 

4 Section 47141(f) is amended by striking ‘‘September 

5 30, 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

6 SEC. 149. REPEAL OF LIMITATIONS ON METROPOLITAN 

7 WASHINGTON AIRPORTS AUTHORITY. 

8 Section 49108, and the item relating to such section 

9 in the analysis for chapter 491, are repealed. 

10 SEC. 150. MIDWAY ISLAND AIRPORT. 

11 Section 186(d) of the Vision 100—Century of Avia12 tion Reauthorization Act (117 Stat. 2518) is amended by 

13 striking ‘‘October 1, 2009,’’ and inserting ‘‘October 1, 

14 2012,’’. 

15 SEC. 151. PUERTO RICO MINIMUM GUARANTEE. 

16 Section 47114(e) is amended— 

17 (1) in the subsection heading by inserting ‘‘AND

18 PUERTO RICO’’ after ‘‘ALASKA’’; and 

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

20 ‘‘(5) PUERTO RICO MINIMUM GUARANTEE.—In 

21 any fiscal year in which the total amount appor22 tioned to airports in Puerto Rico under subsections 

23 (c) and (d) is less than 1.5 percent of the total 

24 amount apportioned to all airports under subsections 

25 (c) and (d), the Secretary shall apportion to the 

26 Puerto Rico Ports Authority for airport development 


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1 projects in such fiscal year an amount equal to the 

2 difference between 1.5 percent of the total amounts 

3 apportioned under subsections (c) and (d) in such 

4 fiscal year and the amount otherwise apportioned 

5 under subsections (c) and (d) to airports in Puerto 

6 Rico in such fiscal year.’’. 

7 SEC. 152. MISCELLANEOUS AMENDMENTS. 

8 (a) TECHNICAL CHANGES TO NATIONAL PLAN OF

9 INTEGRATED AIRPORT SYSTEMS.—Section 47103 is 

10 amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘each airport to—’’ and in13 serting ‘‘the airport system to—’’; 

14 (B) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘system 

15 in the particular area;’’ and inserting ‘‘system, 

16 including connection to the surface transpor17 tation network; and’’; 

18 (C) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘; and’’ 

19 and inserting a period; and 

20 (D) by striking paragraph (3); 

21 (2) in subsection (b)— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking the semi23 colon and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

24 (B) by striking paragraph (2) and redesig25 nating paragraph (3) as paragraph (2); and 


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1 (C) in paragraph (2) (as so redesignated) 

2 by striking ‘‘, Short Takeoff and Landing/Very 

3 Short Takeoff and Landing aircraft oper4 ations,’’; and 

5 (3) in subsection (d) by striking ‘‘status of 

6 the’’. 

7 (b) UPDATE VETERANS PREFERENCE DEFINI8 TION.—Section 47112(c) is amended— 

9 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

10 (A) in subparagraph (B) by striking ‘‘sepa11 rated from’’ and inserting ‘‘discharged or re12 leased from active duty in’’; and 

13 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(C) ‘Afghanistan-Iraq war veteran’ means an 

15 individual who served on active duty (as defined by 

16 section 101 of title 38) in the Armed Forces for a 

17 period of more than 180 consecutive days, any part 

18 of which occurred during the period beginning on 

19 September 11, 2001, and ending on the date pre20 scribed by presidential proclamation or by law as the 

21 last date of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and who was 

22 separated from the Armed Forces under honorable 

23 conditions.’’; and 


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1 (2) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘veterans and’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘veterans, Afghanistan-Iraq war vet3 erans, and’’. 

4 (c) CONSOLIDATION OF TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT

5 PROVISIONS.—Section 47119 is amended— 

6 (1) by redesignating subsections (a), (b), (c), 

7 and (d) as subsections (b), (c), (d), and (e), respec8 tively; and 

9 (2) by inserting before subsection (b) (as so re10 designated) the following: 

11 ‘‘(a) TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may approve 

13 a project for terminal development (including 

14 multimodal terminal development) in a nonrevenue15 producing public-use area of a commercial service 

16 airport— 

17 ‘‘(A) if the sponsor certifies that the air18 port, on the date the grant application is sub19 mitted to the Secretary, has— 

20 ‘‘(i) all the safety equipment required 

21 for certification of the airport under sec22 tion 44706; 

23 ‘‘(ii) all the security equipment re24 quired by regulation; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) provided for access by pas2 sengers to the area of the airport for 

3 boarding or exiting aircraft that are not 

4 air carrier aircraft; 

5 ‘‘(B) if the cost is directly related to mov6 ing passengers and baggage in air commerce 

7 within the airport, including vehicles for moving 

8 passengers between terminal facilities and be9 tween terminal facilities and aircraft; and 

10 ‘‘(C) under terms necessary to protect the 

11 interests of the Government. 

12 ‘‘(2) PROJECT IN REVENUE-PRODUCING AREAS

13 AND NONREVENUE-PRODUCING PARKING LOTS.—In 

14 making a decision under paragraph (1), the Sec15 retary may approve as allowable costs the expenses 

16 of terminal development in a revenue-producing area 

17 and construction, reconstruction, repair, and im18 provement in a nonrevenue-producing parking lot 

19 if— 

20 ‘‘(A) except as provided in section 

21 47108(e)(3), the airport does not have more 

22 than .05 percent of the total annual passenger 

23 boardings in the United States; and 

24 ‘‘(B) the sponsor certifies that any needed 

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1 curity, or capacity will not be deferred because 

2 of the Secretary’s approval.’’; 

3 (3) in paragraphs (3) and (4)(A) of subsection 

4 (b) (as redesignated by paragraph (1) of this sub5 section) by striking ‘‘section 47110(d)’’ and insert6 ing ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 

7 (4) in paragraph (5) of subsection (b) (as re8 designated by paragraph (1) of this subsection) by 

9 striking ‘‘subsection (b)(1) and (2)’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘subsections (c)(1) and (c)(2)’’; 

11 (5) in paragraphs (2)(A), (3), and (4) of sub12 section (c) (as redesignated by paragraph (1) of this 

13 subsection) by striking ‘‘section 47110(d) of this 

14 title’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 

15 (6) in paragraph (2)(B) of subsection (c) (as 

16 redesignated by paragraph (1) of this subsection) by 

17 striking ‘‘section 47110(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub18 section (a)’’; 

19 (7) in subsection (c)(5) (as redesignated by 

20 paragraph (1) of this subsection) by striking ‘‘sec21 tion 47110(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; and 

22 (8) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(f) LIMITATION ON DISCRETIONARY FUNDS.—The 

24 Secretary may distribute not more than $20,000,000 from 

25 the discretionary fund established under section 47115 for 


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1 terminal development projects at a nonhub airport or a 

2 small hub airport that is eligible to receive discretionary 

3 funds under section 47108(e)(3).’’. 

4 (d) ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 47131(a) is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘April 1’’ and inserting ‘‘June 

7 1’’; and 

8 (2) by striking paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (4) 

9 and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘(1) a summary of airport development and 

11 planning completed; 

12 ‘‘(2) a summary of individual grants issued; 

13 ‘‘(3) an accounting of discretionary and appor14 tioned funds allocated; 

15 ‘‘(4) the allocation of appropriations; and’’. 

16 (e) CORRECTION TO EMISSION CREDITS PROVI17 SION.—Section 47139 is amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (a) by striking 

19 ‘‘47102(3)(F),’’; and 

20 (2) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) by striking ‘‘47102(3)(F),’’; and 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘47103(3)(F),’’. 

23 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENT TO CIVIL PENALTY

24 ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY.—Section 46301(d)(2) is 

25 amended by inserting ‘‘46319,’’ after ‘‘46318,’’. 


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1 (g) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

2 (1) Sections 40117(a)(3)(B) is amended by 

3 striking ‘‘section 47110(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

4 47119(a)’’. 

5 (2) Section 47108(e)(3) is amended— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘section 47110(d)(2)’’ and 

7 inserting ‘‘section 47119(a)’’; and 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘section 47110(d)’’ and in9 serting ‘‘section 47119(a)’’. 

10 (h) CORRECTION TO SURPLUS PROPERTY AUTHOR11 ITY.—Section 47151(e) is amended by striking ‘‘(other 

12 than real property’’ and all that follows through ‘‘(10 

13 U.S.C. 2687 note))’’. 

14 (i) AIRPORT CAPACITY BENCHMARK REPORTS.—Sec15 tion 47175(2) is amended by striking ‘‘Airport Capacity 

16 Benchmark Report 2001’’ and inserting ‘‘2001 and 2004 

17 Airport Capacity Benchmark Reports or table 1 of the 

18 Federal Aviation Administration’s most recent airport ca19 pacity benchmark report’’. 

20 SEC. 153. AIRPORT MASTER PLANS. 

21 Section 47101 is amended by adding at the end the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(i) ADDITIONAL GOALS FOR AIRPORT MASTER

24 PLANS.—In addition to the goals set forth in subsection 

25 (g)(2), the Secretary shall encourage airport sponsors and 


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1 State and local officials, through Federal Aviation Admin2 istration advisory circulars, to consider customer conven3 ience, airport ground access, and access to airport facili4 ties in airport master plans.’’. 

5 TITLE II—NEXT GENERATION 

6 AIR TRANSPORTATION SYS7 TEM AND AIR TRAFFIC CON8 TROL MODERNIZATION 

9 SEC. 201. MISSION STATEMENT; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

10 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

11 (1) The United States faces a great national 

12 challenge as the Nation’s aviation infrastructure is 

13 at a crossroads. 

14 (2) The demand for aviation services, a critical 

15 element of the United States economy, vital in sup16 porting the quality of life of the people of the United 

17 States, and critical in support of the Nation’s de18 fense and national security, is growing at an ever in19 creasing rate. At the same time, the ability of the 

20 United States air transportation system to expand 

21 and change to meet this increasing demand is lim22 ited. 

23 (3) The aviation industry accounts for more 

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1 tributes approximately $741,000,000,000 annually 

2 to the United States gross domestic product. 

3 (4) The United States air transportation sys4 tem continues to drive economic growth in the 

5 United States and will continue to be a major eco6 nomic driver as air traffic triples over the next 20 

7 years. 

8 (5) The Next Generation Air Transportation 

9 System (in this section referred to as the ‘‘NextGen 

10 System’’) is the system for achieving long-term 

11 transformation of the United States air transpor12 tation system that focuses on developing and imple13 menting new technologies and that will set the stage 

14 for the long-term development of a scalable and 

15 more flexible air transportation system without com16 promising the unprecedented safety record of United 

17 States aviation. 

18 (6) The benefits of the NextGen System, in 

19 terms of promoting economic growth and develop20 ment, are enormous. 

21 (7) The NextGen System will guide the path of 

22 the United States air transportation system in the 

23 challenging years ahead. 

24 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con25 gress that— 


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1 (1) modernizing the air transportation system 

2 is a national priority and the United States must 

3 make a commitment to revitalizing this essential 

4 component of the Nation’s transportation infrastruc5 ture; 

6 (2) one fundamental requirement for the suc7 cess of the NextGen System is strong leadership and 

8 sufficient resources; 

9 (3) the Joint Planning and Development Office 

10 of the Federal Aviation Administration and the Next 

11 Generation Air Transportation System Senior Policy 

12 Committee, each established by Congress in 2003, 

13 will lead and facilitate this important national mis14 sion to ensure that the programs and capabilities of 

15 the NextGen System are carefully integrated and 

16 aligned; 

17 (4) Government agencies and industry must 

18 work together, carefully integrating and aligning 

19 their work to meet the needs of the NextGen System 

20 in the development of budgets, programs, planning, 

21 and research; 

22 (5) the Department of Transportation, the Fed23 eral Aviation Administration, the Department of De24 fense, the Department of Homeland Security, the 

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1 nautics and Space Administration must work in co2 operation and make transformational improvements 

3 to the United States air transportation infrastruc4 ture a priority; and 

5 (6) due to the critical importance of the 

6 NextGen System to the economic and national secu7 rity of the United States, partner departments and 

8 agencies must be provided with the resources re9 quired to complete the implementation of the 

10 NextGen System. 

11 SEC. 202. NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANSPORTATION SYS12 TEM JOINT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT 

13 OFFICE. 

14 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

15 (1) ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR FOR THE NEXT

16 GENERATION AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM.—Sec17 tion 709(a) of Vision 100—Century of Aviation Re18 authorization Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 note; 117 Stat. 

19 2582) is amended— 

20 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), 

21 and (4) as paragraphs (3), (4), and (5), respec22 tively; and 

23 (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 

24 following: 


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1 ‘‘(2) The director of the Office shall be the Associate 

2 Administrator for the Next Generation Air Transportation 

3 System, who shall be appointed by the Administrator of 

4 the Federal Aviation Administration. The Associate Ad5 ministrator shall report to the Administrator.’’. 

6 (2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Section 709(a)(3) of 

7 such Act (as redesignated by paragraph (1) of this 

8 subsection) is amended— 

9 (A) in subparagraph (G) by striking ‘‘; 

10 and’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

11 (B) in subparagraph (H) by striking the 

12 period at the end and inserting a semicolon; 

13 and 

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

15 ‘‘(I) establishing specific quantitative goals 

16 for the safety, capacity, efficiency, performance, 

17 and environmental impacts of each phase of 

18 Next Generation Air Transportation System im19 plementation activities and measuring actual 

20 operational experience against those goals, tak21 ing into account noise pollution reduction con22 cerns of affected communities to the greatest 

23 extent practicable in establishing the environ24 mental goals; 


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1 ‘‘(J) working to ensure global interoper2 ability of the Next Generation Air Transpor3 tation System; 

4 ‘‘(K) working to ensure the use of weather 

5 information and space weather information in 

6 the Next Generation Air Transportation System 

7 as soon as possible; 

8 ‘‘(L) overseeing, with the Administrator of 

9 the Federal Aviation Administration, the selec10 tion of products or outcomes of research and 

11 development activities that would be moved to 

12 the next stage of a demonstration project; and 

13 ‘‘(M) maintaining a baseline modeling and 

14 simulation environment for testing and evalu15 ating alternative concepts to satisfy Next Gen16 eration Air Transportation enterprise architec17 ture requirements.’’. 

18 (3) COOPERATION WITH OTHER FEDERAL

19 AGENCIES.—Section 709(a)(4) of such Act (as re20 designated by paragraph (1) of this subsection) is 

21 amended— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘(4)’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘(4)(A)’’; and 

24 (B) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(B) The Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of 

2 the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the 

3 Secretary of Commerce, the Secretary of Homeland Secu4 rity, and the head of any other Federal agency from which 

5 the Secretary of Transportation requests assistance under 

6 subparagraph (A) shall designate a senior official in the 

7 agency to be responsible for— 

8 ‘‘(i) carrying out the activities of the agency re9 lating to the Next Generation Air Transportation 

10 System in coordination with the Office, including the 

11 execution of all aspects of the work of the agency in 

12 developing and implementing the integrated work 

13 plan described in subsection (b)(5); 

14 ‘‘(ii) serving as a liaison for the agency in ac15 tivities of the agency relating to the Next Generation 

16 Air Transportation System and coordinating with 

17 other Federal agencies involved in activities relating 

18 to the System; and 

19 ‘‘(iii) ensuring that the agency meets its obliga20 tions as set forth in any memorandum of under21 standing executed by or on behalf of the agency re22 lating to the Next Generation Air Transportation 

23 System. 

24 ‘‘(C) The head of a Federal agency referred to in sub25 paragraph (B) shall ensure that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the responsibilities of the agency relating to 

2 the Next Generation Air Transportation System are 

3 clearly communicated to the senior official of the 

4 agency designated under subparagraph (B); and 

5 ‘‘(ii) the performance of the senior official in 

6 carrying out the responsibilities of the agency relat7 ing to the Next Generation Air Transportation Sys8 tem is reflected in the official’s annual performance 

9 evaluations and compensation. 

10 ‘‘(D) The head of a Federal agency referred to in 

11 subparagraph (B) shall— 

12 ‘‘(i) establish or designate an office within the 

13 agency to carry out its responsibilities under the 

14 memorandum of understanding under the super15 vision of the designated official; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) ensure that the designated official has suf17 ficient budgetary authority and staff resources to 

18 carry out the agency’s Next Generation Air Trans19 portation System responsibilities as set forth in the 

20 integrated plan under subsection (b). 

21 ‘‘(E) Not later than 6 months after the date of enact22 ment of this subparagraph, the head of each Federal agen23 cy that has responsibility for carrying out any activity 

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1 cute a memorandum of understanding with the Office obli2 gating that agency to carry out the activity.’’. 

3 (4) COORDINATION WITH OMB.—Section 709(a) 

4 of such Act (117 Stat. 2582) is further amended by 

5 adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(6)(A) The Office shall work with the Director of 

7 the Office of Management and Budget to develop a process 

8 whereby the Director will identify projects related to the 

9 Next Generation Air Transportation System across the 

10 agencies referred to in paragraph (4)(A) and consider the 

11 Next Generation Air Transportation System as a unified, 

12 cross-agency program. 

13 ‘‘(B) The Director, to the maximum extent prac14 ticable, shall— 

15 ‘‘(i) ensure that— 

16 ‘‘(I) each Federal agency covered by the 

17 plan has sufficient funds requested in the Presi18 dent’s budget, as submitted under section 

19 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, for 

20 each fiscal year covered by the plan to carry out 

21 its responsibilities under the plan; and 

22 ‘‘(II) the development and implementation 

23 of the Next Generation Air Transportation Sys24 tem remains on schedule; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) include, in the President’s budget, a state2 ment of the portion of the estimated budget of each 

3 Federal agency covered by the plan that relates to 

4 the activities of the agency under the Next Genera5 tion Air Transportation System initiative; and 

6 ‘‘(iii) identify and justify as part of the Presi7 dent’s budget submission any inconsistencies be8 tween the plan and amounts requested in the budg9 et. 

10 ‘‘(7) The Associate Administrator of the Next Gen11 eration Air Transportation System shall be a voting mem12 ber of the Joint Resources Council of the Federal Aviation 

13 Administration.’’. 

14 (b) INTEGRATED PLAN.—Section 709(b) of such Act 

15 (117 Stat. 2583) is amended— 

16 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘meets air’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘meets anticipated future air’’; and 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘beyond those currently in20 cluded in the Federal Aviation Administration’s 

21 operational evolution plan’’; 

22 (2) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

23 (3); 

24 (3) by striking the period at the end of para25 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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

2 ‘‘(5) a multiagency integrated work plan for the 

3 Next Generation Air Transportation System that in4 cludes— 

5 ‘‘(A) an outline of the activities required to 

6 achieve the end-state architecture, as expressed 

7 in the concept of operations and enterprise ar8 chitecture documents, that identifies each Fed9 eral agency or other entity responsible for each 

10 activity in the outline; 

11 ‘‘(B) details on a year-by-year basis of spe12 cific accomplishments, activities, research re13 quirements, rulemakings, policy decisions, and 

14 other milestones of progress for each Federal 

15 agency or entity conducting activities relating to 

16 the Next Generation Air Transportation Sys17 tem; 

18 ‘‘(C) for each element of the Next Genera19 tion Air Transportation System, an outline, on 

20 a year-by-year basis, of what is to be accom21 plished in that year toward meeting the Next 

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1 cy or other entity that will be responsible for 

2 each component of any research, development, 

3 or implementation program; 

4 ‘‘(D) an estimate of all necessary expendi5 tures on a year-by-year basis, including a state6 ment of each Federal agency or entity’s respon7 sibility for costs and available resources, for 

8 each stage of development from the basic re9 search stage through the demonstration and im10 plementation phase; 

11 ‘‘(E) a clear explanation of how each step 

12 in the development of the Next Generation Air 

13 Transportation System will lead to the following 

14 step and of the implications of not successfully 

15 completing a step in the time period described 

16 in the integrated work plan; 

17 ‘‘(F) a transition plan for the implementa18 tion of the Next Generation Air Transportation 

19 System that includes date-specific milestones 

20 for the implementation of new capabilities into 

21 the national airspace system; 

22 ‘‘(G) date-specific timetables for meeting 

23 the environmental goals identified in subsection 

24 (a)(3)(I); and 


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1 ‘‘(H) a description of potentially signifi2 cant operational or workforce changes resulting 

3 from deployment of the Next Generation Air 

4 Transportation System.’’. 

5 (c) NEXTGEN IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—Section 

6 709(d) of such Act (117 Stat. 2584) is amended to read 

7 as follows: 

8 ‘‘(d) NEXTGEN IMPLEMENTATION PLAN.—The Ad9 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall 

10 develop and publish annually the document known as the 

11 ‘NextGen Implementation Plan’, or any successor docu12 ment, that provides a detailed description of how the agen13 cy is implementing the Next Generation Air Transpor14 tation System.’’. 

15 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

16 709(e) of such Act (117 Stat. 2584) is amended by strik17 ing ‘‘2010’’ and inserting ‘‘2012’’. 

18 (e) CONTINGENCY PLANNING.—The Associate Ad19 ministrator for the Next Generation Air Transportation 

20 System shall, as part of the design of the System, develop 

21 contingency plans for dealing with the degradation of the 

22 System in the event of a natural disaster, major equip23 ment failure, or act of terrorism. 


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1 SEC. 203. NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANSPORTATION SEN2 IOR POLICY COMMITTEE. 

3 (a) MEETINGS.—Section 710(a) of Vision 100—Cen4 tury of Aviation Reauthorization Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 

5 note; 117 Stat. 2584) is amended by inserting before the 

6 period at the end the following ‘‘and shall meet at least 

7 twice each year’’. 

8 (b) ANNUAL REPORT.—Section 710 of such Act (117 

9 Stat. 2584) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(e) ANNUAL REPORT.— 

11 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

12 than one year after the date of enactment of this 

13 subsection, and annually thereafter on the date of 

14 submission of the President’s budget request to Con15 gress under section 1105(a) of title 31, United 

16 States Code, the Secretary shall submit to the Com17 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the 

18 Committee on Science and Technology of the House 

19 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

20 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

21 summarizing the progress made in carrying out the 

22 integrated work plan required by section 709(b)(5) 

23 and any changes in that plan. 

24 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 

25 ‘‘(A) a copy of the updated integrated 

26 work plan; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a description of the progress made in 

2 carrying out the integrated work plan and any 

3 changes in that plan, including any changes 

4 based on funding shortfalls and limitations set 

5 by the Office of Management and Budget; 

6 ‘‘(C) a detailed description of— 

7 ‘‘(i) the success or failure of each item 

8 of the integrated work plan for the pre9 vious year and relevant information as to 

10 why any milestone was not met; and 

11 ‘‘(ii) the impact of not meeting the 

12 milestone and what actions will be taken in 

13 the future to account for the failure to 

14 complete the milestone; 

15 ‘‘(D) an explanation of any change to fu16 ture years in the integrated work plan and the 

17 reasons for such change; and 

18 ‘‘(E) an identification of the levels of fund19 ing for each agency participating in the inte20 grated work plan devoted to programs and ac21 tivities under the plan for the previous fiscal 

22 year and in the President’s budget request.’’. 

23 SEC. 204. AUTOMATIC DEPENDENT SURVEILLANCE-BROAD24 CAST SERVICES. 

25 (a) REPORT ON FAA PROGRAM AND SCHEDULE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the 

2 Federal Aviation Administration shall prepare a re3 port detailing the program and schedule for inte4 grating automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast 

5 (in this section referred to as ‘‘ADS-B’’) technology 

6 into the national airspace system. 

7 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 

8 (A) a description of segment 1 and seg9 ment 2 activity to acquire ADS-B services; 

10 (B) a description of plans for implementa11 tion of advanced operational procedures and 

12 ADS-B air-to-air applications; 

13 (C) a description of possible options for ex14 panding surveillance coverage beyond the 

15 ground stations currently under contract, in16 cluding enhanced ground signal coverage at air17 ports; and 

18 (D) a detailed description of the protec19 tions that the Administration will require as 

20 part of any contract or program in the event of 

21 a contractor’s default, bankruptcy, acquisition 

22 by another entity, or any other event jeopard23 izing the uninterrupted provision of ADS-B 

24 services. 


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1 (3) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

2 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

3 Administrator shall submit to the Committee on 

4 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 

5 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

6 Science, and Transportation of the Senate the report 

7 prepared under paragraph (1). 

8 (b) REQUIREMENTS OF FAA CONTRACTS FOR ADS9 B SERVICES.—Any contract entered into by the Adminis10 trator with an entity to acquire ADS-B services shall con11 tain terms and conditions that— 

12 (1) require approval by the Administrator be13 fore the contract may be assigned to or assumed by 

14 another entity, including any successor entity, sub15 sidiary of the contractor, or other corporate entity; 

16 (2) provide that the assets, equipment, hard17 ware, and software used in the performance of the 

18 contract be designated as critical national infrastruc19 ture for national security and related purposes; 

20 (3) require the contractor to provide continued 

21 broadcast services for a reasonable period, as deter22 mined by the Administrator, until the provision of 

23 such services can be transferred to another vendor 

24 or to the Government in the event of a termination 

25 of the contract; 


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1 (4) require the contractor to provide continued 

2 broadcast services for a reasonable period, as deter3 mined by the Administrator, until the provision of 

4 such services can be transferred to another vendor 

5 or to the Government in the event of material non6 performance, as determined by the Administrator; 

7 and 

8 (5) permit the Government to acquire or utilize 

9 for a reasonable period, as determined by the Ad10 ministrator, the assets, equipment, hardware, and 

11 software necessary to ensure the continued and un12 interrupted provision of ADS-B services and to have 

13 ready access to such assets, equipment, hardware, 

14 and software through its own personnel, agents, or 

15 others, if the Administrator provides reasonable 

16 compensation for such acquisition or utilization. 

17 (c) REVIEW BY DOT INSPECTOR GENERAL.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of 

19 the Department of Transportation shall conduct a 

20 review concerning the Federal Aviation Administra21 tion’s award and oversight of any contract entered 

22 into by the Administration to provide ADS-B serv23 ices for the national airspace system. 

24 (2) CONTENTS.—The review shall include, at a 

25 minimum— 


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1 (A) an examination of how program risks 

2 are being managed; 

3 (B) an assessment of expected benefits at4 tributable to the deployment of ADS-B services, 

5 including the implementation of advanced oper6 ational procedures and air-to-air applications as 

7 well as to the extent to which ground radar will 

8 be retained; 

9 (C) a determination of whether the Admin10 istration has established sufficient mechanisms 

11 to ensure that all design, acquisition, operation, 

12 and maintenance requirements have been met 

13 by the contractor; 

14 (D) an assessment of whether the Admin15 istration and any contractors are meeting cost, 

16 schedule, and performance milestones, as meas17 ured against the original baseline of the Admin18 istration’s program for providing ADS-B serv19 ices; 

20 (E) an assessment of whether security 

21 issues are being adequately addressed in the 

22 overall design and implementation of the ADS23 B system; and 

24 (F) any other matters or aspects relating 

25 to contract implementation and oversight that 


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1 the Inspector General determines merit atten2 tion. 

3 (3) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Inspector 

4 General shall periodically, on at least an annual 

5 basis, submit to the Committee on Transportation 

6 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 

7 and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

8 Transportation of the Senate a report on the results 

9 of the review conducted under this subsection. 

10 SEC. 205. INCLUSION OF STAKEHOLDERS IN AIR TRAFFIC 

11 CONTROL MODERNIZATION PROJECTS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Federal 

13 Aviation Administration shall establish a process for in14 cluding in the planning, development, and deployment of 

15 air traffic control modernization projects (including the 

16 Next Generation Air Transportation System) and collabo17 rating with qualified employees selected by each exclusive 

18 collective bargaining representative of employees of the 

19 Administration who are likely to be impacted by such plan20 ning, development, and deployment. 

21 (b) PARTICIPATION.— 

22 (1) BARGAINING OBLIGATIONS AND RIGHTS.— 

23 Participation in the process described in subsection 

24 (a) shall not be construed as a waiver of any bar25 gaining obligations or rights under section 


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1 40122(a)(1) or 40122(g)(2)(C) of title 49, United 

2 States Code. 

3 (2) CAPACITY AND COMPENSATION.—Exclusive 

4 collective bargaining representatives and selected 

5 employees participating in the process described in 

6 subsection (a) shall— 

7 (A) serve in a collaborative and advisory 

8 capacity; and 

9 (B) receive appropriate travel and per 

10 diem expenses in accordance with the travel 

11 policies of the Administration in addition to any 

12 regular compensation and benefits. 

13 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

14 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

15 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

16 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

17 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

18 report on the implementation of this section. 

19 SEC. 206. GAO REVIEW OF CHALLENGES ASSOCIATED WITH 

20 TRANSFORMING TO THE NEXT GENERATION 

21 AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall 

23 conduct a review of the progress and challenges associated 

24 with transforming the Nation’s air traffic control system 


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1 into the Next Generation Air Transportation System (in 

2 this section referred to as the ‘‘NextGen System’’). 

3 (b) REVIEW.—The review shall include the following: 

4 (1) An evaluation of the continued implementa5 tion and institutionalization of the processes that are 

6 key to the ability of the Air Traffic Organization to 

7 effectively maintain management structures and sys8 tems acquisitions procedures utilized under the cur9 rent air traffic control modernization program as a 

10 basis for the NextGen System. 

11 (2) An assessment of the progress and chal12 lenges associated with collaboration and contribu13 tions of the partner agencies working with the Joint 

14 Planning and Development Office of the Federal 

15 Aviation Administration (in this section referred to 

16 as the ‘‘JPDO’’) in planning and implementing the 

17 NextGen System. 

18 (3) The progress and challenges associated with 

19 coordinating government and industry stakeholders 

20 in activities relating to the NextGen System, includ21 ing an assessment of the contributions of the 

22 NextGen Institute. 

23 (4) An assessment of planning and implementa24 tion of the NextGen System against established 

25 schedules, milestones, and budgets. 


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1 (5) An evaluation of the recently modified orga2 nizational structure of the JPDO. 

3 (6) An examination of transition planning by 

4 the Air Traffic Organization and the JPDO. 

5 (7) Any other matters or aspects of planning 

6 and coordination of the NextGen System by the 

7 Federal Aviation Administration and the JPDO that 

8 the Comptroller General determines appropriate. 

9 (c) REPORTS.— 

10 (1) REPORT TO CONGRESS ON PRIORITIES.— 

11 Not later than one year after the date of enactment 

12 of this Act, the Comptroller General shall determine 

13 the priority of topics to be reviewed under this sec14 tion and report such priorities to the Committee on 

15 Transportation and Infrastructure and the Com16 mittee on Science and Technology of the House of 

17 Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

18 Science, and Transportation of the Senate. 

19 (2) PERIODIC REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON RE20 SULTS OF THE REVIEW.—The Comptroller General 

21 shall periodically submit to the committees referred 

22 to in paragraph (1) a report on the results of the 

23 review conducted under this section. 


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1 SEC. 207. GAO REVIEW OF NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANS2 PORTATION SYSTEM ACQUISITION AND PRO3 CEDURES DEVELOPMENT. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

5 a review of the progress made and challenges related to 

6 the acquisition of designated technologies and the develop7 ment of procedures for the Next Generation Air Transpor8 tation System (in this section referred to as the ‘‘NextGen 

9 System’’). 

10 (b) SPECIFIC SYSTEMS REVIEW.—The review shall 

11 include, at a minimum, an examination of the acquisition 

12 costs, schedule, and other relevant considerations for the 

13 following systems: 

14 (1) En Route Automation Modernization 

15 (ERAM). 

16 (2) Standard Terminal Automation Replace17 ment System/Common Automated Radar Terminal 

18 System (STARS/CARTS). 

19 (3) Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broad20 cast (ADS-B). 

21 (4) System Wide Information Management 

22 (SWIM). 

23 (5) Traffic Flow Management Modernization 

24 (TFM-M). 

25 (c) REVIEW.—The review shall include, at a min26 imum, an assessment of the progress and challenges reVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 lated to the development of standards, regulations, and 

2 procedures that will be necessary to implement the 

3 NextGen System, including required navigation perform4 ance, area navigation, the airspace management program, 

5 and other programs and procedures that the Comptroller 

6 General identifies as relevant to the transformation of the 

7 air traffic system. 

8 (d) PERIODIC REPORTS TO CONGRESS ON RESULTS

9 OF THE REVIEW.—The Comptroller General shall periodi10 cally submit to the Committee on Transportation and In11 frastructure and the Committee on Science and Tech12 nology of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

13 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

14 a report on the results of the review conducted under this 

15 section. 

16 SEC. 208. DOT INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW OF OPER17 ATIONAL AND APPROACH PROCEDURES BY A 

18 THIRD PARTY. 

19 (a) REVIEW.—The Inspector General of the Depart20 ment of Transportation shall conduct a review regarding 

21 the effectiveness of the oversight activities conducted by 

22 the Federal Aviation Administration in connection with 

23 any agreement with or delegation of authority to a third 

24 party for the development of flight procedures, including 

25 public use procedures, for the national airspace system. 


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1 (b) ASSESSMENTS.—The Inspector General shall in2 clude, at a minimum, in the review— 

3 (1) an assessment of the extent to which the 

4 Federal Aviation Administration is relying or in5 tends to rely on a third party for the development 

6 of new procedures and a determination of whether 

7 the Administration has established sufficient mecha8 nisms and staffing to provide safety oversight func9 tions, which may include quality assurance proc10 esses, flight checks, integration of procedures into 

11 the National Aviation System, and operational as12 sessments of procedures developed by third parties; 

13 and 

14 (2) an assessment regarding whether the Ad15 ministration has sufficient existing personnel and 

16 technical resources or mechanisms to develop such 

17 flight procedures in a safe and efficient manner to 

18 meet the demands of the national airspace system 

19 without the use of third party resources. 

20 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Inspector General shall sub22 mit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc23 ture of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

24 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

25 a report on the results of the review conducted under this 


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1 section, including the assessments described in subsection 

2 (b). 

3 SEC. 209. EXPERT REVIEW OF ENTERPRISE ARCHITECTURE 

4 FOR NEXT GENERATION AIR TRANSPOR5 TATION SYSTEM. 

6 (a) REVIEW.—The Administrator of the Federal 

7 Aviation Administration shall enter into an arrangement 

8 with the National Research Council to review the enter9 prise architecture for the Next Generation Air Transpor10 tation System. 

11 (b) CONTENTS.—At a minimum, the review to be 

12 conducted under subsection (a) shall— 

13 (1) highlight the technical activities, including 

14 human-system design, organizational design, and 

15 other safety and human factor aspects of the system, 

16 that will be necessary to successfully transition cur17 rent and planned modernization programs to the fu18 ture system envisioned by the Joint Planning and 

19 Development Office of the Administration; 

20 (2) assess technical, cost, and schedule risk for 

21 the software development that will be necessary to 

22 achieve the expected benefits from a highly auto23 mated air traffic management system and the impli24 cations for ongoing modernization projects; and 


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1 (3) include judgments on how risks with auto2 mation efforts for the Next Generation Air Trans3 portation System can be mitigated based on the ex4 periences of other public or private entities in devel5 oping complex, software-intensive systems. 

6 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

7 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

8 to Congress a report containing the results of the review 

9 conducted pursuant to subsection (a). 

10 SEC. 210. NEXTGEN TECHNOLOGY TESTBED. 

11 Of amounts appropriated under section 48101(a) of 

12 title 49, United States Code, the Administrator of the 

13 Federal Aviation Administration shall use such sums as 

14 may be necessary for each of the fiscal years 2010 through 

15 2012 to contribute to the establishment by a public-private 

16 partnership (including a university component with sig17 nificant aviation expertise in air traffic management, sim18 ulation, meteorology, and engineering and aviation busi19 ness) an airport-based testing site for existing Next Gen20 eration Air Transport System technologies. The Adminis21 trator shall ensure that next generation air traffic control 

22 integrated systems developed by private industries are in23 stalled at the site for demonstration, operational research, 

24 and evaluation by the Administration. The testing site 


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1 shall serve a mix of general aviation and commercial traf2 fic. 

3 SEC. 211. CLARIFICATION OF AUTHORITY TO ENTER INTO 

4 REIMBURSABLE AGREEMENTS. 

5 Section 106(m) is amended in the last sentence by 

6 inserting ‘‘with or’’ before ‘‘without reimbursement’’. 

7 SEC. 212. DEFINITION OF AIR NAVIGATION FACILITY. 

8 Section 40102(a)(4) is amended— 

9 (1) by redesignating subparagraph (D) as sub10 paragraph (E); 

11 (2) by striking subparagraphs (B) and (C) and 

12 inserting the following: 

13 ‘‘(B) runway lighting and airport surface 

14 visual and other navigation aids; 

15 ‘‘(C) aeronautical and meteorological infor16 mation to air traffic control facilities or air17 craft; 

18 ‘‘(D) communication, navigation, or sur19 veillance equipment for air-to-ground or air-to20 air applications;’’; 

21 (3) in subparagraph (E) (as redesignated by 

22 paragraph (1) of this section)— 

23 (A) by striking ‘‘another structure’’ and 

24 inserting ‘‘any structure, equipment,’’; and 


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1 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

2 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

4 ‘‘(F) buildings, equipment, and systems 

5 dedicated to the national airspace system.’’. 

6 SEC. 213. IMPROVED MANAGEMENT OF PROPERTY INVEN7 TORY. 

8 Section 40110(a)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘com9 pensation’’ and inserting ‘‘compensation, and the amount 

10 received shall be credited as an offsetting collection to the 

11 account from which the amount was expended and shall 

12 remain available until expended’’. 

13 SEC. 214. CLARIFICATION TO ACQUISITION REFORM AU14 THORITY. 

15 Section 40110(c) is amended— 

16 (1) by striking the semicolon at the end of 

17 paragraph (3) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

18 (2) by striking paragraph (4); and 

19 (3) by redesignating paragraph (5) as para20 graph (4). 

21 SEC. 215. ASSISTANCE TO FOREIGN AVIATION AUTHORI22 TIES. 

23 Section 40113(e) is amended— 

24 (1) in paragraph (1)— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘public and private’’ be2 fore ‘‘foreign aviation authorities’’; and 

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

4 first sentence and inserting ‘‘or efficiency. The 

5 Administrator may participate in, and submit 

6 offers in response to, competitions to provide 

7 such services and may contract with foreign 

8 aviation authorities to provide such services 

9 consistent with section 106(l)(6). Notwith10 standing any other provision of law or policy, 

11 the Administrator may accept payments re12 ceived under this subsection in arrears.’’; and 

13 (2) in paragraph (3) by striking ‘‘credited’’ and 

14 all that follows through the period at the end and 

15 inserting ‘‘credited as an offsetting collection to the 

16 account from which the expenses were incurred in 

17 providing such services and shall remain available 

18 until expended.’’. 

19 SEC. 216. FRONT LINE MANAGER STAFFING. 

20 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 90 days after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal 

22 Aviation Administration shall initiate a study on front line 

23 manager staffing requirements in air traffic control facili24 ties. 


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1 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the study, the 

2 Administrator shall take into consideration— 

3 (1) the number of supervisory positions of oper4 ation requiring watch coverage in each air traffic 

5 control facility; 

6 (2) coverage requirements in relation to traffic 

7 demand; 

8 (3) facility type; 

9 (4) complexity of traffic and managerial respon10 sibilities; 

11 (5) proficiency and training requirements; and 

12 (6) such other factors as the Administrator con13 siders appropriate. 

14 (c) DETERMINATIONS.—The Administrator shall 

15 transmit any determinations made as a result of the study 

16 to the Chief Operating Officer for the air traffic control 

17 system. 

18 (d) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

20 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

21 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

22 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

23 report on the results of the study and a description of any 

24 determinations submitted to the Chief Operating Officer 

25 under subsection (c). 


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1 SEC. 217. FLIGHT SERVICE STATIONS. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF MONITORING SYSTEM.—Not 

3 later than 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

4 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

5 shall develop and implement a monitoring system for flight 

6 service specialist staffing and training under service con7 tracts for flight service stations. 

8 (b) COMPONENTS.—At a minimum, the monitoring 

9 system shall include mechanisms to monitor— 

10 (1) flight specialist staffing plans for individual 

11 facilities; 

12 (2) actual staffing levels for individual facilities; 

13 (3) the initial and recurrent certification and 

14 training of flight service specialists on the safety, 

15 operational, and technological aspects of flight serv16 ices, including any certification and training nec17 essary to meet user demand; and 

18 (4) system outages, excessive hold times, 

19 dropped calls, poor quality briefings, and any other 

20 safety or customer service issues under a contract 

21 for flight service station services. 

22 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 90 days 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

24 shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and In25 frastructure of the House of Representatives and the ComVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00100 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

2 Senate a report containing— 

3 (1) a description of monitoring system; 

4 (2) if the Administrator determines that con5 tractual changes or corrective actions are required 

6 for the Administration to ensure that the vendor 

7 under a contract for flight service station services 

8 provides safe and high quality service to consumers, 

9 a description of the changes or actions required; and 

10 (3) a description of the contingency plans of the 

11 Administrator and the protections that the Adminis12 trator will have in place to provide uninterrupted 

13 flight service station services in the event of— 

14 (A) material non-performance of the con15 tract; 

16 (B) a vendor’s default, bankruptcy, or ac17 quisition by another entity; or 

18 (C) any other event that could jeopardize 

19 the uninterrupted provision of flight service sta20 tion services. 

21 SEC. 218. NEXTGEN RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT CEN22 TER OF EXCELLENCE. 

23 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—Of the amount appropriated 

24 under section 48101(a) of title 49, United States Code, 

25 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 


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1 shall use such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal 

2 years 2010 through 2012 to contribute to the establish3 ment of a center of excellence for the research and devel4 opment of Next Generation Air Transportation System 

5 technologies. 

6 (b) FUNCTIONS.—The center established under sub7 section (a) shall— 

8 (1) leverage the centers of excellence program 

9 of the Federal Aviation Administration, as well as 

10 other resources and partnerships, to enhance the de11 velopment of Next Generation Air Transportation 

12 System technologies within academia and industry; 

13 and 

14 (2) provide educational, technical, and analyt15 ical assistance to the Federal Aviation Administra16 tion and other Federal agencies with responsibilities 

17 to research and develop Next Generation Air Trans18 portation System technologies. 

19 SEC. 219. AIRSPACE REDESIGN. 

20 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

21 (1) The airspace redesign efforts of the Federal 

22 Aviation Administration will play a critical near23 term role in enhancing capacity, reducing delays, 

24 transitioning to more flexible routing, and ultimately 


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1 saving money in fuel costs for airlines and airspace 

2 users. 

3 (2) The critical importance of airspace redesign 

4 efforts is underscored by the fact that they are high5 lighted in strategic plans of the Administration, in6 cluding Flight Plan 2009–2013 and the document 

7 known as the ‘‘NextGen Implementation Plan’’. 

8 (3) Funding cuts have led to delays and defer9 rals of critical capacity enhancing airspace redesign 

10 efforts. 

11 (4) Several new runways planned for the period 

12 of fiscal years 2010 to 2012 will not provide esti13 mated capacity benefits without additional funds. 

14 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi15 tion to amounts authorized by section 106(k) of title 49, 

16 United States Code, there are authorized to be appro17 priated to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad18 ministration $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010, 

19 2011, and 2012 to carry out such airspace redesign initia20 tives as the Administrator determines appropriate. 

21 (c) ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS.—Of the amounts appro22 priated under section 48101(a) of such title, the Adminis23 trator may use $5,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2010, 

24 2011, and 2012 to carry out such airspace redesign initia25 tives as the Administrator determines appropriate. 


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1 TITLE III—SAFETY 

2 Subtitle A—General Provisions 

3 SEC. 301. JUDICIAL REVIEW OF DENIAL OF AIRMAN CER4 TIFICATES. 

5 (a) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF NTSB DECISIONS.—Sec6 tion 44703(d) is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘(3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—A person who is sub9 stantially affected by an order of the Board under 

10 this subsection, or the Administrator if the Adminis11 trator decides that an order of the Board will have 

12 a significant adverse impact on carrying out this 

13 subtitle, may seek judicial review of the order under 

14 section 46110. The Administrator shall be made a 

15 party to the judicial review proceedings. The find16 ings of fact of the Board in any such case are con17 clusive if supported by substantial evidence.’’. 

18 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1153(c) is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘section 44709 or’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘section 44703(d), 44709, or’’. 

21 SEC. 302. RELEASE OF DATA RELATING TO ABANDONED 

22 TYPE CERTIFICATES AND SUPPLEMENTAL 

23 TYPE CERTIFICATES. 

24 (a) RELEASE OF DATA.—Section 44704(a) is amend25 ed by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(5) RELEASE OF DATA.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

3 other provision of law, the Administrator may 

4 make available upon request to a person seek5 ing to maintain the airworthiness of an aircraft, 

6 engine, propeller, or appliance, engineering data 

7 in the possession of the Administration relating 

8 to a type certificate or a supplemental type cer9 tificate for such aircraft, engine, propeller, or 

10 appliance, without the consent of the owner of 

11 record, if the Administrator determines that— 

12 ‘‘(i) the certificate containing the re13 quested data has been inactive for 3 or 

14 more years; 

15 ‘‘(ii) after using due diligence, the Ad16 ministrator is unable to find the owner of 

17 record, or the owner of record’s heir, of the 

18 type certificate or supplemental certificate; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(iii) making such data available will 

21 enhance aviation safety. 

22 ‘‘(B) ENGINEERING DATA DEFINED.—In 

23 this section, the term ‘engineering data’ as used 

24 with respect to an aircraft, engine, propeller, or 

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1 fications for the entire aircraft, engine, pro2 peller, or appliance or change to the aircraft, 

3 engine, propeller, or appliance, including the 

4 original design data, and any associated sup5 plier data for individual parts or components 

6 approved as part of the particular certificate for 

7 the aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance.’’. 

8 (b) DESIGN ORGANIZATION CERTIFICATES.—Section 

9 44704(e)(1) is amended by striking ‘‘Beginning 7 years 

10 after the date of enactment of this subsection,’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘Beginning January 1, 2014,’’. 

12 SEC. 303. INSPECTION OF FOREIGN REPAIR STATIONS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 447 is amended by add14 ing at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘§ 44730. Inspection of foreign repair stations 

16 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

17 date of enactment of this section, and annually thereafter, 

18 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

19 shall— 

20 ‘‘(1) submit to Congress a certification that 

21 each foreign repair station that is certified by the 

22 Administrator under part 145 of title 14, Code of 

23 Federal Regulations, and performs work on air car24 rier aircraft or components has been inspected by 


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1 safety inspectors of the Administration not fewer 

2 than 2 times in the preceding calendar year; 

3 ‘‘(2) modify the certification requirements 

4 under such part to include testing for the use of al5 cohol or a controlled substance in accordance with 

6 section 45102 of any individual performing a safety7 sensitive function at a foreign aircraft repair station, 

8 including an individual working at a station of a 

9 third-party with whom an air carrier contracts to 

10 perform work on air carrier aircraft or components; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(3) continue to hold discussions with countries 

13 that have foreign repair stations that perform work 

14 on air carrier aircraft and components to ensure 

15 harmonization of the safety standards of such coun16 tries with those of the United States, including 

17 standards governing maintenance requirements, edu18 cation and licensing of maintenance personnel, train19 ing, oversight, and mutual inspection of work sites. 

20 ‘‘(b) REGULATORY AUTHORITY WITH RESPECT TO

21 CERTAIN FOREIGN REPAIR STATIONS.—With respect to 

22 repair stations that are located in countries that are party 

23 to the agreement entitled ‘‘Agreement between the United 

24 States of America and the European Community on Co25 operation in the Regulation of Civil Aviation Safety’’, 


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1 dated June 30, 2008, the requirements of subsection (a) 

2 are an exercise of the rights of the United States under 

3 paragraph A of Article 15 of the Agreement, which pro4 vides that nothing in the Agreement shall be construed 

5 to limit the authority of a party to determine through its 

6 legislative, regulatory, and administrative measures, the 

7 level of protection it considers appropriate for civil avia8 tion safety.’’. 

9 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

10 chapter is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘44730. Inspection of foreign repair stations.’’. 

11 SEC. 304. RUNWAY SAFETY. 

12 (a) STRATEGIC RUNWAY SAFETY PLAN.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months 

14 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis15 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall 

16 develop and submit to Congress a report containing 

17 a strategic runway safety plan. 

18 (2) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The strategic run19 way safety plan— 

20 (A) shall include, at a minimum— 

21 (i) goals to improve runway safety; 

22 (ii) near- and longer-term actions de23 signed to reduce the severity, number, and 

24 rate of runway incursions; 


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1 (iii) timeframes and resources needed 

2 for the actions described in clause (ii); and 

3 (iv) a continuous evaluative process to 

4 track performance toward the goals re5 ferred to in clause (i); and 

6 (B) shall address the increased runway 

7 safety risk associated with the expected in8 creased volume of air traffic. 

9 (b) PLAN FOR INSTALLATION AND DEPLOYMENT OF

10 SYSTEMS TO PROVIDE ALERTS OF POTENTIAL RUNWAY

11 INCURSIONS.—Not later than December 31, 2009, the Ad12 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall 

13 submit to Congress a report containing a plan for the in14 stallation and deployment of systems the Administration 

15 is installing to alert controllers or flight crews, or both, 

16 of potential runway incursions. The plan shall be inte17 grated into the annual NextGen Implementation Plan doc18 ument of the Administration or any successor document. 

19 SEC. 305. IMPROVED PILOT LICENSES. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

22 Federal Aviation Administration shall begin to issue im23 proved pilot licenses consistent with the requirements of 

24 title 49, United States Code, and title 14, Code of Federal 

25 Regulations. 


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1 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—Improved pilots licenses issued 

2 under subsection (a) shall— 

3 (1) be resistant to tampering, alteration, and 

4 counterfeiting; 

5 (2) include a photograph of the individual to 

6 whom the license is issued; and 

7 (3) be capable of accommodating a digital pho8 tograph, a biometric identifier, or any other unique 

9 identifier that the Administrator considers nec10 essary. 

11 (c) TAMPERING.—To the extent practical, the Admin12 istrator shall develop methods to determine or reveal 

13 whether any component or security feature of a license 

14 issued under subsection (a) has been tampered, altered, 

15 or counterfeited. 

16 (d) USE OF DESIGNEES.—The Administrator may 

17 use designees to carry out subsection (a) to the extent fea18 sible in order to minimize the burdens on pilots. 

19 (e) REPORT.—Not later than 9 months after the date 

20 of enactment of this Act and every 6 months thereafter 

21 until September 30, 2012, the Administrator shall submit 

22 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

23 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

24 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 


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1 report on the issuance of improved pilot licenses under this 

2 section. 

3 SEC. 306. FLIGHT CREW FATIGUE. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 3 months after the 

5 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

6 Federal Aviation Administration shall conclude arrange7 ments with the National Academy of Sciences for a study 

8 of pilot fatigue. 

9 (b) STUDY.—The study shall include consideration 

10 of— 

11 (1) research on pilot fatigue, sleep, and circa12 dian rhythms; 

13 (2) sleep and rest requirements of pilots rec14 ommended by the National Aeronautics and Space 

15 Administration and the National Transportation 

16 Safety Board; and 

17 (3) Federal Aviation Administration and inter18 national standards regarding flight limitations and 

19 rest for pilots. 

20 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after initi21 ating the study, the National Academy of Sciences shall 

22 submit to the Administrator a report containing its find23 ings and recommendations regarding the study under sub24 sections (a) and (b), including recommendations with re25 spect to Federal Aviation Administration regulations govVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00111 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 erning flight time limitations and rest requirements for 

2 pilots. 

3 (d) RULEMAKING.—After the Administrator receives 

4 the report of the National Academy of Sciences, the Ad5 ministrator shall consider the findings in the report and 

6 update as appropriate based on scientific data Federal 

7 Aviation Administration regulations governing flight time 

8 limitations and rest requirements for pilots. 

9 (e) FLIGHT ATTENDANT FATIGUE.— 

10 (1) STUDY.—The Administrator, acting 

11 through the Civil Aerospace Medical Institute, shall 

12 conduct a study on the issue of flight attendant fa13 tigue. 

14 (2) CONTENTS.—The study shall include the 

15 following: 

16 (A) A survey of field operations of flight 

17 attendants. 

18 (B) A study of incident reports regarding 

19 flight attendant fatigue. 

20 (C) Field research on the effects of such 

21 fatigue. 

22 (D) A validation of models for assessing 

23 flight attendant fatigue. 


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1 (E) A review of international policies and 

2 practices regarding flight limitations and rest of 

3 flight attendants. 

4 (F) An analysis of potential benefits of 

5 training flight attendants regarding fatigue. 

6 (3) REPORT.—Not later than June 30, 2010, 

7 the Administrator shall submit to Congress a report 

8 on the results of the study. 

9 (f) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

10 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

11 necessary to carry out this section. 

12 SEC. 307. OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH STAND13 ARDS FOR FLIGHT ATTENDANTS ON BOARD 

14 AIRCRAFT. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 447 (as amended by sec16 tion 303 of this Act) is further amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘§ 44731. Occupational safety and health standards 

19 for flight attendants on board aircraft 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed21 eral Aviation Administration shall prescribe and enforce 

22 standards and regulations to ensure the occupational safe23 ty and health of individuals serving as flight attendants 

24 in the cabin of an aircraft of an air carrier. 


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1 ‘‘(b) STANDARDS AND REGULATIONS.—Standards 

2 and regulations issued under this section shall require 

3 each air carrier operating an aircraft in air transpor4 tation— 

5 ‘‘(1) to provide for an environment in the cabin 

6 of the aircraft that is free from hazards that could 

7 cause physical harm to a flight attendant working in 

8 the cabin; and 

9 ‘‘(2) to meet minimum standards for the occu10 pational safety and health of flight attendants who 

11 work in the cabin of the aircraft. 

12 ‘‘(c) RULEMAKING.—In carrying out this section, the 

13 Administrator shall conduct a rulemaking proceeding to 

14 address, at a minimum, the following areas: 

15 ‘‘(1) Record keeping. 

16 ‘‘(2) Blood borne pathogens. 

17 ‘‘(3) Noise. 

18 ‘‘(4) Sanitation. 

19 ‘‘(5) Hazard communication. 

20 ‘‘(6) Anti-discrimination. 

21 ‘‘(7) Access to employee exposure and medical 

22 records. 

23 ‘‘(8) Temperature standards for the aircraft 

24 cabin. 

25 ‘‘(d) REGULATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) DEADLINE.—Not later than 3 years after 

2 the date of enactment of this section, the Adminis3 trator shall issue final regulations to carry out this 

4 section. 

5 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Regulations issued under 

6 this subsection shall address each of the issues iden7 tified in subsection (c) and others aspects of the en8 vironment of an aircraft cabin that may cause illness 

9 or injury to a flight attendant working in the cabin. 

10 ‘‘(3) EMPLOYER ACTIONS TO ADDRESS OCCUPA11 TIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH HAZARDS.—Regula12 tions issued under this subsection shall set forth 

13 clearly the circumstances under which an air carrier 

14 is required to take action to address occupational 

15 safety and health hazards. 

16 ‘‘(e) ADDITIONAL RULEMAKING PROCEEDINGS.— 

17 After issuing regulations under subsection (c), the Admin18 istrator may conduct additional rulemaking proceedings as 

19 the Administrator determines appropriate to carry out this 

20 section. 

21 ‘‘(f) OVERSIGHT.— 

22 ‘‘(1) CABIN OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND

23 HEALTH INSPECTORS.—The Administrator shall es24 tablish the position of Cabin Occupational Safety 

25 and Health Inspector within the Federal Aviation 


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1 Administration and shall employ individuals with ap2 propriate qualifications and expertise to serve in the 

3 position. 

4 ‘‘(2) RESPONSIBILITIES.—Inspectors employed 

5 under this subsection shall be solely responsible for 

6 conducting proper oversight of air carrier programs 

7 implemented under this section. 

8 ‘‘(g) CONSULTATION.—In developing regulations 

9 under this section, the Administrator shall consult with 

10 the Administrator of the Occupational Safety and Health 

11 Administration, labor organizations representing flight at12 tendants, air carriers, and other interested persons. 

13 ‘‘(h) SAFETY PRIORITY.—In developing and imple14 menting regulations under this section, the Administrator 

15 shall give priority to the safe operation and maintenance 

16 of an aircraft. 

17 ‘‘(i) FLIGHT ATTENDANT DEFINED.—In this section, 

18 the term ‘flight attendant’ has the meaning given that 

19 term by section 44728. 

20 ‘‘(j) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec22 essary to carry out this section. Such sums shall remain 

23 available until expended.’’. 

24 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap25 ter 447 is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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‘‘44731. Occupational safety and health standards for flight attendants on board 

aircraft.’’. 

1 SEC. 308. AIRCRAFT SURVEILLANCE IN MOUNTAINOUS 

2 AREAS. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

4 Federal Aviation Administration may establish a pilot pro5 gram to improve safety and efficiency by providing surveil6 lance for aircraft flying outside of radar coverage in moun7 tainous areas. 

8 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

9 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec10 essary to carry out this section. Such sums shall remain 

11 available until expended. 

12 SEC. 309. OFF-AIRPORT, LOW-ALTITUDE AIRCRAFT WEATH13 ER OBSERVATION TECHNOLOGY. 

14 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia15 tion Administration shall conduct a review of off-airport, 

16 low-altitude aircraft weather observation technologies. 

17 (b) SPECIFIC REVIEW.—The review shall include, at 

18 a minimum, an examination of off-airport, low-altitude 

19 weather reporting needs, an assessment of technical alter20 natives (including automated weather observation sta21 tions), an investment analysis, and recommendations for 

22 improving weather reporting. 


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1 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

3 to Congress a report containing the results of the review. 

4 SEC. 310. NONCERTIFICATED MAINTENANCE PROVIDERS. 

5 (a) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.—Not later than 3 

6 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis7 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall issue 

8 regulations requiring that all covered maintenance work 

9 on aircraft used to provide air transportation under part 

10 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, be performed 

11 by individuals in accordance with subsection (b). 

12 (b) PERSONS AUTHORIZED TO PERFORM CERTAIN

13 WORK.—Covered maintenance work for a part 121 air 

14 carrier shall only be performed by— 

15 (1) an individual employed by the air carrier; 

16 (2) an individual employed by another part 121 

17 air carrier; 

18 (3) an individual employed by a part 145 repair 

19 station; or 

20 (4) an individual employed by a company that 

21 provides contract maintenance workers to a part 145 

22 repair station or part 121 air carrier, if the indi23 vidual— 

24 (A) meets the requirements of the part 

25 145 repair station or the part 121 air carrier; 


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1 (B) works under the direct supervision and 

2 control of the part 145 repair station or part 

3 121 air carrier; and 

4 (C) carries out the work in accordance 

5 with the part 121 air carrier’s maintenance 

6 manual and, if applicable, the part 145 certifi7 cate holder’s repair station and quality control 

8 manuals. 

9 (c) PLAN.— 

10 (1) DEVELOPMENT.—The Administrator shall 

11 develop a plan to— 

12 (A) require air carriers to identify and pro13 vide to the Administrator a complete listing of 

14 all noncertificated maintenance providers that 

15 perform, before the effective date of the regula16 tions to be issued under subsection (a), covered 

17 maintenance work on aircraft used to provide 

18 air transportation under part 121 of title 14, 

19 Code of Federal Regulations; 

20 (B) validate the lists that air carriers pro21 vide under subparagraph (A) by sampling air 

22 carrier records, such as maintenance activity re23 ports and general vendor listings; and 

24 (C) include surveillance and oversight by 

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1 istration for all noncertificated maintenance 

2 providers that perform covered maintenance 

3 work on aircraft used to provide air transpor4 tation in accordance with such part 121. 

5 (2) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 6 

6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

7 Administrator shall transmit to Congress a report 

8 containing the plan developed under paragraph (1). 

9 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi10 nitions apply: 

11 (1) COVERED MAINTENANCE WORK.—The term 

12 ‘‘covered maintenance work’’ means maintenance 

13 work that is essential, regularly scheduled, or a re14 quired inspection item, as determined by the Admin15 istrator. 

16 (2) PART 121 AIR CARRIER.—The term ‘‘part 

17 121 air carrier’’ means an air carrier that holds a 

18 certificate issued under part 121 of title 14, Code of 

19 Federal Regulations. 

20 (3) PART 145 REPAIR STATION.—The term 

21 ‘‘part 145 repair station’’ means a repair station 

22 that holds a certificate issued under part 145 of title 

23 14, Code of Federal Regulations. 

24 (4) NONCERTIFICATED MAINTENANCE PRO25 VIDER.—The term ‘‘noncertificated maintenance 


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1 provider’’ means a maintenance provider that does 

2 not hold a certificate issued under part 121 or part 

3 145 of title 14 Code of Federal Regulations. 

4 (e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

5 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec6 essary for the Administrator to hire additional field safety 

7 inspectors to ensure adequate and timely inspection of 

8 maintenance providers that perform covered maintenance 

9 work. 

10 SEC. 311. AIRCRAFT RESCUE AND FIREFIGHTING STAND11 ARDS. 

12 (a) RULEMAKING PROCEEDING.—Not later than 180 

13 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Adminis14 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall initiate 

15 a rulemaking proceeding for the purpose of issuing a pro16 posed and final rule that revises the aircraft rescue and 

17 firefighting standards (‘‘ARFF’’) under part 139 of title 

18 14, Code of Federal Regulations, to improve the protection 

19 of the traveling public, other persons, aircraft, buildings, 

20 and the environment from fires and hazardous materials 

21 incidents. 

22 (b) CONTENTS OF PROPOSED AND FINAL RULE.— 

23 The proposed and final rule to be issued under subsection 

24 (a) shall address the following: 


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1 (1) The mission of aircraft rescue and fire2 fighting personnel, including responsibilities for pas3 senger egress in the context of other Administration 

4 requirements. 

5 (2) The proper level of staffing. 

6 (3) The timeliness of a response. 

7 (4) The handling of hazardous materials inci8 dents at airports. 

9 (5) Proper vehicle deployment. 

10 (6) The need for equipment modernization. 

11 (c) CONSISTENCY WITH VOLUNTARY CONSENSUS

12 STANDARDS.—The proposed and final rule issued under 

13 subsection (a) shall be, to the extent practical, consistent 

14 with national voluntary consensus standards for aircraft 

15 rescue and firefighting services at airports. 

16 (d) ASSESSMENTS OF POTENTIAL IMPACTS.—In the 

17 rulemaking proceeding initiated under subsection (a), the 

18 Administrator shall assess the potential impact of any re19 visions to the firefighting standards on airports and air 

20 transportation service. 

21 (e) INCONSISTENCY WITH STANDARDS.—If the pro22 posed or final rule issued under subsection (a) is not con23 sistent with national voluntary consensus standards for 

24 aircraft rescue and firefighting services at airports, the 

25 Administrator shall submit to the Office of Management 


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1 and Budget an explanation of the reasons for such incon2 sistency in accordance with section 12(d) of the National 

3 Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (15 

4 U.S.C. 272 note; 110 Stat. 783). 

5 (f) FINAL RULE.—Not later than 24 months after 

6 the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

7 issue the final rule required by subsection (a). 

8 SEC. 312. COCKPIT SMOKE. 

9 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

10 a study on the effectiveness of oversight activities of the 

11 Federal Aviation Administration relating to preventing or 

12 mitigating the effects of dense continuous smoke in the 

13 cockpit of a commercial aircraft. 

14 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

15 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

16 submit to Congress a report on the results of the study. 

17 SEC. 313. SAFETY OF HELICOPTER AIR AMBULANCE OPER18 ATIONS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 447 (as amended by this 

20 Act) is further amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘§ 44732. Helicopter air ambulance operations 

23 ‘‘(a) RULEMAKING.—The Administrator of the Fed24 eral Aviation Administration shall conduct a rulemaking 

25 proceeding to improve the safety of flight crewmembers, 


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1 medical personnel, and passengers onboard helicopters 

2 providing helicopter air ambulance services under part 135 

3 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations. 

4 ‘‘(b) MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED.—In conducting 

5 the rulemaking proceeding under subsection (a), the Ad6 ministrator shall address the following: 

7 ‘‘(1) Flight request and dispatch procedures, in8 cluding performance-based flight dispatch proce9 dures. 

10 ‘‘(2) Pilot training standards, including— 

11 ‘‘(A) mandatory training requirements, in12 cluding a minimum time for completing the 

13 training requirements; 

14 ‘‘(B) training subject areas, such as com15 munications procedures and appropriate tech16 nology use; 

17 ‘‘(C) establishment of training standards 

18 in— 

19 ‘‘(i) crew resource management; 

20 ‘‘(ii) flight risk evaluation; 

21 ‘‘(iii) preventing controlled flight into 

22 terrain; 

23 ‘‘(iv) recovery from inadvertent flight 

24 into instrument meteorological conditions; 


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1 ‘‘(v) operational control of the pilot in 

2 command; and 

3 ‘‘(vi) use of flight simulation training 

4 devices and line oriented flight training. 

5 ‘‘(3) Safety-enhancing technology and equip6 ment, including— 

7 ‘‘(A) helicopter terrain awareness and 

8 warning systems; 

9 ‘‘(B) radar altimeters; 

10 ‘‘(C) devices that perform the function of 

11 flight data recorders and cockpit voice record12 ers, to the extent feasible; and 

13 ‘‘(D) safety equipment that should be worn 

14 or used by flight crewmembers and medical per15 sonnel on a flight, including the possible use of 

16 shoulder harnesses, helmets, seatbelts, and fire 

17 resistant clothing to enhance crash surviv18 ability. 

19 ‘‘(4) Such other matters as the Administrator 

20 considers appropriate. 

21 ‘‘(c) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—In issuing a final 

22 rule under subsection (a), the Administrator, at a min23 imum, shall provide for the following: 

24 ‘‘(1) FLIGHT RISK EVALUATION PROGRAM.— 

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1 tificate holder providing helicopter air ambulance 

2 services— 

3 ‘‘(A) establishes a flight risk evaluation 

4 program, based on FAA Notice 8000.301 

5 issued by the Administration on August 1, 

6 2005, including any updates thereto; 

7 ‘‘(B) as part of the flight risk evaluation 

8 program, develops a checklist for use by pilots 

9 in determining whether a flight request should 

10 be accepted; and 

11 ‘‘(C) requires the pilots of the certificate 

12 holder to use the checklist. 

13 ‘‘(2) OPERATIONAL CONTROL CENTER.—The 

14 Administrator shall ensure that a part 135 certifi15 cate holder providing helicopter air ambulance serv16 ices using 10 or more helicopters has an operational 

17 control center that meets such requirements as the 

18 Administrator may prescribe. 

19 ‘‘(3) COMPLIANCE.—The Administrator shall 

20 ensure that a part 135 certificate holder providing 

21 helicopter air ambulance services complies with ap22 plicable regulations under part 135 of title 14, Code 

23 of Federal Regulations, including regulations on 

24 weather minima and flight and duty time whenever 

25 medical personnel are onboard the aircraft. 


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1 ‘‘(d) DEADLINES.—The Administrator shall— 

2 ‘‘(1) not later than 180 days after the date of 

3 enactment of this section, issue a notice of proposed 

4 rulemaking under subsection (a); and 

5 ‘‘(2) not later than 16 months after the close 

6 of the comment period on the proposed rule, issue 

7 a final rule. 

8 ‘‘(e) PART 135 CERTIFICATE HOLDER DEFINED.— 

9 In this section, the term ‘part 135 certificate holder’ 

10 means a person holding a certificate issued under part 135 

11 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations. 

12 ‘‘§ 44733. Collection of data on helicopter air ambu13 lance operations 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed15 eral Aviation Administration shall require a part 135 cer16 tificate holder providing helicopter air ambulance services 

17 to submit to the Administrator, not later than one year 

18 after the date of enactment of this section, and annually 

19 thereafter, a report containing, at a minimum, the fol20 lowing data: 

21 ‘‘(1) The number of helicopters that the certifi22 cate holder uses to provide helicopter air ambulance 

23 services and the base locations of the helicopters. 

24 ‘‘(2) The number of flights and hours flown, by 

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1 ated by the certificate holder were providing heli2 copter air ambulance services. 

3 ‘‘(3) The number of flight requests for a heli4 copter providing helicopter air ambulance services 

5 that were accepted or declined by the certificate 

6 holder and the type of each such flight request (such 

7 as scene response, inter-facility transport, organ 

8 transport, or ferry or repositioning flight). 

9 ‘‘(4) The number of accidents involving heli10 copters operated by the certificate holder while pro11 viding helicopter air ambulance services and a de12 scription of the accidents. 

13 ‘‘(5) The number of flights and hours flown 

14 under instrument flight rules by helicopters operated 

15 by the certificate holder while providing helicopter 

16 air ambulance services. 

17 ‘‘(6) The time of day of each flight flown by 

18 helicopters operated by the certificate holder while 

19 providing helicopter air ambulance services. 

20 ‘‘(b) REPORTING PERIOD.—Data contained in a re21 port submitted by a part 135 certificate holder under sub22 section (a) shall relate to such reporting period as the Ad23 ministrator determines appropriate. 

24 ‘‘(c) DATABASE.—Not later than 6 months after the 

25 date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall 


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1 develop a method to collect and store the data collected 

2 under subsection (a), including a method to protect the 

3 confidentiality of any trade secret or proprietary informa4 tion provided in response to this section. 

5 ‘‘(d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 24 

6 months after the date of enactment of this section, and 

7 annually thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to the 

8 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 

9 House of Representatives and the Committee on Com10 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report 

11 containing a summary of the data collected under sub12 section (a). 

13 ‘‘(e) PART 135 CERTIFICATE HOLDER DEFINED.— 

14 In this section, the term ‘part 135 certificate holder’ 

15 means a person holding a certificate issued under part 135 

16 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.’’. 

17 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap18 ter 447 (as amended by this Act) is further amended by 

19 adding at the end the following: 

‘‘Sec. 44732. Helicopter air ambulance operations. 

‘‘Sec. 44733. Collection of data on helicopter air ambulance operations.’’. 

20 SEC. 314. FEASIBILITY OF REQUIRING HELICOPTER PILOTS 

21 TO USE NIGHT VISION GOGGLES. 

22 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia23 tion Administration shall carry out a study on the feasi24 bility of requiring pilots of helicopters providing helicopter 


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1 air ambulance services under part 135 of title 14, Code 

2 of Federal Regulations, to use night vision goggles during 

3 nighttime operations. 

4 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the study, the 

5 Administrator shall consult with owners and operators of 

6 helicopters providing helicopter air ambulance services 

7 under such part 135 and aviation safety professionals to 

8 determine the benefits, financial considerations, and risks 

9 associated with requiring the use of night vision goggles. 

10 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one year 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

12 shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and In13 frastructure of the House of Representatives and the Com14 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

15 Senate a report on the results of the study. 

16 SEC. 315. STUDY OF HELICOPTER AND FIXED WING AIR AM17 BULANCE SERVICES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall 

19 conduct a study of the helicopter and fixed-wing air ambu20 lance industry. The study shall include information, anal21 ysis, and recommendations pertinent to ensuring a safe 

22 air ambulance industry. 

23 (b) REQUIRED INFORMATION.—In conducting the 

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1 mation on the following aspects of the air ambulance in2 dustry: 

3 (1) A review of the industry, for part 135 cer4 tificate holders and indirect carriers providing heli5 copter and fixed-wing air ambulance services, includ6 ing— 

7 (A) a listing of the number, size, and loca8 tion of helicopter and fixed-wing aircraft and 

9 their flight bases; 

10 (B) affiliations of certificate holders and 

11 indirect carriers with hospitals, governments, 

12 and other entities; 

13 (C) coordination of air ambulance services, 

14 with each other, State and local emergency 

15 medical services systems, referring entities, and 

16 receiving hospitals; 

17 (D) nature of services contracts, sources of 

18 payment, financial relationships between certifi19 cate holders and indirect carriers providing air 

20 ambulance services and referring entities, and 

21 costs of operations; and 

22 (E) a survey of business models for air 

23 ambulance operations, including expenses, 

24 structure, and sources of income. 


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1 (2) Air ambulance request and dispatch prac2 tices, including the various types of protocols, mod3 els, training, certifications, and air medical commu4 nications centers relating to part 135 certificate 

5 holders and indirect carriers providing helicopter 

6 and fixed-wing air ambulance services, including— 

7 (A) the practices that emergency and med8 ical officials use to request an air ambulance; 

9 (B) information on whether economic or 

10 other nonmedical factors lead to air ambulance 

11 transport when it is not medically needed, ap12 propriate, or safe; and 

13 (C) the cause, occurrence, and extent of 

14 delays in air ambulance transport. 

15 (3) Economic and medical issues relating to the 

16 air ambulance industry, including— 

17 (A) licensing; 

18 (B) certificates of need; 

19 (C) public convenience and necessity re20 quirements; 

21 (D) assignment of geographic coverage 

22 areas; 

23 (E) accreditation requirements; 

24 (F) compliance with dispatch procedures; 

25 and 


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1 (G) requirements for medical equipment 

2 and personnel onboard the aircraft. 

3 (4) Such other matters as the Comptroller Gen4 eral considers relevant to the purpose of the study. 

5 (c) ANALYSIS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.—Based on 

6 information obtained under subsection (b) and other infor7 mation the Comptroller General considers appropriate, the 

8 report shall also include an analysis and specific rec9 ommendations, as appropriate, related to— 

10 (1) the relationship between State regulation 

11 and Federal preemption of rates, routes, and serv12 ices of air ambulances; 

13 (2) the extent to which Federal law may impact 

14 existing State regulation of air ambulances and the 

15 potential effect of greater State regulation— 

16 (A) in the air ambulance industry, on the 

17 economic viability of air ambulance services, the 

18 availability and coordination of service, and 

19 costs of operations both in rural and highly 

20 populated areas; 

21 (B) on the quality of patient care and out22 comes; and 

23 (C) on competition and safety; and 


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1 (3) whether systemic or other problems exist on 

2 a statewide, regional, or national basis with the cur3 rent system governing air ambulances. 

4 (d) REPORT.—Not later than June 1, 2010, the 

5 Comptroller General shall submit to the Secretary of 

6 Transportation and the appropriate committees of Con7 gress a report containing its findings and recommenda8 tions regarding the study under this section. 

9 (e) ADOPTION OF RECOMMENDED POLICY

10 CHANGES.—Not later than 60 days after the date of re11 ceipt of the report under subsection (d), the Secretary 

12 shall issue a report to the appropriate committees of Con13 gress, that— 

14 (1) specifies which, if any, policy changes rec15 ommended by the Comptroller General and any 

16 other policy changes with respect to air ambulances 

17 the Secretary will adopt and implement; and 

18 (2) includes recommendations for legislative 

19 change, if appropriate. 

20 (f) PART 135 CERTIFICATE HOLDER DEFINED.—In 

21 this section, the term ‘‘part 135 certificate holder’’ means 

22 a person holding a certificate issued under part 135 of 

23 title 14, Code of Federal Regulations. 


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1 Subtitle B—Unmanned Aircraft 

2 Systems 

3 SEC. 321. COMMERCIAL UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS IN4 TEGRATION PLAN. 

5 (a) INTEGRATION PLAN.— 

6 (1) COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.—Not later than 9 

7 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

8 Secretary, in consultation with representatives of the 

9 aviation industry, shall develop a comprehensive plan 

10 to safely integrate commercial unmanned aircraft 

11 systems into the national airspace system. 

12 (2) MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS.—In developing 

13 the plan under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall, at 

14 a minimum— 

15 (A) review technologies and research that 

16 will assist in facilitating the safe integration of 

17 commercial unmanned aircraft systems into the 

18 national airspace system; 

19 (B) provide recommendations or projec20 tions for the rulemaking to be conducted under 

21 subsection (b) to— 

22 (i) define the acceptable standards for 

23 operations and certification of commercial 

24 unmanned aircraft systems; 


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1 (ii) ensure that any commercial un2 manned aircraft system includes a detect, 

3 sense, and avoid capability; and 

4 (iii) develop standards and require5 ments for the operator, pilot, and pro6 grammer of a commercial unmanned air7 craft system, including standards and re8 quirements for registration and licensing; 

9 (C) recommend how best to enhance the 

10 technologies and subsystems necessary to effect 

11 the safe and routine operations of commercial 

12 unmanned aircraft systems in the national air13 space system; and 

14 (D) recommend how a phased-in approach 

15 to the integration of commercial unmanned air16 craft systems into the national airspace system 

17 can best be achieved and a timeline upon which 

18 such a phase-in shall occur. 

19 (3) DEADLINE.—The plan to be developed 

20 under paragraph (1) shall provide for the safe inte21 gration of commercial unmanned aircraft systems 

22 into the national airspace system as soon as possible, 

23 but not later than September 30, 2013. 

24 (4) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than one 

25 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the 


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1 Secretary shall submit to Congress a copy of the 

2 plan developed under paragraph (1). 

3 (b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 18 months after 

4 the date on which the integration plan is submitted to 

5 Congress under subsection (a)(4), the Administrator of 

6 the Federal Aviation Administration shall publish in the 

7 Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking to im8 plement the recommendations of the integration plan. 

9 (c) AUTHORIZATION.—There are authorized to be ap10 propriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out 

11 this section. 

12 SEC. 322. SPECIAL RULES FOR CERTAIN UNMANNED AIR13 CRAFT SYSTEMS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding the require15 ments of sections 321 and 323, and not later than 6 

16 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec17 retary shall determine if certain unmanned aircraft sys18 tems may operate safely in the national airspace system 

19 before completion of the plan and rulemaking required by 

20 section 321 or the guidance required by section 323. 

21 (b) ASSESSMENT OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYS22 TEMS.—In making the determination under subsection 

23 (a), the Secretary shall determine, at a minimum— 

24 (1) which types of unmanned aircraft systems, 

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1 ational capability, proximity to airports and popu2 lation areas, and operation within visual line-of-sight 

3 do not create a hazard to users of the national air4 space system or the public or pose a threat to na5 tional security; and 

6 (2) whether a certificate of authorization or an 

7 airworthiness certification under section 44704 of 

8 title 49, United States Code, is required for the op9 eration of unmanned aircraft systems identified 

10 under paragraph (1). 

11 (c) REQUIREMENTS FOR SAFE OPERATION.—If the 

12 Secretary determines under this section that certain un13 manned aircraft systems may operate safely in the na14 tional airspace system, the Secretary shall establish re15 quirements for the safe operation of such aircraft systems 

16 in the national airspace system. 

17 SEC. 323. PUBLIC UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS. 

18 Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, the Secretary shall issue guidance regarding 

20 the operation of public unmanned aircraft systems to— 

21 (1) expedite the issuance of a certificate of au22 thorization process; 

23 (2) provide for a collaborative process with pub24 lic agencies to allow for an incremental expansion of 

25 access to the national airspace system as technology 


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1 matures and the necessary safety analysis and data 

2 become available and until standards are completed 

3 and technology issues are resolved; and 

4 (3) facilitate the capability of public agencies to 

5 develop and use test ranges, subject to operating re6 strictions required by the Federal Aviation Adminis7 tration, to test and operate unmanned aircraft sys8 tems. 

9 SEC. 324. DEFINITIONS. 

10 In this subtitle, the following definitions apply: 

11 (1) CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORIZATION.—The 

12 term ‘‘certificate of authorization’’ means a Federal 

13 Aviation Administration grant of approval for a spe14 cific flight operation. 

15 (2) DETECT, SENSE, AND AVOID CAPABILITY.— 

16 The term ‘‘detect, sense, and avoid capability’’ 

17 means the technical capability to perform separation 

18 assurance and collision avoidance, as defined by the 

19 Federal Aviation Administration. 

20 (3) PUBLIC UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM.— 

21 The term ‘‘public unmanned aircraft system’’ means 

22 an unmanned aircraft system that meets the quali23 fications and conditions required for operation of a 

24 public aircraft, as defined by section 40102 of title 

25 49, United States Code. 


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

2 the Secretary of Transportation. 

3 (5) TEST RANGE.—The term ‘‘test range’’ 

4 means a defined geographic area where research and 

5 development are conducted. 

6 (6) UNMANNED AIRCRAFT.—The term ‘‘un7 manned aircraft’’ means an aircraft that is operated 

8 without the possibility of direct human intervention 

9 from within or on the aircraft. 

10 (7) UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEM.—The term 

11 ‘‘unmanned aircraft system’’ means an unmanned 

12 aircraft and associated elements (such as commu13 nication links and a ground control station) that are 

14 required to operate safely and efficiently in the na15 tional airspace system. 

16 Subtitle C—Safety and Protections 

17 SEC. 331. AVIATION SAFETY WHISTLEBLOWER INVESTIGA18 TION OFFICE. 

19 Section 106 is amended by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(s) AVIATION SAFETY WHISTLEBLOWER INVES22 TIGATION OFFICE.— 

23 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in 

24 the Federal Aviation Administration (in this sub25 section referred to as the ‘Agency’) an Aviation 


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1 Safety Whistleblower Investigation Office (in this 

2 subsection referred to as the ‘Office’). 

3 ‘‘(2) DIRECTOR.— 

4 ‘‘(A) APPOINTMENT.—The head of the Of5 fice shall be the Director, who shall be ap6 pointed by the Secretary of Transportation. 

7 ‘‘(B) REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

8 TO SECRETARY.—The Director shall provide 

9 regular reports to the Secretary of Transpor10 tation. The Director may recommend that the 

11 Secretary take any action necessary for the Of12 fice to carry out its functions, including protec13 tion of complainants and witnesses. 

14 ‘‘(C) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Director 

15 shall have a demonstrated ability in investiga16 tions and knowledge of or experience in avia17 tion. 

18 ‘‘(D) TERM.—The Director shall be ap19 pointed for a term of 5 years. 

20 ‘‘(E) VACANCY.—Any individual appointed 

21 to fill a vacancy in the position of the Director 

22 occurring before the expiration of the term for 

23 which the individual’s predecessor was ap24 pointed shall be appointed for the remainder of 

25 that term. 


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1 ‘‘(3) COMPLAINTS AND INVESTIGATIONS.— 

2 ‘‘(A) AUTHORITY OF DIRECTOR.—The Di3 rector shall— 

4 ‘‘(i) receive complaints and informa5 tion submitted by employees of persons 

6 holding certificates issued under title 14, 

7 Code of Federal Regulations, and employ8 ees of the Agency concerning the possible 

9 existence of an activity relating to a viola10 tion of an order, regulation, or standard of 

11 the Agency or any other provision of Fed12 eral law relating to aviation safety; 

13 ‘‘(ii) assess complaints and informa14 tion submitted under clause (i) and deter15 mine whether a substantial likelihood ex16 ists that a violation of an order, regulation, 

17 or standard of the Agency or any other 

18 provision of Federal law relating to avia19 tion safety may have occurred; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) based on findings of the assess21 ment conducted under clause (ii), make 

22 recommendations to the Secretary and Ad23 ministrator in writing for— 

24 ‘‘(I) further investigation by the 

25 Office, the Inspector General of the 


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1 Department of Transportation, or 

2 other appropriate investigative body; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(II) corrective actions. 

5 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE OF IDENTITIES.—The 

6 Director shall not disclose the identity or identi7 fying information of an individual who submits 

8 a complaint or information under subparagraph 

9 (A)(i) unless— 

10 ‘‘(i) the individual consents to the dis11 closure in writing; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) the Director determines, in the 

13 course of an investigation, that the disclo14 sure is unavoidable, in which case the Di15 rector shall provide the individual with rea16 sonable advance notice. 

17 ‘‘(C) INDEPENDENCE OF DIRECTOR.—The 

18 Secretary, the Administrator, or any officer or 

19 employee of the Agency may not prevent or pro20 hibit the Director from initiating, carrying out, 

21 or completing any assessment of a complaint or 

22 information submitted under subparagraph 

23 (A)(i) or from reporting to Congress on any 

24 such assessment. 


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1 ‘‘(D) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—In con2 ducting an assessment of a complaint or infor3 mation submitted under subparagraph (A)(i), 

4 the Director shall have access to, and can order 

5 the retention of, all records, reports, audits, re6 views, documents, papers, recommendations, 

7 and other material necessary to determine 

8 whether a substantial likelihood exists that a 

9 violation of an order, regulation, or standard of 

10 the Agency or any other provision of Federal 

11 law relating to aviation safety may have oc12 curred. The Director may order sworn testi13 mony from appropriate witnesses during the 

14 course of an investigation. 

15 ‘‘(E) PROCEDURE.—The Office shall es16 tablish procedures equivalent to sections 

17 1213(d) and 1213(e) of title 5 for investigation, 

18 report, employee comment, and evaluation by 

19 the Secretary for any investigation conducted 

20 pursuant to paragraph (3)(A). 

21 ‘‘(4) RESPONSES TO RECOMMENDATIONS.—The 

22 Administrator shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) respond within 60 days to a rec24 ommendation made by the Director under para25 graph (3)(A)(iii) in writing and retain records 


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1 related to any further investigations or correc2 tive actions taken in response to the rec3 ommendation, in accordance with established 

4 record retention requirements; and 

5 ‘‘(B) ensure that the findings of all refer6 rals for further investigation or corrective ac7 tions taken are reported to the Director. 

8 ‘‘(5) INCIDENT REPORTS.—If the Director de9 termines there is a substantial likelihood that a vio10 lation of an order, regulation, or standard of the 

11 Agency or any other provision of Federal law relat12 ing to aviation safety may have occurred that re13 quires immediate corrective action, the Director shall 

14 report the potential violation expeditiously to the 

15 Secretary, the Administrator, and the Inspector 

16 General of the Department of Transportation. 

17 ‘‘(6) REPORTING OF CRIMINAL VIOLATIONS TO

18 INSPECTOR GENERAL.—If the Director has reason19 able grounds to believe that there has been a viola20 tion of Federal criminal law, the Director shall re21 port the violation expeditiously to the Inspector Gen22 eral. 

23 ‘‘(7) RETALIATION AGAINST AGENCY EMPLOY24 EES.—Any retaliatory action taken or threatened 

25 against an employee of the Agency for good faith 


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1 participation in activities under this subsection is 

2 prohibited. The Director shall make all policy rec3 ommendations and specific requests to the Secretary 

4 for relief necessary to protect employees of the 

5 Agency who initiate or participate in investigations 

6 under this subsection. The Secretary shall respond 

7 in a timely manner and shall share the responses 

8 with the appropriate committees of Congress. 

9 ‘‘(8) DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS.—The Secretary 

10 shall exercise the Secretary’s authority under section 

11 2302 of title 5 for the prevention of prohibited per12 sonnel actions in any case in which the prohibited 

13 personnel action is taken against an employee of the 

14 Agency who, in good faith, has reported the possible 

15 existence of an activity relating to a violation of an 

16 order, regulation, or standard of the Agency or any 

17 other provision of Federal law relating to aviation 

18 safety. In exercising such authority, the Secretary 

19 may subject an employee of the Agency who has 

20 taken or failed to take, or threatened to take or fail 

21 to take, a personnel action in violation of such sec22 tion to a disciplinary action up to and including ter23 mination. 


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1 ‘‘(9) ANNUAL REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Not 

2 later than October 1 of each year, the Director shall 

3 submit to Congress a public report containing— 

4 ‘‘(A) information on the number of submis5 sions of complaints and information received by 

6 the Director under paragraph (3)(A)(i) in the 

7 preceding 12-month period; 

8 ‘‘(B) summaries of those submissions; 

9 ‘‘(C) summaries of further investigations, 

10 corrective actions recommended, and referrals 

11 in response to the submissions; 

12 ‘‘(D) summaries of the responses of the 

13 Administrator to such recommendations; and 

14 ‘‘(E) an evaluation of personnel and re15 sources necessary to effectively support the 

16 mandate of the Office.’’. 

17 SEC. 332. MODIFICATION OF CUSTOMER SERVICE INITIA18 TIVE. 

19 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

20 (1) Subsections (a) and (d) of section 40101 of 

21 title 49, United States Code, directs the Federal 

22 Aviation Administration (in this section referred to 

23 as the ‘‘Agency’’) to make safety its highest priority. 

24 (2) In 1996, to ensure that there would be no 

25 appearance of a conflict of interest for the Agency 


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1 in carrying out its safety responsibilities, Congress 

2 amended section 40101(d) of such title to remove 

3 the responsibilities of the Agency to promote air4 lines. 

5 (3) Despite these directives from Congress re6 garding the priority of safety, the Agency issued a 

7 vision statement in which it stated that it has a ‘‘vi8 sion’’ of ‘‘being responsive to our customers and ac9 countable to the public’’ and, in 2003, issued a cus10 tomer service initiative that required aviation inspec11 tors to treat air carriers and other aviation certifi12 cate holders as ‘‘customers’’ rather than regulated 

13 entities. 

14 (4) The initiatives described in paragraph (3) 

15 appear to have given regulated entities and Agency 

16 inspectors the impression that the management of 

17 the Agency gives an unduly high priority to the sat18 isfaction of regulated entities regarding its inspec19 tion and certification decisions and other lawful ac20 tions of its safety inspectors. 

21 (5) As a result of the emphasis on customer 

22 satisfaction, some managers of the Agency have dis23 couraged vigorous enforcement and replaced inspec24 tors whose lawful actions adversely affected an air 

25 carrier. 


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1 (b) MODIFICATION OF INITIATIVE.—Not later than 

2 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad3 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall 

4 modify the customer service initiative, mission and vision 

5 statements, and other statements of policy of the Agen6 cy— 

7 (1) to remove any reference to air carriers or 

8 other entities regulated by the Agency as ‘‘cus9 tomers’’; 

10 (2) to clarify that in regulating safety the only 

11 customers of the Agency are individuals traveling on 

12 aircraft; and 

13 (3) to clarify that air carriers and other entities 

14 regulated by the Agency do not have the right to se15 lect the employees of the Agency who will inspect 

16 their operations. 

17 (c) SAFETY PRIORITY.—In carrying out the Adminis18 trator’s responsibilities, the Administrator shall ensure 

19 that safety is given a higher priority than preventing the 

20 dissatisfaction of an air carrier or other entity regulated 

21 by the Agency with an employee of the Agency. 


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1 SEC. 333. POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIONS FOR FLIGHT 

2 STANDARDS INSPECTORS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 44711 of title 49, United 

4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(d) POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIONS FOR

7 FLIGHT STANDARDS INSPECTORS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) PROHIBITION.—A person holding an oper9 ating certificate issued under title 14, Code of Fed10 eral Regulations, may not knowingly employ, or 

11 make a contractual arrangement which permits, an 

12 individual to act as an agent or representative of the 

13 certificate holder in any matter before the Federal 

14 Aviation Administration (in this subsection referred 

15 to as the ‘Agency’) if the individual, in the preceding 

16 2-year period— 

17 ‘‘(A) served as, or was responsible for over18 sight of, a flight standards inspector of the 

19 Agency; and 

20 ‘‘(B) had responsibility to inspect, or over21 see inspection of, the operations of the certifi22 cate holder. 

23 ‘‘(2) WRITTEN AND ORAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

24 For purposes of paragraph (1), an individual shall 

25 be considered to be acting as an agent or representa26 tive of a certificate holder in a matter before the 


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1 Agency if the individual makes any written or oral 

2 communication on behalf of the certificate holder to 

3 the Agency (or any of its officers or employees) in 

4 connection with a particular matter, whether or not 

5 involving a specific party and without regard to 

6 whether the individual has participated in, or had 

7 responsibility for, the particular matter while serving 

8 as a flight standards inspector of the Agency.’’. 

9 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub10 section (a) shall not apply to an individual employed by 

11 a certificate holder as of the date of enactment of this 

12 Act. 

13 SEC. 334. ASSIGNMENT OF PRINCIPAL SUPERVISORY IN14 SPECTORS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—An individual serving as a prin16 cipal supervisory inspector of the Federal Aviation Admin17 istration (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Agency’’) may 

18 not be responsible for overseeing the operations of a single 

19 air carrier for a continuous period of more than 5 years. 

20 (b) TRANSITIONAL PROVISION.—An individual serv21 ing as a principal supervisory inspector of the Agency with 

22 respect to an air carrier as of the date of enactment of 

23 this Act may be responsible for overseeing the operations 

24 of the carrier until the last day of the 5-year period speciVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00151 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 fied in subsection (a) or last day of the 2-year period be2 ginning on such date of enactment, whichever is later. 

3 (c) ISSUANCE OF ORDER.—Not later than 30 days 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator 

5 of the Federal Aviation Administration shall issue an 

6 order to carry out this section. 

7 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

8 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 

9 such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section. 

10 SEC. 335. HEADQUARTERS REVIEW OF AIR TRANSPOR11 TATION OVERSIGHT SYSTEM DATABASE. 

12 (a) REVIEWS.—The Administrator of the Federal 

13 Aviation Administration shall establish a process by which 

14 the air transportation oversight system database of the 

15 Federal Aviation Administration (in this section referred 

16 to as the ‘‘Agency’’) is reviewed by a team of employees 

17 of the Agency, including at least one employee selected by 

18 the exclusive bargaining representative for aviation safety 

19 inspectors, on a monthly basis to ensure that— 

20 (1) any trends in regulatory compliance are 

21 identified; and 

22 (2) appropriate corrective actions are taken in 

23 accordance with Agency regulations, advisory direc24 tives, policies, and procedures. 

25 (b) MONTHLY TEAM REPORTS.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The team of employees con2 ducting a monthly review of the air transportation 

3 oversight system database under subsection (a) shall 

4 submit to the Administrator, the Associate Adminis5 trator for Aviation Safety, and the Director of 

6 Flight Standards a report on the results of the re7 view. 

8 (2) CONTENTS.—A report submitted under 

9 paragraph (1) shall identify— 

10 (A) any trends in regulatory compliance 

11 discovered by the team of employees in con12 ducting the monthly review; and 

13 (B) any corrective actions taken or pro14 posed to be taken in response to the trends. 

15 (c) QUARTERLY REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—The Ad16 ministrator, on a quarterly basis, shall submit to the Com17 mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House 

18 of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, 

19 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the 

20 results of reviews of the air transportation oversight sys21 tem database conducted under this section, including cop22 ies of reports received under subsection (b). 


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1 SEC. 336. IMPROVED VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE REPORTING 

2 SYSTEM. 

3 (a) VOLUNTARY DISCLOSURE REPORTING PROGRAM

4 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘Voluntary Disclo5 sure Reporting Program’’ means the program established 

6 by the Federal Aviation Administration through Advisory 

7 Circular 00–58A, dated September 8, 2006, including any 

8 subsequent revisions thereto. 

9 (b) VERIFICATION.—The Administrator of the Fed10 eral Aviation Administration shall modify the Voluntary 

11 Disclosure Reporting Program to require inspectors to— 

12 (1) verify that air carriers implement com13 prehensive solutions to correct the underlying causes 

14 of the violations voluntarily disclosed by such air 

15 carriers; and 

16 (2) confirm, before approving a final report of 

17 a violation, that the violation, or another violation 

18 occurring under the same circumstances, has not 

19 been previously discovered by an inspector or self20 disclosed by the air carrier. 

21 (c) SUPERVISORY REVIEW OF VOLUNTARY SELF

22 DISCLOSURES.—The Administrator shall establish a proc23 ess by which voluntary self-disclosures received from air 

24 carriers are reviewed and approved by a supervisor after 

25 the initial review by an inspector. 

26 (d) INSPECTOR GENERAL STUDY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of 

2 the Department of Transportation shall conduct a 

3 study of the Voluntary Disclosure Reporting Pro4 gram. 

5 (2) REVIEW.—In conducting the study, the In6 spector General shall examine, at a minimum, 

7 whether— 

8 (A) there is evidence that voluntary disclo9 sure is resulting in regulated entities discov10 ering and correcting violations to a greater ex11 tent than would otherwise occur if there was no 

12 program for immunity from enforcement action; 

13 (B) the voluntary disclosure program 

14 makes the Federal Aviation Administration 

15 (FAA) aware of violations that the FAA would 

16 not have discovered if there was not a program, 

17 and if a violation is disclosed voluntarily, 

18 whether the FAA insists on stronger corrective 

19 actions than would have occurred if the regu20 lated entity knew of a violation, but FAA did 

21 not; 

22 (C) the information the FAA gets under 

23 the program leads to fewer violations by other 

24 entities, either because the information leads 

25 other entities to look for similar violations or 


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1 because the information leads FAA investiga2 tors to look for similar violations at other enti3 ties; and 

4 (D) there is any evidence that voluntary 

5 disclosure has improved compliance with regula6 tions, either for the entities making disclosures 

7 or for the industry generally. 

8 (3) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the 

9 date of enactment of this Act, the Inspector General 

10 shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

11 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives 

12 and Committee on Commerce, Science, and Trans13 portation of the Senate a report on the results of the 

14 study conducted under this section. 

15 TITLE IV—AIR SERVICE 

16 IMPROVEMENTS 

17 SEC. 401. SMOKING PROHIBITION. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 41706 is amended— 

19 (1) in the section heading by striking ‘‘sched20 uled’’ and inserting ‘‘passenger’’; and 

21 (2) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and in22 serting the following: 

23 ‘‘(a) SMOKING PROHIBITION IN INTRASTATE AND

24 INTERSTATE TRANSPORTATION BY AIRCRAFT.—An indi25 vidual may not smoke in an aircraft— 


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1 ‘‘(1) in scheduled passenger interstate air 

2 transportation or scheduled passenger intrastate air 

3 transportation; and 

4 ‘‘(2) in nonscheduled intrastate or interstate 

5 transportation of passengers by aircraft for com6 pensation, if a flight attendant is a required crew7 member on the aircraft (as determined by the Ad8 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration). 

9 ‘‘(b) SMOKING PROHIBITION IN FOREIGN AIR

10 TRANSPORTATION.—The Secretary of Transportation 

11 shall require all air carriers and foreign air carriers to pro12 hibit smoking in an aircraft— 

13 ‘‘(1) in scheduled passenger foreign air trans14 portation; and 

15 ‘‘(2) in nonscheduled passenger foreign air 

16 transportation, if a flight attendant is a required 

17 crewmember on the aircraft (as determined by the 

18 Administrator or a foreign government).’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap20 ter 417 is amended by striking the item relating to section 

21 41706 and inserting the following: 

‘‘41706. Prohibitions against smoking on flights.’’. 

22 SEC. 402. MONTHLY AIR CARRIER REPORTS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 41708 is amended by 

24 adding at the end the following: 

25 ‘‘(c) DIVERTED AND CANCELLED FLIGHTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) MONTHLY REPORTS.—The Secretary shall 

2 require an air carrier referred to in paragraph (2) 

3 to file with the Secretary a monthly report on each 

4 flight of the air carrier that is diverted from its 

5 scheduled destination to another airport and each 

6 flight of the air carrier that departs the gate at the 

7 airport at which the flight originates but is cancelled 

8 before wheels-off time. 

9 ‘‘(2) APPLICABILITY.—An air carrier that is re10 quired to file a monthly airline service quality per11 formance report under subsection (b) shall be sub12 ject to the requirement of paragraph (1). 

13 ‘‘(3) CONTENTS.—A monthly report filed by an 

14 air carrier under paragraph (1) shall include, at a 

15 minimum, the following information: 

16 ‘‘(A) For a diverted flight— 

17 ‘‘(i) the flight number of the diverted 

18 flight; 

19 ‘‘(ii) the scheduled destination of the 

20 flight; 

21 ‘‘(iii) the date and time of the flight; 

22 ‘‘(iv) the airport to which the flight 

23 was diverted; 

24 ‘‘(v) wheels-on time at the diverted 

25 airport; 


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1 ‘‘(vi) the time, if any, passengers 

2 deplaned the aircraft at the diverted air3 port; and 

4 ‘‘(vii) if the flight arrives at the sched5 uled destination airport— 

6 ‘‘(I) the gate-departure time at 

7 the diverted airport; 

8 ‘‘(II) the wheels-off time at the 

9 diverted airport; 

10 ‘‘(III) the wheels-on time at the 

11 scheduled arrival airport; and 

12 ‘‘(IV) the gate arrival time at the 

13 scheduled arrival airport. 

14 ‘‘(B) For flights cancelled after gate de15 parture— 

16 ‘‘(i) the flight number of the cancelled 

17 flight; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the scheduled origin and destina19 tion airports of the cancelled flight; 

20 ‘‘(iii) the date and time of the can21 celled flight; 

22 ‘‘(iv) the gate-departure time of the 

23 cancelled flight; and 

24 ‘‘(v) the time the aircraft returned to 

25 the gate. 


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1 ‘‘(4) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary shall com2 pile the information provided in the monthly reports 

3 filed pursuant to paragraph (1) in a single monthly 

4 report and publish such report on the website of the 

5 Department of Transportation.’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The Secretary of Transpor7 tation shall require monthly reports pursuant to the 

8 amendment made by subsection (a) beginning not later 

9 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act. 

10 SEC. 403. FLIGHT OPERATIONS AT REAGAN NATIONAL AIR11 PORT. 

12 (a) BEYOND PERIMETER EXEMPTIONS.—Section 

13 41718(a) is amended by striking ‘‘24’’ and inserting ‘‘34’’. 

14 (b) LIMITATIONS.—Section 41718(c)(2) is amended 

15 by striking ‘‘3 operations’’ and inserting ‘‘5 operations’’. 

16 (c) ALLOCATION OF BEYOND-PERIMETER EXEMP17 TIONS.—Section 41718(c) is amended— 

18 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

19 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; and 

20 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘(3) SLOTS.—The Administrator of the Federal 

23 Aviation Administration shall reduce the hourly air 

24 carrier slot quota for Ronald Reagan Washington 

25 National Airport in section 93.123(a) of title 14, 


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1 Code of Federal Regulations, by a total of 10 slots 

2 that are available for allocation. Such reductions 

3 shall be taken in the 6:00 a.m., 10:00 p.m., or 11:00 

4 p.m. hours, as determined by the Administrator, in 

5 order to grant exemptions under subsection (a).’’. 

6 (d) SCHEDULING PRIORITY.—Section 41718 is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as 

9 subsections (f) and (g), respectively; and 

10 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(e) SCHEDULING PRIORITY.—Operations conducted 

13 by new entrant air carriers and limited incumbent air car14 riers shall be afforded a scheduling priority over oper15 ations conducted by other air carriers granted exemptions 

16 pursuant to this section, with the highest scheduling pri17 ority to be afforded to beyond-perimeter operations con18 ducted by new entrant air carriers and limited incumbent 

19 air carriers.’’. 

20 SEC. 404. EAS CONTRACT GUIDELINES. 

21 (a) COMPENSATION GUIDELINES.—Section 

22 41737(a)(1) is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara24 graph (B); 


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1 (2) in subparagraph (C) by striking the period 

2 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

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

4 ‘‘(D) include provisions under which the Sec5 retary may encourage an air carrier to improve air 

6 service for which compensation is being paid under 

7 this subchapter by incorporating financial incentives 

8 in an essential air service contract based on specified 

9 performance goals, including goals related to improv10 ing on-time performance, reducing the number of 

11 flight cancellations, establishing reasonable fares (in12 cluding joint fares beyond the hub airport), estab13 lishing convenient connections to flights providing 

14 service beyond hub airports, and increasing mar15 keting efforts; and 

16 ‘‘(E) include provisions under which the Sec17 retary may execute a long-term essential air service 

18 contract to encourage an air carrier to provide air 

19 service to an eligible place if it would be in the pub20 lic interest to do so.’’. 

21 (b) DEADLINE FOR ISSUANCE OF REVISED GUID22 ANCE.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact23 ment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall 

24 issue revised guidelines governing the rate of compensa25 tion payable under subchapter II of chapter 417 of title 


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1 49, United States Code, that incorporate the amendments 

2 made by subsection (a). 

3 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

4 of issuance of revised guidelines pursuant to subsection 

5 (b), the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on 

6 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep7 resentatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

8 and Transportation of the Senate a report on the extent 

9 to which the revised guidelines have been implemented and 

10 the impact, if any, such implementation has had on air 

11 carrier performance and community satisfaction with air 

12 service for which compensation is being paid under sub13 chapter II of chapter 417 of title 49, United States Code. 

14 SEC. 405. ESSENTIAL AIR SERVICE REFORM. 

15 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

16 41742(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended 

17 by striking ‘‘there is authorized to be appropriated 

18 $77,000,000’’ and inserting ‘‘there is authorized to be ap19 propriated out of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund 

20 $150,000,000’’. 

21 (b) DISTRIBUTION OF EXCESS FUNDS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 41742(a) is amend23 ed by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(4) DISTRIBUTION OF EXCESS FUNDS.—Of 

25 the funds, if any, credited to the account established 


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1 under section 45303 in a fiscal year that exceed the 

2 $50,000,000 made available for such fiscal year 

3 under paragraph (1)— 

4 ‘‘(A) one-half shall be made available im5 mediately for obligation and expenditure to 

6 carry out section 41743; and 

7 ‘‘(B) one-half shall be made available im8 mediately for obligation and expenditure to 

9 carry out subsection (b).’’. 

10 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

11 41742(b) is amended— 

12 (A) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘mon13 eys credited’’ and all that follows before ‘‘shall 

14 be used’’ and inserting ‘‘amounts made avail15 able under subsection (a)(4)(B)’’; and 

16 (B) in the second sentence by striking 

17 ‘‘any amounts from those fees’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘any of such amounts’’. 

19 SEC. 406. SMALL COMMUNITY AIR SERVICE. 

20 (a) PRIORITIES.—Section 41743(c)(5) is amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara22 graph (D); 

23 (2) in subparagraph (E) by striking ‘‘fashion.’’ 

24 and inserting ‘‘fashion; and’’; and 

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


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1 ‘‘(F) multiple communities cooperate to 

2 submit a regional or multistate application to 

3 improve air service.’’. 

4 (b) EXTENSION OF AUTHORIZATION.—Section 

5 41743(e)(2) is amended by striking ‘‘2009’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘2012’’. 

7 SEC. 407. AIR PASSENGER SERVICE IMPROVEMENTS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subtitle VII is amended by insert9 ing after chapter 421 the following: 

10 ‘‘CHAPTER 423—AIR PASSENGER SERVICE 

11 IMPROVEMENTS 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘42301. Emergency contingency plans. 

‘‘42302. Consumer complaints. 

‘‘42303. Use of insecticides in passenger aircraft. 

‘‘42304. Notification of flight status by text message or email. 

12 ‘‘§ 42301. Emergency contingency plans 

13 ‘‘(a) SUBMISSION OF AIR CARRIER AND AIRPORT

14 PLANS.—Not later than 90 days after the date of enact15 ment of this section, each air carrier providing covered air 

16 transportation at a large hub airport or medium hub air17 port and each operator of a large hub airport or medium 

18 hub airport shall submit to the Secretary of Transpor19 tation for review and approval an emergency contingency 

20 plan in accordance with the requirements of this section. 

21 ‘‘(b) COVERED AIR TRANSPORTATION DEFINED.—In 

22 this section, the term ‘covered air transportation’ means 


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1 scheduled passenger air transportation provided by an air 

2 carrier using aircraft with more than 30 seats. 

3 ‘‘(c) AIR CARRIER PLANS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) PLANS FOR INDIVIDUAL AIRPORTS.—An 

5 air carrier shall submit an emergency contingency 

6 plan under subsection (a) for— 

7 ‘‘(A) each large hub airport and medium 

8 hub airport at which the carrier provides cov9 ered air transportation; and 

10 ‘‘(B) each large hub airport and medium 

11 hub airport at which the carrier has flights for 

12 which it has primary responsibility for inventory 

13 control. 

14 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—An emergency contingency 

15 plan submitted by an air carrier for an airport under 

16 subsection (a) shall contain a description of how the 

17 air carrier will— 

18 ‘‘(A) provide food, water that meets the 

19 standards of the Safe Drinking Water Act (42 

20 U.S.C. 300f et seq.), restroom facilities, cabin 

21 ventilation, and access to medical treatment for 

22 passengers onboard an aircraft at the airport 

23 that is on the ground for an extended period of 

24 time without access to the terminal; 


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1 ‘‘(B) allow passengers to deplane following 

2 excessive delays; and 

3 ‘‘(C) share facilities and make gates avail4 able at the airport in an emergency. 

5 ‘‘(d) AIRPORT PLANS.—An emergency contingency 

6 plan submitted by an airport operator under subsection 

7 (a) shall contain— 

8 ‘‘(1) a description of how the airport operator, 

9 to the maximum extent practicable, will provide for 

10 the deplanement of passengers following excessive 

11 delays and will provide for the sharing of facilities 

12 and make gates available at the airport in an emer13 gency; and 

14 ‘‘(2) in the case of an airport that is used by 

15 an air carrier or foreign air carrier for flights in for16 eign air transportation, a description of how the air17 port operator will provide for use of the airport’s 

18 terminal, to the maximum extent practicable, for the 

19 processing of passengers arriving at the airport on 

20 such a flight in the case of an excessive tarmac 

21 delay. 

22 ‘‘(e) UPDATES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) AIR CARRIERS.—An air carrier shall up24 date the emergency contingency plan submitted by 

25 the air carrier under subsection (a) every 3 years 


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1 and submit the update to the Secretary for review 

2 and approval. 

3 ‘‘(2) AIRPORTS.—An airport operator shall up4 date the emergency contingency plan submitted by 

5 the airport operator under subsection (a) every 5 

6 years and submit the update to the Secretary for re7 view and approval. 

8 ‘‘(f) APPROVAL.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 9 months 

10 after the date of enactment of this section, the Sec11 retary shall review and approve or require modifica12 tions to emergency contingency plans submitted 

13 under subsection (a) and updates submitted under 

14 subsection (e) to ensure that the plans and updates 

15 will effectively address emergencies and provide for 

16 the health and safety of passengers. 

17 ‘‘(2) CIVIL PENALTIES.—The Secretary may as18 sess a civil penalty under section 46301 against an 

19 air carrier or airport that does not adhere to an 

20 emergency contingency plan approved under this 

21 subsection. 

22 ‘‘(g) MINIMUM STANDARDS.—The Secretary may es23 tablish, as necessary or desirable, minimum standards for 

24 elements in an emergency contingency plan required to be 

25 submitted under this section. 


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1 ‘‘(h) PUBLIC ACCESS.—An air carrier or airport re2 quired to submit emergency contingency plans under this 

3 section shall ensure public access to such plan after its 

4 approval under this section on the Internet website of the 

5 carrier or airport or by such other means as determined 

6 by the Secretary. 

7 ‘‘§ 42302. Consumer complaints 

8 ‘‘(a) CONSUMER COMPLAINTS HOTLINE TELEPHONE

9 NUMBER.—The Secretary of Transportation shall estab10 lish a consumer complaints hotline telephone number for 

11 the use of passengers in air transportation. 

12 ‘‘(b) PUBLIC NOTICE.—The Secretary shall notify 

13 the public of the telephone number established under sub14 section (a). 

15 ‘‘(c) NOTICE TO PASSENGERS OF AIR CARRIERS.— 

16 An air carrier providing scheduled air transportation using 

17 aircraft with 30 or more seats shall include on the Internet 

18 Web site of the carrier and on any ticket confirmation and 

19 boarding pass issued by the air carrier— 

20 ‘‘(1) the hotline telephone number established 

21 under subsection (a); 

22 ‘‘(2) the email address, telephone number, and 

23 mailing address of the air carrier; and 

24 ‘‘(3) the email address, telephone number, and 

25 mailing address of the Aviation Consumer Protection 


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1 Division of the Department of Transportation for 

2 the submission of reports by passengers about air 

3 travel service problems. 

4 ‘‘(d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

6 necessary to carry out this section. Such sums shall re7 main available until expended. 

8 ‘‘§ 42303. Use of insecticides in passenger aircraft 

9 ‘‘(a) INFORMATION TO BE PROVIDED ON THE INTER10 NET.—The Secretary of Transportation shall establish, 

11 and make available to the general public, an Internet Web 

12 site that contains a listing of countries that may require 

13 an air carrier or foreign air carrier to treat an aircraft 

14 passenger cabin with insecticides prior to a flight in for15 eign air transportation to that country or to apply an aer16 osol insecticide in an aircraft cabin used for such a flight 

17 when the cabin is occupied with passengers. 

18 ‘‘(b) REQUIRED DISCLOSURES.—An air carrier, for19 eign air carrier, or ticket agent selling, in the United 

20 States, a ticket for a flight in foreign air transportation 

21 to a country listed on the Internet Web site established 

22 under subsection (a) shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) disclose, on its own Internet Web site or 

24 through other means, that the destination country 

25 may require the air carrier or foreign air carrier to 


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1 treat an aircraft passenger cabin with insecticides 

2 prior to the flight or to apply an aerosol insecticide 

3 in an aircraft cabin used for such a flight when the 

4 cabin is occupied with passengers; and 

5 ‘‘(2) refer the purchaser of the ticket to the 

6 Internet Web site established under subsection (a) 

7 for additional information. 

8 ‘‘§ 42304. Notification of flight status by text message 

9 or email 

10 ‘‘Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

11 of this section, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue 

12 regulations to require that each air carrier that has at 

13 least 1 percent of total domestic scheduled-service pas14 senger revenue provide each passenger of the carrier— 

15 ‘‘(1) an option to receive a text message or 

16 email or any other comparable electronic service, 

17 subject to any fees applicable under the contract of 

18 the passenger for the electronic service, from the air 

19 carrier a notification of any change in the status of 

20 the flight of the passenger whenever the flight status 

21 is changed before the boarding process for the flight 

22 commences; and 

23 ‘‘(2) the notification if the passenger requests 

24 the notification.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for sub2 title VII is amended by inserting after the item relating 

3 to chapter 421 the following: 

‘‘423. Air Passenger Service Improvements ............................................. 42301’’. 

4 (c) PENALTIES.—Section 46301 is amended in sub5 sections (a)(1)(A) and (c)(1)(A) by inserting ‘‘chapter 

6 423,’’ after ‘‘chapter 421,’’. 

7 (d) APPLICABILITY OF REQUIREMENTS.—Except as 

8 otherwise specifically provided, the requirements of chap9 ter 423 of title 49, United States Code, as added by this 

10 section, shall begin to apply 60 days after the date of en11 actment of this Act. 

12 SEC. 408. CONTENTS OF COMPETITION PLANS. 

13 Section 47106(f)(2) is amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘patterns of air service,’’; 

15 (2) by inserting ‘‘and’’ before ‘‘whether’’; and 

16 (3) by striking ‘‘, and airfare levels’’ and all 

17 that follows before the period. 

18 SEC. 409. EXTENSION OF COMPETITIVE ACCESS REPORTS. 

19 Section 47107(s)(3) is amended by striking ‘‘October 

20 1, 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

21 SEC. 410. CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM. 

22 (a) COST-BENEFIT REQUIREMENT.—Section 

23 47124(b) is amended— 

24 (1) by striking ‘‘(1) The Secretary’’ and insert25 ing the following: 


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1 ‘‘(1) CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM.— 

2 ‘‘(A) CONTINUATION AND EXTENSION.— 

3 The Secretary’’; 

4 (2) by adding at the end of paragraph (1) the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE.—If the Secretary de7 termines that a tower already operating under 

8 the program continued under this paragraph 

9 has a benefit to cost ratio of less than 1.0, the 

10 airport sponsor or State or local government 

11 having jurisdiction over the airport shall not be 

12 required to pay the portion of the costs that ex13 ceeds the benefit for a period of 18 months 

14 after such determination is made. 

15 ‘‘(C) USE OF EXCESS FUNDS.—If the Sec16 retary finds that all or part of an amount made 

17 available to carry out the program continued 

18 under this paragraph is not required during a 

19 fiscal year, the Secretary may use, during such 

20 fiscal year, the amount not so required to carry 

21 out the program established under paragraph 

22 (3).’’; and 

23 (3) by striking ‘‘(2) The Secretary’’ and insert24 ing the following: 

25 ‘‘(2) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—The Secretary’’. 


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1 (1) Section 47124(b)(3)(E) is amended to read 

2 as follows: 

3 ‘‘(E) FUNDING.—Of the amounts appro4 priated pursuant to section 106(k), not more 

5 than $9,500,000 for fiscal year 2010, 

6 $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2011, and 

7 $10,000,000 for fiscal year 2012 may be used 

8 to carry out this paragraph.’’. 

9 (2) USE OF EXCESS FUNDS.—Section 

10 47124(b)(3) is amended— 

11 (A) by redesignating subparagraph (E) (as 

12 amended by paragraph (1) of this subsection) 

13 as subparagraph (F); and 

14 (B) by inserting after subparagraph (D) 

15 the following: 

16 ‘‘(E) USE OF EXCESS FUNDS.—If the Sec17 retary finds that all or part of an amount made 

18 available under this subparagraph is not re19 quired during a fiscal year to carry out this 

20 paragraph, the Secretary may use, during such 

21 fiscal year, the amount not so required to carry 

22 out the program continued under paragraph 

23 (1).’’. 


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1 (c) FEDERAL SHARE.—Section 47124(b)(4)(C) is 

2 amended by striking ‘‘$1,500,000’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘$2,000,000’’. 

4 (d) SAFETY AUDITS.—Section 47124 is amended by 

5 adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(c) SAFETY AUDITS.—The Secretary shall establish 

7 uniform standards and requirements for safety assess8 ments of air traffic control towers that receive funding 

9 under this section.’’. 

10 SEC. 411. AIRFARES FOR MEMBERS OF THE ARMED 

11 FORCES. 

12 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

13 (1) the Armed Forces is comprised of approxi14 mately 1,400,000 members who are stationed on ac15 tive duty at more than 6,000 military bases in 146 

16 different countries; 

17 (2) the United States is indebted to the mem18 bers of the Armed Forces, many of whom are in 

19 grave danger due to their engagement in, or expo20 sure to, combat; 

21 (3) military service, especially in the current 

22 war against terrorism, often requires members of the 

23 Armed Forces to be separated from their families on 

24 short notice, for long periods of time, and under 

25 very stressful conditions; 


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1 (4) the unique demands of military service often 

2 preclude members of the Armed Forces from pur3 chasing discounted advance airline tickets in order 

4 to visit their loved ones at home and require mem5 bers of the Armed Forces to travel with heavy bags; 

6 and 

7 (5) it is the patriotic duty of the people of the 

8 United States to support the members of the Armed 

9 Forces who are defending the Nation’s interests 

10 around the world at great personal sacrifice. 

11 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con12 gress that each United States air carrier should— 

13 (1) establish for all members of the Armed 

14 Forces on active duty reduced air fares that are 

15 comparable to the lowest airfare for ticketed flights; 

16 and 

17 (2) offer flexible terms that allow members of 

18 the Armed Forces on active duty to purchase, mod19 ify, or cancel tickets without time restrictions, fees, 

20 and penalties and waive baggage fees for a minimum 

21 of 3 bags. 


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1 SEC. 412. REPEAL OF ESSENTIAL AIR SERVICE LOCAL PAR2 TICIPATION PROGRAM. 

3 (a) REPEAL.—Section 41747 of title 49, United 

4 States Code, and the item relating to such section in the 

5 analysis for chapter 417 of such title, are repealed. 

6 (b) APPLICABILITY.—Title 49, United States Code, 

7 shall be applied as if section 41747 of such title had not 

8 been enacted. 

9 SEC. 413. ADJUSTMENT TO SUBSIDY CAP TO REFLECT IN10 CREASED FUEL COSTS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The $200 per passenger subsidy 

12 cap initially established by Public Law 103–122 (107 

13 Stat. 1198; 1201) and made permanent by section 332 

14 of Public Law 106–69 (113 Stat. 1022) shall be increased 

15 by an amount necessary to account for the increase, if any, 

16 in the cost of aviation fuel in the 24 months preceding 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, as determined by the 

18 Secretary. 

19 (b) ADJUSTMENT OF CAP.—Not later than 60 days 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall 

21 publish in the Federal Register the increased subsidy cap 

22 as an interim final rule, pursuant to which public comment 

23 will be sought and a final rule issued. 

24 (c) LIMITATION ON ELIGIBILITY.—A community that 

25 has been determined, pursuant to a final order issued by 

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1 actment of this Act, to be ineligible for subsidized air serv2 ice under subchapter II of chapter 417 of title 49, United 

3 States Code, shall not be eligible for the increased subsidy 

4 cap established pursuant to this section. 

5 SEC. 414. NOTICE TO COMMUNITIES PRIOR TO TERMI6 NATION OF ELIGIBILITY FOR SUBSIDIZED ES7 SENTIAL AIR SERVICE. 

8 Section 41733 of title 49, United States Code, is 

9 amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘(f) NOTICE TO COMMUNITIES PRIOR TO TERMI11 NATION OF ELIGIBILITY.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall notify 

13 each community receiving basic essential air service 

14 for which compensation is being paid under this sub15 chapter on or before the 45th day before issuing any 

16 final decision to end the payment of such compensa17 tion due to a determination by the Secretary that 

18 providing such service requires a rate of subsidy per 

19 passenger in excess of the subsidy cap. 

20 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES TO AVOID TERMINATION.— 

21 The Secretary shall establish, by order, procedures 

22 by which each community notified of an impending 

23 loss of subsidy under paragraph (1) may work di24 rectly with an air carrier to ensure that the air car25 rier is able to submit a proposal to the Secretary to 


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1 provide essential air service to such community for 

2 an amount of compensation that would not exceed 

3 the subsidy cap. 

4 ‘‘(3) ASSISTANCE PROVIDED.—The Secretary 

5 shall provide, by order, to each community notified 

6 under paragraph (1) information regarding— 

7 ‘‘(A) the procedures established pursuant 

8 to paragraph (2); and 

9 ‘‘(B) the maximum amount of compensa10 tion that could be provided under this sub11 chapter to an air carrier serving such commu12 nity that would comply with the subsidy cap. 

13 ‘‘(4) SUBSIDY CAP DEFINED.—In this sub14 section, the term ‘subsidy cap’ means the subsidy 

15 cap established by section 332 of Public Law 106– 

16 69, including any increase to that subsidy cap estab17 lished by the Secretary pursuant to the FAA Reau18 thorization Act of 2009.’’. 

19 SEC. 415. RESTORATION OF ELIGIBILITY TO A PLACE DE20 TERMINED BY THE SECRETARY TO BE INELI21 GIBLE FOR SUBSIDIZED ESSENTIAL AIR 

22 SERVICE. 

23 Section 41733 (as amended by section 413 of this 

24 Act) is further amended by adding at the end the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(g) PROPOSALS OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN2 MENTS TO RESTORE ELIGIBILITY.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Secretary, after the 

4 date of enactment of this subsection, ends payment 

5 of compensation to an air carrier for providing basic 

6 essential air service to an eligible place because the 

7 Secretary has determined that providing such service 

8 requires a rate of subsidy per passenger in excess of 

9 the subsidy cap (as defined in subsection (f)), a 

10 State or local government may submit to the Sec11 retary a proposal for restoring compensation for 

12 such service. Such proposal shall be a joint proposal 

13 of the State or local government and an air carrier. 

14 ‘‘(2) DETERMINATION BY SECRETARY.—If a 

15 State or local government submits to the Secretary 

16 a proposal under paragraph (1) with respect to an 

17 eligible place, and the Secretary determines that— 

18 ‘‘(A) the rate of subsidy per passenger 

19 under the proposal does not exceed the subsidy 

20 cap (as defined in subsection (f)); and 

21 ‘‘(B) the proposal is consistent with the 

22 legal and regulatory requirements of the essen23 tial air service program, 

24 the Secretary shall issue an order restoring the eligi25 bility of the otherwise eligible place to receive basic 


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1 essential air service by an air carrier for compensa2 tion under subsection (c).’’. 

3 SEC. 416. OFFICE OF RURAL AVIATION. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 417 is 

5 amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘§ 41749. Office of Rural Aviation 

7 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor8 tation shall establish within the Department of Transpor9 tation an office to be known as the ‘Office of Rural Avia10 tion’ (in this section referred to as the ‘Office’). 

11 ‘‘(b) FUNCTIONS.—The Office shall— 

12 ‘‘(1) monitor the status of air service to small 

13 communities; 

14 ‘‘(2) develop proposals to improve air service to 

15 small communities; and 

16 ‘‘(3) carry out such other functions as the Sec17 retary considers appropriate.’’. 

18 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for sub19 chapter II of chapter 417 is amended by adding at the 

20 end the following: 

‘‘41749. Office of Rural Aviation.’’. 

21 SEC. 417. ADJUSTMENTS TO COMPENSATION FOR SIGNIFI22 CANTLY INCREASED COSTS. 

23 (a) EMERGENCY ACROSS-THE-BOARD ADJUST24 MENT.—Subject to the availability of funds, the Secretary 

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1 riers under subchapter II of chapter 417 of title 49, 

2 United States Code, to compensate such carriers for in3 creased aviation fuel costs, without regard to any agree4 ment or requirement relating to the renegotiation of con5 tracts or any notice requirement under section 41734 of 

6 such title. 

7 (b) EXPEDITED PROCESS FOR ADJUSTMENTS TO IN8 DIVIDUAL CONTRACTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 41734(d) of title 49, 

10 United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘con11 tinue to pay’’ and all that follows through ‘‘com12 pensation sufficient—’’ and inserting ‘‘provide the 

13 carrier with compensation sufficient—’’. 

14 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

15 by paragraph (1) shall apply to compensation to air 

16 carriers for air service provided after the 30th day 

17 following the date of enactment of this Act. 

18 SEC. 418. REVIEW OF AIR CARRIER FLIGHT DELAYS, CAN19 CELLATIONS, AND ASSOCIATED CAUSES. 

20 (a) REVIEW.—The Inspector General of the Depart21 ment of Transportation shall conduct a review regarding 

22 air carrier flight delays, cancellations, and associated 

23 causes to update its 2000 report numbered CR–2000–112 

24 and entitled ‘‘Audit of Air Carrier Flight Delays and Can25 cellations’’. 


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1 (b) ASSESSMENTS.—In conducting the review under 

2 subsection (a), the Inspector General shall assess— 

3 (1) the need for an update on delay and can4 cellation statistics, such as number of chronically de5 layed flights and taxi-in and taxi-out times; 

6 (2) air carriers’ scheduling practices; 

7 (3) the need for a re-examination of capacity 

8 benchmarks at the Nation’s busiest airports; 

9 (4) the impact of flight delays and cancellations 

10 on air travelers, including recommendations for pro11 grams that could be implemented to address the im12 pact of flight delays on air travelers; and 

13 (5) the effect that limited air carrier service op14 tions on routes have on the frequency of delays and 

15 cancellations on such routes. 

16 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Inspector General shall sub18 mit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc19 ture of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

20 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate 

21 a report on the results of the review conducted under this 

22 section, including the assessments described in subsection 

23 (b). 


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1 SEC. 419. EUROPEAN UNION RULES FOR PASSENGER 

2 RIGHTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General shall 

4 conduct a study to evaluate and compare the regulations 

5 of the European Union and the United States on com6 pensation and other consideration offered to passengers 

7 who are denied boarding or whose flights are cancelled or 

8 delayed. 

9 (b) SPECIFIC STUDY REQUIREMENTS.—The study 

10 shall include an evaluation and comparison of the regula11 tions based on costs to the air carriers, preferences of pas12 sengers for compensation or other consideration, and 

13 forms of compensation. In conducting the study, the 

14 Comptroller General shall also take into account the dif15 ferences in structure and size of the aviation systems of 

16 the European Union and the United States. 

17 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

18 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

19 submit a report to Congress on the results of the study. 

20 SEC. 420. ESTABLISHMENT OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE FOR 

21 AVIATION CONSUMER PROTECTION. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 

23 shall establish an advisory committee for aviation con24 sumer protection (in this section referred to as the ‘‘advi25 sory committee’’) to advise the Secretary in carrying out 


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1 air passenger service improvements, including those re2 quired by chapter 423 of title 49, United States Code. 

3 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The Secretary shall appoint 8 

4 members to the advisory committee as follows: 

5 (1) Two representatives of air carriers required 

6 to submit emergency contingency plans pursuant to 

7 section 42301 of title 49, United States Code. 

8 (2) Two representatives of the airport operators 

9 required to submit emergency contingency plans pur10 suant to section 42301 of such title. 

11 (3) Two representatives of State and local gov12 ernments who have expertise in aviation consumer 

13 protection matters. 

14 (4) Two representatives of nonprofit public in15 terest groups who have expertise in aviation con16 sumer protection matters. 

17 (c) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the advisory com18 mittee shall be filled in the manner in which the original 

19 appointment was made. 

20 (d) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Members of the advisory 

21 committee shall serve without pay but shall receive travel 

22 expenses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, in ac23 cordance with subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United 

24 States Code. 


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1 (e) CHAIRPERSON.—The Secretary shall designate, 

2 from among the individuals appointed under subsection 

3 (b), an individual to serve as chairperson of the advisory 

4 committee. 

5 (f) DUTIES.—The duties of the advisory committee 

6 shall include the following: 

7 (1) Evaluating existing aviation consumer pro8 tection programs and providing recommendations for 

9 the improvement of such programs, if needed. 

10 (2) Providing recommendations to establish ad11 ditional aviation consumer protection programs, if 

12 needed. 

13 (g) REPORT.—Not later than February 1 of each 

14 year beginning after the date of enactment of this Act, 

15 the Secretary shall transmit to Congress a report con16 taining— 

17 (1) each recommendation made by the advisory 

18 committee during the preceding calendar year; and 

19 (2) an explanation of how the Secretary has im20 plemented each recommendation and, for each rec21 ommendation not implemented, the Secretary’s rea22 son for not implementing the recommendation. 

23 SEC. 421. DENIED BOARDING COMPENSATION. 

24 Not later than May 19, 2010, and every 2 years 

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1 vided for denied boarding compensation and issue a regu2 lation to adjust such compensation as necessary. 

3 SEC. 422. COMPENSATION FOR DELAYED BAGGAGE. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

5 a study to— 

6 (1) examine delays in the delivery of checked 

7 baggage to passengers of air carriers; and 

8 (2) make recommendations for establishing 

9 minimum standards to compensate a passenger in 

10 the case of an unreasonable delay in the delivery of 

11 checked baggage. 

12 (b) CONSIDERATION.—In conducting the study, the 

13 Comptroller General shall take into account the additional 

14 fees for checked baggage that are imposed by many air 

15 carriers and how the additional fees should improve an 

16 air carrier’s baggage performance. 

17 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

18 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

19 transmit to Congress a report on the results of the study. 

20 SEC. 423. SCHEDULE REDUCTION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—If the Administrator of the Fed22 eral Aviation Administration determines that: (1) the air23 craft operations of air carriers during any hour at an air24 port exceeds the hourly maximum departure and arrival 

25 rate established by the Administrator for such operations; 


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1 and (2) the operations in excess of the maximum depar2 ture and arrival rate for such hour at such airport are 

3 likely to have a significant adverse effect on the national 

4 or regional airspace system, the Administrator shall con5 vene a conference of such carriers to reduce pursuant to 

6 section 41722, on a voluntary basis, the number of such 

7 operations to less than such maximum departure and ar8 rival rate. 

9 (b) NO AGREEMENT.—If the air carriers partici10 pating in a conference with respect to an airport under 

11 subsection (a) are not able to agree to a reduction in the 

12 number of flights to and from the airport to less than the 

13 maximum departure and arrival rate, the Administrator 

14 shall take such action as is necessary to ensure such re15 duction is implemented. 

16 (c) QUARTERLY REPORTS.—Beginning 3 months 

17 after the date of enactment of this Act and every 3 months 

18 thereafter, the Administrator shall submit to Congress a 

19 report regarding scheduling at the 35 airports that have 

20 the greatest number of passenger enplanements, including 

21 each occurrence in which hourly scheduled aircraft oper22 ations of air carriers at such an airport exceed the hourly 

23 maximum departure and arrival rate at any such airport. 


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1 SEC. 424. EXPANSION OF DOT AIRLINE CONSUMER COM2 PLAINT INVESTIGATIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the availability of ap4 propriations, the Secretary of Transportation shall inves5 tigate consumer complaints regarding— 

6 (1) flight cancellations; 

7 (2) compliance with Federal regulations con8 cerning overbooking seats on flights; 

9 (3) lost, damaged, or delayed baggage, and dif10 ficulties with related airline claims procedures; 

11 (4) problems in obtaining refunds for unused or 

12 lost tickets or fare adjustments; 

13 (5) incorrect or incomplete information about 

14 fares, discount fare conditions and availability, over15 charges, and fare increases; 

16 (6) the rights of passengers who hold frequent 

17 flier miles or equivalent redeemable awards earned 

18 through customer-loyalty programs; and 

19 (7) deceptive or misleading advertising. 

20 (b) BUDGET NEEDS REPORT.—The Secretary shall 

21 provide, as an annex to its annual budget request, an esti22 mate of resources which would have been sufficient to in23 vestigate all such claims the Department of Transpor24 tation received in the previous fiscal year. The annex shall 

25 be transmitted to Congress when the President submits 


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1 the budget of the United States to the Congress under 

2 section 1105 of title 31, United States Code. 

3 SEC. 425. PROHIBITIONS AGAINST VOICE COMMUNICA4 TIONS USING MOBILE COMMUNICATIONS DE5 VICES ON SCHEDULED FLIGHTS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 417 of 

7 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

8 end the following: 

9 ‘‘§ 41724. Prohibitions against voice communications 

10 using mobile communications devices on 

11 scheduled flights 

12 ‘‘(a) INTERSTATE AND INTRASTATE AIR TRANSPOR13 TATION.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An individual may not en15 gage in voice communications using a mobile com16 munications device in an aircraft during a flight in 

17 scheduled passenger interstate air transportation or 

18 scheduled passenger intrastate air transportation. 

19 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—The prohibition described 

20 in paragraph (1) shall not apply to— 

21 ‘‘(A) a member of the flight crew or flight 

22 attendants on an aircraft; or 

23 ‘‘(B) a Federal law enforcement officer 

24 acting in an official capacity. 

25 ‘‘(b) FOREIGN AIR TRANSPORTATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor2 tation shall require all air carriers and foreign air 

3 carriers to adopt the prohibition described in sub4 section (a) with respect to the operation of an air5 craft in scheduled passenger foreign air transpor6 tation. 

7 ‘‘(2) ALTERNATE PROHIBITION.—If a foreign 

8 government objects to the application of paragraph 

9 (1) on the basis that paragraph (1) provides for an 

10 extraterritorial application of the laws of the United 

11 States, the Secretary may waive the application of 

12 paragraph (1) to a foreign air carrier licensed by 

13 that foreign government until such time as an alter14 native prohibition on voice communications using a 

15 mobile communications device during flight is nego16 tiated by the Secretary with such foreign govern17 ment through bilateral negotiations. 

18 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following 

19 definitions apply: 

20 ‘‘(1) FLIGHT.—The term ‘flight’ means the pe21 riod beginning when an aircraft takes off and ending 

22 when an aircraft lands. 

23 ‘‘(2) VOICE COMMUNICATIONS USING A MOBILE

24 COMMUNICATIONS DEVICE.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘voice com2 munications using a mobile communications de3 vice’ includes voice communications using— 

4 ‘‘(i) a commercial mobile radio service 

5 or other wireless communications device; 

6 ‘‘(ii) a broadband wireless device or 

7 other wireless device that transmits data 

8 packets using the Internet Protocol or 

9 comparable technical standard; or 

10 ‘‘(iii) a device having voice override 

11 capability. 

12 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION.—Such term does not in13 clude voice communications using a phone in14 stalled on an aircraft. 

15 ‘‘(d) SAFETY REGULATIONS.—This section shall not 

16 be construed to affect the authority of the Secretary to 

17 impose limitations on voice communications using a mobile 

18 communications device for safety reasons. 

19 ‘‘(e) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary shall prescribe 

20 such regulations as are necessary to carry out this sec21 tion.’’. 

22 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

23 subchapter is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘41724. Prohibitions against voice communications using mobile communications devices on scheduled flights.’’. 


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1 SEC. 426. ANTITRUST EXEMPTIONS. 

2 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

3 a study of the legal requirements and policies followed by 

4 the Department in deciding whether to approve inter5 national alliances under section 41309 of title 49, United 

6 States Code, and grant exemptions from the antitrust laws 

7 under section 41308 of such title in connection with such 

8 international alliances. 

9 (b) ISSUES TO BE CONSIDERED.—In conducting the 

10 study under subsection (a), the Comptroller General, at 

11 a minimum, shall examine the following: 

12 (1) Whether granting exemptions from the anti13 trust laws in connection with international alliances 

14 has resulted in public benefits, including an analysis 

15 of whether such benefits could have been achieved by 

16 international alliances not receiving exemptions from 

17 the antitrust laws. 

18 (2) Whether granting exemptions from the anti19 trust laws in connection with international alliances 

20 has resulted in reduced competition, increased prices 

21 in markets, or other adverse effects. 

22 (3) Whether international alliances that have 

23 been granted exemptions from the antitrust laws 

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1 sumers or foreclosed competition by rival (nonalli2 ance) air carriers at such airports. 

3 (4) Whether increased network size resulting 

4 from additional international alliance members will 

5 adversely affect competition between international 

6 alliances. 

7 (5) The areas in which immunized international 

8 alliances compete and whether there is sufficient 

9 competition among immunized international alliances 

10 to ensure that consumers will receive benefits of at 

11 least the same magnitude as those that consumers 

12 would receive if there were no immunized inter13 national alliances. 

14 (6) The minimum number of international alli15 ances that is necessary to ensure robust competition 

16 and benefits to consumers on major international 

17 routes. 

18 (7) Whether the different regulatory and anti19 trust responsibilities of the Secretary and the Attor20 ney General with respect to international alliances 

21 have created any significant conflicting agency rec22 ommendations, such as the conditions imposed in 

23 granting exemptions from the antitrust laws. 

24 (8) Whether, from an antitrust standpoint, re25 quests for exemptions from the antitrust laws in 


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1 connection with international alliances should be 

2 treated as mergers, and therefore be exclusively sub3 ject to a traditional merger analysis by the Attorney 

4 General and be subject to advance notification re5 quirements and a confidential review process similar 

6 to those required under section 7A of the Clayton 

7 Act (15 U.S.C. 18a). 

8 (9) Whether the Secretary should amend, mod9 ify, or revoke any exemption from the antitrust laws 

10 granted by the Secretary in connection with an 

11 international alliance. 

12 (10) The effect of international alliances on the 

13 number and quality of jobs for United States air 

14 carrier flight crew employees, including the share of 

15 alliance flying done by those employees. 

16 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

18 submit to the Secretary of Transportation, the Committee 

19 on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 

20 Representatives, and the Committee on Commerce, 

21 Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the 

22 results of the study under subsection (a), including any 

23 recommendations of the Comptroller General as to wheth24 er there should be changes in the authority of the Sec25 retary under title 49, United States Code, or policy 


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1 changes that the Secretary can implement administra2 tively, with respect to approving international alliances 

3 and granting exemptions from the antitrust laws in con4 nection with such international alliances. 

5 (d) ADOPTION OF RECOMMENDED POLICY

6 CHANGES.—Not later than one year after the date of re7 ceipt of the report under subsection (c), and after pro8 viding notice and an opportunity for public comment, the 

9 Secretary shall issue a written determination as to wheth10 er the Secretary will adopt the policy changes, if any, rec11 ommended by the Comptroller General in the report or 

12 make any other policy changes with respect to approving 

13 international alliances and granting exemptions from the 

14 antitrust laws in connection with such international alli15 ances. 

16 (e) SUNSET PROVISION.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—An exemption from the anti18 trust laws granted by the Secretary on or before the 

19 last day of the 3-year period beginning on the date 

20 of enactment of this Act in connection with an inter21 national alliance, including an exemption granted be22 fore the date of enactment of this Act, shall cease 

23 to be effective after such last day unless the exemp24 tion is renewed by the Secretary. 


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1 (2) TIMING FOR RENEWALS.—The Secretary 

2 may not renew an exemption under paragraph (1) 

3 before the date on which the Secretary issues a writ4 ten determination under subsection (d). 

5 (3) STANDARDS FOR RENEWALS.—The Sec6 retary shall make a decision on whether to renew an 

7 exemption under paragraph (1) based on the policies 

8 of the Department in effect after the Secretary 

9 issues a written determination under subsection (d). 

10 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi11 nitions apply: 

12 (1) EXEMPTION FROM THE ANTITRUST

13 LAWS.—The term ‘‘exemption from the antitrust 

14 laws’’ means an exemption from the antitrust laws 

15 granted by the Secretary under section 41308 of 

16 title 49, United States Code. 

17 (2) IMMUNIZED INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE.— 

18 The term ‘‘immunized international alliance’’ means 

19 an international alliance for which the Secretary has 

20 granted an exemption from the antitrust laws. 

21 (3) INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE.—The term 

22 ‘‘international alliance’’ means a cooperative agree23 ment between an air carrier and a foreign air carrier 

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1 proval or disapproval by the Secretary under section 

2 41309 of title 49, United States Code. 

3 (4) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

4 means the Department of Transportation. 

5 (5) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

6 the Secretary of Transportation. 

7 SEC. 427. MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 417 (as 

9 amended by this Act) is further amended by adding at 

10 the end the following: 

11 ‘‘§ 41725. Musical instruments 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.— 

13 ‘‘(1) INSTRUMENTS IN THE PASSENGER COM14 PARTMENT.—An air carrier providing air transpor15 tation shall permit a passenger to carry a musical 

16 instrument in the aircraft passenger compartment in 

17 a closet, baggage, or cargo stowage compartment ap18 proved by the Administrator without charge if— 

19 ‘‘(A) the instrument can be stowed in ac20 cordance with the requirements for carriage of 

21 carry-on baggage or cargo set forth by the Ad22 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administra23 tion; and 

24 ‘‘(B) there is space for such stowage on 

25 the aircraft. 


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1 ‘‘(2) LARGE INSTRUMENTS IN THE PASSENGER

2 COMPARTMENT.—An air carrier providing air trans3 portation shall permit a passenger to carry a musi4 cal instrument in the aircraft passenger compart5 ment that is too large to be secured in a closet, bag6 gage, or cargo stowage compartment approved by 

7 the Administrator, if— 

8 ‘‘(A) the instrument can be stowed in a 

9 seat, in accordance with the requirements for 

10 carriage of carry-on baggage or cargo set forth 

11 by the Administrator for such stowage; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the passenger wishing to carry the in13 strument in the aircraft cabin has purchased a 

14 seat to accommodate the instrument. 

15 ‘‘(3) INSTRUMENTS AS CHECKED BAGGAGE.— 

16 An air carrier shall transport as baggage a musical 

17 instrument that is the property of a passenger on a 

18 flight and that may not be carried in the aircraft 

19 passenger compartment if— 

20 ‘‘(A) the sum of the length, width, and 

21 height measured in inches of the outside linear 

22 dimensions of the instrument (including the 

23 case) does not exceed 150 inches and the size 

24 restrictions for that aircraft; 


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1 ‘‘(B) the weight of the instrument does not 

2 exceed 165 pounds and the weight restrictions 

3 for that aircraft; and 

4 ‘‘(C) the instrument can be stowed in ac5 cordance with the requirements for carriage of 

6 baggage or cargo set forth by the Administrator 

7 for such stowage. 

8 ‘‘(4) AIR CARRIER TERMS.—Nothing in this 

9 section shall be construed as prohibiting an air car10 rier from limiting its liability for carrying a musical 

11 instrument or requiring a passenger to purchase in12 surance to cover the value of a musical instrument 

13 transported by the air carrier. 

14 ‘‘(b) REGULATIONS.—The Secretary may prescribe 

15 such regulations as may be necessary or appropriate to 

16 implement subsection (a).’’. 

17 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

18 subchapter is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘41725. Musical instruments.’’. 

19 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

20 this section shall take effect 30 days after the date of en21 actment of this Act. 


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1 TITLE V—ENVIRONMENTAL 

2 STEWARDSHIP AND STREAM3 LINING 

4 SEC. 501. AMENDMENTS TO AIR TOUR MANAGEMENT PRO5 GRAM. 

6 Section 40128 is amended— 

7 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(C) by inserting ‘‘or vol8 untary agreement under subsection (b)(7)’’ before 

9 ‘‘for the park’’; 

10 (2) in subsection (a) by adding at the end the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(5) EXEMPTION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para14 graph (1), a national park that has 50 or fewer 

15 commercial air tour flights a year shall be ex16 empt from the requirements of this section, ex17 cept as provided in subparagraph (B). 

18 ‘‘(B) WITHDRAWAL OF EXEMPTION.—If 

19 the Director determines that an air tour man20 agement plan or voluntary agreement is nec21 essary to protect park resources and values or 

22 park visitor use and enjoyment, the Director 

23 shall withdraw the exemption of a park under 

24 subparagraph (A). 


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1 ‘‘(C) LIST OF PARKS.—The Director shall 

2 inform the Administrator, in writing, of each 

3 determination under subparagraph (B). The Di4 rector and Administrator shall publish an an5 nual list of national parks that are covered by 

6 the exemption provided by this paragraph. 

7 ‘‘(D) ANNUAL REPORT.—A commercial air 

8 tour operator conducting commercial air tours 

9 in a national park that is exempt from the re10 quirements of this section shall submit to the 

11 Administrator and the Director an annual re12 port regarding the number of commercial air 

13 tour flights it conducts each year in such 

14 park.’’; 

15 (3) in subsection (b) by adding at the end the 

16 following: 

17 ‘‘(7) VOLUNTARY AGREEMENTS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—As an alternative to 

19 an air tour management plan, the Director and 

20 the Administrator may enter into a voluntary 

21 agreement with a commercial air tour operator 

22 (including a new entrant applicant and an oper23 ator that has interim operating authority) that 

24 has applied to conduct air tour operations over 


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1 a national park to manage commercial air tour 

2 operations over such national park. 

3 ‘‘(B) PARK PROTECTION.—A voluntary 

4 agreement under this paragraph with respect to 

5 commercial air tour operations over a national 

6 park shall address the management issues nec7 essary to protect the resources of such park and 

8 visitor use of such park without compromising 

9 aviation safety or the air traffic control system 

10 and may— 

11 ‘‘(i) include provisions such as those 

12 described in subparagraphs (B) through 

13 (E) of paragraph (3); 

14 ‘‘(ii) include provisions to ensure the 

15 stability of, and compliance with, the vol16 untary agreement; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) provide for fees for such oper18 ations. 

19 ‘‘(C) PUBLIC.—The Director and the Ad20 ministrator shall provide an opportunity for 

21 public review of a proposed voluntary agree22 ment under this paragraph and shall consult 

23 with any Indian tribe whose tribal lands are, or 

24 may be, flown over by a commercial air tour op25 erator under a voluntary agreement under this 


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1 paragraph. After such opportunity for public re2 view and consultation, the voluntary agreement 

3 may be implemented without further adminis4 trative or environmental process beyond that 

5 described in this subsection. 

6 ‘‘(D) TERMINATION.—A voluntary agree7 ment under this paragraph may be terminated 

8 at any time at the discretion of the Director or 

9 the Administrator if the Director determines 

10 that the agreement is not adequately protecting 

11 park resources or visitor experiences or the Ad12 ministrator determines that the agreement is 

13 adversely affecting aviation safety or the na14 tional aviation system. If a voluntary agreement 

15 for a national park is terminated, the operators 

16 shall conform to the requirements for interim 

17 operating authority under subsection (c) until 

18 an air tour management plan for the park is in 

19 effect.’’; 

20 (4) in subsection (c) by striking paragraph 

21 (2)(I) and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(I) may allow for modifications of the in23 terim operating authority without further envi24 ronmental review beyond that described in this 

25 section if— 


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1 ‘‘(i) adequate information regarding 

2 the operator’s existing and proposed oper3 ations under the interim operating author4 ity is provided to the Administrator and 

5 the Director; 

6 ‘‘(ii) the Administrator determines 

7 that there would be no adverse impact on 

8 aviation safety or the air traffic control 

9 system; and 

10 ‘‘(iii) the Director agrees with the 

11 modification, based on the Director’s pro12 fessional expertise regarding the protection 

13 of the park resources and values and vis14 itor use and enjoyment.’’; 

15 (5) in subsection (c)(3)(A) by striking ‘‘if the 

16 Administrator determines’’ and all that follows 

17 through the period at the end and inserting ‘‘without 

18 further environmental process beyond that described 

19 in this paragraph if— 

20 ‘‘(i) adequate information on the oper21 ator’s proposed operations is provided to 

22 the Administrator and the Director by the 

23 operator making the request; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the Administrator agrees that 

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1 tion safety or the air traffic control sys2 tem; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) the Director agrees, based on 

4 the Director’s professional expertise re5 garding the protection of park resources 

6 and values and visitor use and enjoy7 ment.’’; 

8 (6) by redesignating subsections (d), (e), and 

9 (f) as subsections (e), (f), and (g), respectively; and 

10 (7) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(d) COMMERCIAL AIR TOUR OPERATOR RE13 PORTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) REPORT.—Each commercial air tour oper15 ator providing a commercial air tour over a national 

16 park under interim operating authority granted 

17 under subsection (c) or in accordance with an air 

18 tour management plan under subsection (b) shall 

19 submit a report to the Administrator and Director 

20 regarding the number of its commercial air tour op21 erations over each national park and such other in22 formation as the Administrator and Director may 

23 request in order to facilitate administering the provi24 sions of this section. 


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1 ‘‘(2) REPORT SUBMISSION.—Not later than 3 

2 months after the date of enactment of the FAA Re3 authorization Act of 2009, the Administrator and 

4 Director shall jointly issue an initial request for re5 ports under this subsection. The reports shall be 

6 submitted to the Administrator and Director on a 

7 frequency and in a format prescribed by the Admin8 istrator and Director.’’. 

9 SEC. 502. STATE BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM. 

10 (a) GENERAL REQUIREMENTS.—Section 47128(a) is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) in the first sentence by striking ‘‘prescribe 

13 regulations’’ and inserting ‘‘issue guidance’’; and 

14 (2) in the second sentence by striking ‘‘regula15 tions’’ and inserting ‘‘guidance’’. 

16 (b) APPLICATIONS AND SELECTION.—Section 

17 47128(b)(4) is amended by inserting before the semicolon 

18 the following: ‘‘, including the National Environmental 

19 Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), State and 

20 local environmental policy acts, Executive orders, agency 

21 regulations and guidance, and other Federal environ22 mental requirements’’. 

23 (c) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AND COORDINATION

24 REQUIREMENTS.—Section 47128 is amended by adding at 

25 the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) ENVIRONMENTAL ANALYSIS AND COORDINA2 TION REQUIREMENTS.—A Federal agency, other than the 

3 Federal Aviation Administration, that is responsible for 

4 issuing an approval, license, or permit to ensure compli5 ance with a Federal environmental requirement applicable 

6 to a project or activity to be carried out by a State using 

7 amounts from a block grant made under this section 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) coordinate and consult with the State; 

10 ‘‘(2) use the environmental analysis prepared by 

11 the State for the project or activity if such analysis 

12 is adequate; and 

13 ‘‘(3) supplement such analysis, as necessary, to 

14 meet applicable Federal requirements.’’. 

15 SEC. 503. AIRPORT FUNDING OF SPECIAL STUDIES OR RE16 VIEWS. 

17 Section 47173(a) is amended by striking ‘‘services of 

18 consultants in order to’’ and all that follows through the 

19 period at the end and inserting ‘‘services of consultants— 

20 ‘‘(1) to facilitate the timely processing, review, 

21 and completion of environmental activities associated 

22 with an airport development project; 

23 ‘‘(2) to conduct special environmental studies 

24 related to an airport project funded with Federal 

25 funds; 


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1 ‘‘(3) to conduct special studies or reviews to 

2 support approved noise compatibility measures de3 scribed in part 150 of title 14, Code of Federal Reg4 ulations; or 

5 ‘‘(4) to conduct special studies or reviews to 

6 support environmental mitigation in a record of deci7 sion or finding of no significant impact by the Fed8 eral Aviation Administration.’’. 

9 SEC. 504. GRANT ELIGIBILITY FOR ASSESSMENT OF FLIGHT 

10 PROCEDURES. 

11 Section 47504 is amended by adding at the end the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(e) GRANTS FOR ASSESSMENT OF FLIGHT PROCE14 DURES.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In accordance with sub16 section (c)(1), the Secretary may make a grant to an 

17 airport operator to assist in completing environ18 mental review and assessment activities for pro19 posals to implement flight procedures at such airport 

20 that have been approved as part of an airport noise 

21 compatibility program under subsection (b). 

22 ‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL STAFF.—The Administrator 

23 may accept funds from an airport operator, includ24 ing funds provided to the operator under paragraph 

25 (1), to hire additional staff or obtain the services of 


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1 consultants in order to facilitate the timely proc2 essing, review, and completion of environmental ac3 tivities associated with proposals to implement flight 

4 procedures at such airport that have been approved 

5 as part of an airport noise compatibility program 

6 under subsection (b). 

7 ‘‘(3) RECEIPTS CREDITED AS OFFSETTING COL8 LECTIONS.—Notwithstanding section 3302 of title 

9 31, any funds accepted under this section— 

10 ‘‘(A) shall be credited as offsetting collec11 tions to the account that finances the activities 

12 and services for which the funds are accepted; 

13 ‘‘(B) shall be available for expenditure only 

14 to pay the costs of activities and services for 

15 which the funds are accepted; and 

16 ‘‘(C) shall remain available until ex17 pended.’’. 

18 SEC. 505. DETERMINATION OF FAIR MARKET VALUE OF 

19 RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES. 

20 Section 47504 (as amended by this Act) is further 

21 amended by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(g) DETERMINATION OF FAIR MARKET VALUE OF

23 RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES.—In approving a project to 

24 acquire residential real property using financial assistance 

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1 retary shall ensure that the appraisal of the property to 

2 be acquired disregards any decrease or increase in the fair 

3 market value of the real property caused by the project 

4 for which the property is to be acquired, or by the likeli5 hood that the property would be acquired for the project, 

6 other than that due to physical deterioration within the 

7 reasonable control of the owner.’’. 

8 SEC. 506. SOUNDPROOFING OF RESIDENCES. 

9 (a) SOUNDPROOFING AND ACQUISITION OF CERTAIN

10 RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS AND PROPERTIES.—Section 

11 47504(c)(2)(D) is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(D) to an airport operator and unit of local 

13 government referred to in paragraph (1)(A) or 

14 (1)(B) to soundproof— 

15 ‘‘(i) a building in the noise impact area 

16 surrounding the airport that is used primarily 

17 for educational or medical purposes and that 

18 the Secretary decides is adversely affected by 

19 airport noise; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) residential buildings located on resi21 dential properties in the noise impact area sur22 rounding the airport that the Secretary decides 

23 is adversely affected by airport noise, if— 

24 ‘‘(I) the residential properties are 

25 within airport noise contours prepared by 


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1 the airport owner or operator using the 

2 Secretary’s methodology and guidance, and 

3 the noise contours have been found accept4 able by the Secretary; 

5 ‘‘(II) the residential properties cannot 

6 be removed from airport noise contours for 

7 at least a 5-year period by changes in air8 port configuration or flight procedures; 

9 ‘‘(III) the land use jurisdiction has 

10 taken, or will take, appropriate action, in11 cluding the adoption of zoning laws, to the 

12 extent reasonable to restrict the use of 

13 land to uses that are compatible with nor14 mal airport operations; and 

15 ‘‘(IV) the Secretary determines that 

16 the project is compatible with the purposes 

17 of this chapter; and’’ 

18 (b) REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO CERTAIN

19 GRANTS.—Section 44705 (as amended by this Act) is fur20 ther amended by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(f) REQUIREMENTS APPLICABLE TO CERTAIN

22 GRANTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT OF CRITERIA.—Before 

24 awarding a grant under subsection (c)(2)(D), the 

25 Secretary shall establish criteria to determine which 


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1 residences in the 65 DNL area suffer the greatest 

2 noise impact. 

3 ‘‘(2) ANALYSIS FROM COMPTROLLER GEN4 ERAL.—Prior to making a final decision on the cri5 teria required by paragraph (1), the Secretary shall 

6 develop proposed criteria and obtain an analysis 

7 from the Comptroller General as to the reasonable8 ness and validity of the criteria. 

9 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY.—If the Secretary determines 

10 that the grants likely to be awarded under sub11 section (c)(2)(D) in fiscal years 2010 though 2012 

12 will not be sufficient to soundproof all residences in 

13 the 65 DNL area, the Secretary shall first award 

14 grants to soundproof those residences suffering the 

15 greatest noise impact under the criteria established 

16 under paragraph (1).’’. 

17 SEC. 507. CLEEN RESEARCH, DEVELOPMENT, AND IMPLE18 MENTATION PARTNERSHIP. 

19 (a) COOPERATIVE AGREEMENT.—Subchapter I of 

20 chapter 475 is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘§ 47511. CLEEN research, development, and imple23 mentation partnership 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Fed25 eral Aviation Administration, in coordination with the AdVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00213 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 ministrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Admin2 istration, shall enter into a cooperative agreement, using 

3 a competitive process, with an institution, entity, or con4 sortium to carry out a program for the development, ma5 turing, and certification of CLEEN engine and airframe 

6 technology for aircraft over the next 10 years. 

7 ‘‘(b) CLEEN ENGINE AND AIRFRAME TECHNOLOGY

8 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘CLEEN engine and 

9 airframe technology’ means continuous lower energy, 

10 emissions, and noise engine and airframe technology. 

11 ‘‘(c) PERFORMANCE OBJECTIVE.—The Adminis12 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration, in coordina13 tion with the Administrator of the National Aeronautics 

14 and Space Administration, shall establish the following 

15 performance objectives for the program, to be achieved by 

16 September 30, 2016: 

17 ‘‘(1) Development of certifiable aircraft tech18 nology that reduces fuel burn by 33 percent com19 pared to current technology, reducing energy con20 sumption and greenhouse gas emissions. 

21 ‘‘(2) Development of certifiable engine tech22 nology that reduces landing and takeoff cycle nitro23 gen oxide emissions by 60 percent, at a pressure 

24 ratio of 30, over the International Civil Aviation Or25 ganization standard adopted at the 6th Meeting of 


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1 the Committee on Aviation Environmental Protec2 tion, with commensurate reductions over the full 

3 pressure ratio range, while limiting or reducing 

4 other gaseous or particle emissions. 

5 ‘‘(3) Development of certifiable aircraft tech6 nology that reduces noise levels by 32 Effective Per7 ceived Noise Level in Decibels cumulative, relative to 

8 Stage 4 standards. 

9 ‘‘(4) Determination of the feasibility of the use 

10 of alternative fuels in aircraft systems, including 

11 successful demonstration and quantification of the 

12 benefits of such fuels. 

13 ‘‘(5) Determination of the extent to which new 

14 engine and aircraft technologies may be used to ret15 rofit or re-engine aircraft to increase the integration 

16 of retrofitted and re-engined aircraft into the com17 mercial fleet. 

18 ‘‘(d) FUNDING.—Of amounts appropriated under sec19 tion 48102(a), not more than the following amounts may 

20 be used to carry out this section: 

21 ‘‘(1) $25,000,000 for fiscal year 2010. 

22 ‘‘(2) $33,000,000 for fiscal year 2011. 

23 ‘‘(3) $50,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

24 ‘‘(e) REPORT.—Beginning in fiscal year 2010, the 

25 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 


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1 shall publish an annual report on the program established 

2 under this section until completion of the program.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for such 

4 subchapter is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘47511. CLEEN research, development, and implementation partnership.’’. 

5 SEC. 508. PROHIBITION ON OPERATING CERTAIN AIRCRAFT 

6 WEIGHING 75,000 POUNDS OR LESS NOT COM7 PLYING WITH STAGE 3 NOISE LEVELS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 475 is 

9 amended by adding at the end the following: 

10 ‘‘§ 47534. Prohibition on operating certain aircraft 

11 weighing 75,000 pounds or less not com12 plying with stage 3 noise levels 

13 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—Except as provided in sub14 section (b), (c), or (d), after December 31, 2013, a person 

15 may not operate a civil subsonic jet airplane with a max16 imum weight of 75,000 pounds or less, and for which an 

17 airworthiness certificate (other than an experimental cer18 tificate) has been issued, to or from an airport in the 

19 United States unless the Secretary of Transportation 

20 finds that the aircraft complies with stage 3 noise levels. 

21 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

22 aircraft operated only outside the 48 contiguous States. 

23 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.—The Secretary may allow tem24 porary operation of an airplane otherwise prohibited from 

25 operation under subsection (a) to or from an airport in 


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1 the contiguous United States by granting a special flight 

2 authorization for one or more of the following cir3 cumstances: 

4 ‘‘(1) To sell, lease, or use the aircraft outside 

5 the 48 contiguous States. 

6 ‘‘(2) To scrap the aircraft. 

7 ‘‘(3) To obtain modifications to the aircraft to 

8 meet stage 3 noise levels. 

9 ‘‘(4) To perform scheduled heavy maintenance 

10 or significant modifications on the aircraft at a 

11 maintenance facility located in the contiguous 48 

12 States. 

13 ‘‘(5) To deliver the aircraft to an operator leas14 ing the aircraft from the owner or return the air15 craft to the lessor. 

16 ‘‘(6) To prepare, park, or store the aircraft in 

17 anticipation of any of the activities described in 

18 paragraphs (1) through (5). 

19 ‘‘(7) To provide transport of persons and goods 

20 in the relief of emergency situations. 

21 ‘‘(8) To divert the aircraft to an alternative air 

22 port in the 48 contiguous States on account of 

23 weather, mechanical, fuel, air traffic control, or 

24 other safety reasons while conducting a flight in 


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1 order to perform any of the activities described in 

2 paragraphs (1) through (7). 

3 ‘‘(d) STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the 

4 section may be construed as interfering with, nullifying, 

5 or otherwise affecting determinations made by the Federal 

6 Aviation Administration, or to be made by the Administra7 tion, with respect to applications under part 161 of title 

8 14, Code of Federal Regulations, that were pending on 

9 the date of enactment of this section.’’. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) Section 47531 is amended— 

12 (A) in the section heading by striking ‘‘for 

13 violating sections 47528–47530’’; and 

14 (B) by striking ‘‘47529, or 47530’’ and in15 serting ‘‘47529, 47530, or 47534’’. 

16 (2) Section 47532 is amended by inserting ‘‘or 

17 47534’’ after ‘‘47528–47531’’. 

18 (3) The analysis for chapter 475 is amended— 

19 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

20 47531 and inserting the following: 

‘‘47531. Penalties.’’; 

21 and 

22 (B) by inserting after the item relating to 

23 section 47533 the following: 

‘‘47534. Prohibition on operating certain aircraft weighing 75,000 pounds or 

less not complying with stage 3 noise levels.’’. 


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1 SEC. 509. ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION PILOT PROGRAM. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary of Transpor3 tation shall establish a pilot program to carry out not 

4 more than 6 environmental mitigation demonstration 

5 projects at public-use airports. 

6 (b) GRANTS.—In implementing the program, the Sec7 retary may make a grant to the sponsor of a public-use 

8 airport from funds apportioned under section 

9 47117(e)(1)(A) of title 49, United States Code, to carry 

10 out an environmental mitigation demonstration project to 

11 measurably reduce or mitigate aviation impacts on noise, 

12 air quality, or water quality in the vicinity of the airport. 

13 (c) ELIGIBILITY FOR PASSENGER FACILITY FEES.— 

14 An environmental mitigation demonstration project that 

15 receives funds made available under this section may be 

16 considered an eligible airport-related project for purposes 

17 of section 40117 of such title. 

18 (d) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In selecting among ap19 plicants for participation in the program, the Secretary 

20 shall give priority consideration to applicants proposing to 

21 carry out environmental mitigation demonstration projects 

22 that will— 

23 (1) achieve the greatest reductions in aircraft 

24 noise, airport emissions, or airport water quality im25 pacts either on an absolute basis or on a per dollar 

26 of funds expended basis; and 


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1 (2) be implemented by an eligible consortium. 

2 (e) FEDERAL SHARE.—Notwithstanding any provi3 sion of subchapter I of chapter 471 of such title, the 

4 United States Government share of allowable project costs 

5 of an environmental mitigation demonstration project car6 ried out under this section shall be 50 percent. 

7 (f) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—The Secretary may not 

8 make grants for a single environmental mitigation dem9 onstration project under this section in a total amount 

10 that exceeds $2,500,000. 

11 (g) PUBLICATION OF INFORMATION.—The Secretary 

12 may develop and publish information on the results of en13 vironmental mitigation demonstration projects carried out 

14 under this section, including information identifying best 

15 practices for reducing or mitigating aviation impacts on 

16 noise, air quality, or water quality in the vicinity of air17 ports. 

18 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi19 nitions apply: 

20 (1) ELIGIBLE CONSORTIUM.—The term ‘‘eligi21 ble consortium’’ means a consortium of 2 or more of 

22 the following entities: 

23 (A) A business incorporated in the United 

24 States. 


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1 (B) A public or private educational or re2 search organization located in the United 

3 States. 

4 (C) An entity of a State or local govern5 ment. 

6 (D) A Federal laboratory. 

7 (2) ENVIRONMENTAL MITIGATION DEMONSTRA8 TION PROJECT.—The term ‘‘environmental mitiga9 tion demonstration project’’ means a project that— 

10 (A) demonstrates at a public-use airport 

11 environmental mitigation techniques or tech12 nologies with associated benefits, which have al13 ready been proven in laboratory demonstra14 tions; 

15 (B) utilizes methods for efficient adapta16 tion or integration of innovative concepts to air17 port operations; and 

18 (C) demonstrates whether a technique or 

19 technology for environmental mitigation identi20 fied in research is— 

21 (i) practical to implement at or near 

22 multiple public-use airports; and 

23 (ii) capable of reducing noise, airport 

24 emissions, greenhouse gas emissions, or 


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1 water quality impacts in measurably sig2 nificant amounts. 

3 SEC. 510. AIRCRAFT DEPARTURE QUEUE MANAGEMENT 

4 PILOT PROGRAM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transportation 

6 shall carry out a pilot program at not more than 5 public7 use airports under which the Federal Aviation Administra8 tion shall use funds made available under section 48101(a) 

9 to test air traffic flow management tools, methodologies, 

10 and procedures that will allow air traffic controllers of the 

11 Administration to better manage the flow of aircraft on 

12 the ground and reduce the length of ground holds and 

13 idling time for aircraft. 

14 (b) SELECTION CRITERIA.—In selecting from among 

15 airports at which to conduct the pilot program, the Sec16 retary shall give priority consideration to airports at which 

17 improvements in ground control efficiencies are likely to 

18 achieve the greatest fuel savings or air quality or other 

19 environmental benefits, as measured by the amount of re20 duced fuel, reduced emissions, or other environmental ben21 efits per dollar of funds expended under the pilot program. 

22 (c) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—Not more than a total of 

23 $5,000,000 may be expended under the pilot program at 

24 any single public-use airport. 


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1 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 3 years 

2 after the date of the enactment of this section, the Sec3 retary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

4 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 

5 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

6 of the Senate a report containing— 

7 (1) an evaluation of the effectiveness of the 

8 pilot program, including an assessment of the tools, 

9 methodologies, and procedures that provided the 

10 greatest fuel savings and air quality and other envi11 ronmental benefits, and any impacts on safety, ca12 pacity, or efficiency of the air traffic control system 

13 or the airports at which affected aircraft were oper14 ating; 

15 (2) an identification of anticipated benefits 

16 from implementation of the tools, methodologies, 

17 and procedures developed under the pilot program at 

18 other airports; 

19 (3) a plan for implementing the tools, meth20 odologies, and procedures developed under the pilot 

21 program at other airports or the Secretary’s reasons 

22 for not implementing such measures at other air23 ports; and 

24 (4) such other information as the Secretary 

25 considers appropriate. 


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1 SEC. 511. HIGH PERFORMANCE AND SUSTAINABLE AIR 

2 TRAFFIC CONTROL FACILITIES. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of the Federal 

4 Aviation Administration shall implement, to the maximum 

5 extent practicable, sustainable practices for the incorpora6 tion of energy-efficient design, equipment, systems, and 

7 other measures in the construction and major renovation 

8 of air traffic control facilities of the Administration in 

9 order to reduce energy consumption and improve the envi10 ronmental performance of such facilities. 

11 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—Of amounts appropriated 

12 under section 48101(a) of title 49, United States Code, 

13 such sums as may be necessary may be used to carry out 

14 this section. 

15 SEC. 512. REGULATORY RESPONSIBILITY FOR AIRCRAFT 

16 ENGINE NOISE AND EMISSIONS STANDARDS. 

17 (a) INDEPENDENT REVIEW.—The Administrator of 

18 the FAA shall make appropriate arrangements for the Na19 tional Academy of Public Administration or another quali20 fied independent entity to review, in consultation with the 

21 FAA and the EPA, whether it is desirable to locate the 

22 regulatory responsibility for the establishment of engine 

23 noise and emissions standards for civil aircraft within one 

24 of the agencies. 

25 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—The review shall be con26 ducted so as to take into account— 


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1 (1) the interrelationships between aircraft en2 gine noise and emissions; 

3 (2) the need for aircraft engine noise and emis4 sions to be evaluated and addressed in an integrated 

5 and comprehensive manner; 

6 (3) the scientific expertise of the FAA and the 

7 EPA to evaluate aircraft engine emissions and noise 

8 impacts on the environment; 

9 (4) expertise to interface environmental per10 formance with ensuring the highest safe and reliable 

11 engine performance of aircraft in flight; 

12 (5) consistency of the regulatory responsibility 

13 with other missions of the FAA and the EPA; 

14 (6) past effectiveness of the FAA and the EPA 

15 in carrying out the aviation environmental respon16 sibilities assigned to the agency; and 

17 (7) the international responsibility to represent 

18 the United States with respect to both engine noise 

19 and emissions standards for civil aircraft. 

20 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 6 

21 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad22 ministrator of the FAA shall submit to Congress a report 

23 on the results of the review. The report shall include any 

24 recommendations developed as a result of the review and, 

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1 tion of the steps and timeline for implementation of the 

2 transfer. 

3 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi4 nitions apply: 

5 (1) EPA.—The term ‘‘EPA’’ means the Envi6 ronmental Protection Agency. 

7 (2) FAA.—The term ‘‘FAA’’ means the Fed8 eral Aviation Administration. 

9 SEC. 513. CABIN AIR QUALITY TECHNOLOGY. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

11 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

12 Federal Aviation Administration shall initiate research 

13 and development work on effective air cleaning and sensor 

14 technology for the engine and auxiliary power unit for 

15 bleed air supplied to the passenger cabin and flight deck 

16 of a pressurized aircraft. 

17 (b) TECHNOLOGY REQUIREMENTS.—The technology 

18 should, at a minimum, be capable of— 

19 (1) removing oil-based contaminants from the 

20 bleed air supplied to the passenger cabin and flight 

21 deck; and 

22 (2) detecting and recording oil-based contami23 nants in the bleed air fraction of the total air sup24 plied to the passenger cabin and flight deck. 


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1 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 3 years after the date 

2 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall transmit 

3 to Congress a report on the results of the research and 

4 development work carried out under this section. 

5 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

6 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec7 essary to carry out this section. 

8 SEC. 514. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

9 It is the sense of Congress that— 

10 (1) the European Union directive extending the 

11 European Union’s emissions trading proposal to 

12 international civil aviation without working through 

13 the International Civil Aviation Organization (in this 

14 section referred to as the ‘‘ICAO’’) in a consensus15 based fashion is inconsistent with the Convention on 

16 International Civil Aviation, done at Chicago on De17 cember 7, 1944 (TIAS 1591; commonly known as 

18 ‘‘Chicago Convention’’), and other relevant air serv19 ices agreements and antithetical to building inter20 national cooperation to address effectively the prob21 lem of greenhouse gas emissions by aircraft engaged 

22 in international civil aviation; and 

23 (2) the European Union and its member states 

24 should instead work with other contracting states of 

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1 dressing aircraft greenhouse gas emissions through 

2 the ICAO. 

3 SEC. 515. AIRPORT NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING 

4 STUDY, PORT AUTHORITY OF NEW YORK AND 

5 NEW JERSEY. 

6 It is the sense of the House of Representatives that 

7 the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey should 

8 undertake an airport noise compatibility planning study 

9 under part 150 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, 

10 for the airports that the Port Authority operates as of No11 vember 2, 2009. In undertaking the study, the Port Au12 thority should pay particular attention to the impact of 

13 noise on affected neighborhoods, including homes, busi14 nesses, and places of worship surrounding LaGuardia Air15 port, Newark Liberty Airport, and JFK Airport. 

16 SEC. 516. GAO STUDY ON COMPLIANCE WITH FAA RECORD 

17 OF DECISION. 

18 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

19 a study to determine whether the Federal Aviation Admin20 istration and the Massachusetts Port Authority are com21 plying with the requirements of the Federal Aviation Ad22 ministration’s record of decision dated August 2, 2002. 

23 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

24 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

25 submit to Congress a report on the results of the study. 


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1 SEC. 517. WESTCHESTER COUNTY AIRPORT, NEW YORK. 

2 (a) RULEMAKING.—The Administrator of the Fed3 eral Aviation Administration shall conduct a rulemaking 

4 proceeding to determine whether Westchester County Air5 port should be authorized to limit aircraft operations be6 tween the hours of 12 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. 

7 (b) DEADLINES.—The Administrator shall— 

8 (1) not later than 180 days after the date of 

9 enactment of this Act, issue a notice of proposed 

10 rulemaking under subsection (a); and 

11 (2) not later than 16 months after the close of 

12 the comment period on the proposed rule, issue a 

13 final rule. 

14 SEC. 518. AVIATION NOISE COMPLAINTS. 

15 (a) TELEPHONE NUMBER POSTING.—Not later than 

16 3 months after the date of enactment of this Act, each 

17 owner or operator of a large hub airport (as defined in 

18 section 40102(a) of title 49, United States Code) shall 

19 publish on an Internet Web site of the airport a telephone 

20 number to receive aviation noise complaints related to the 

21 airport. 

22 (b) SUMMARIES AND REPORTS.—Not later than one 

23 year after the last day of the 3-month period referred to 

24 in subsection (a), and annually thereafter, an owner or 

25 operator that receives one or more noise complaints under 

26 subsection (a) shall submit to the Administrator of the 


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1 Federal Aviation Administration a report regarding the 

2 number of complaints received and a summary regarding 

3 the nature of such complaints. The Administrator shall 

4 make such information available to the public by print and 

5 electronic means. 

6 TITLE VI—FAA EMPLOYEES AND 

7 ORGANIZATION 

8 SEC. 601. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION PER9 SONNEL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM. 

10 (a) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.—Section 40122(a) is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

13 paragraphs (5) and (6), respectively; and 

14 (2) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

15 following: 

16 ‘‘(2) DISPUTE RESOLUTION.— 

17 ‘‘(A) MEDIATION.—If the Administrator 

18 does not reach an agreement under paragraph 

19 (1) or the provisions referred to in subsection 

20 (g)(2)(C) with the exclusive bargaining rep21 resentative of the employees, the Administrator 

22 and the bargaining representative— 

23 ‘‘(i) shall use the services of the Fed24 eral Mediation and Conciliation Service to 

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1 cordance with part 1425 of title 29, Code 

2 of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the 

3 date of enactment of the FAA Reauthor4 ization Act of 2009); or 

5 ‘‘(ii) may by mutual agreement adopt 

6 alternative procedures for the resolution of 

7 disputes or impasses arising in the negotia8 tion of the collective-bargaining agreement. 

9 ‘‘(B) BINDING ARBITRATION.— 

10 ‘‘(i) ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL

11 SERVICE IMPASSES PANEL.—If the services 

12 of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation 

13 Service under subparagraph (A)(i) do not 

14 lead to an agreement, the Administrator 

15 and the exclusive bargaining representative 

16 of the employees (in this subparagraph re17 ferred to as the ‘parties’) shall submit 

18 their issues in controversy to the Federal 

19 Service Impasses Panel. The Panel shall 

20 assist the parties in resolving the impasse 

21 by asserting jurisdiction and ordering bind22 ing arbitration by a private arbitration 

23 board consisting of 3 members. 

24 ‘‘(ii) APPOINTMENT OF ARBITRATION

25 BOARD.—The Executive Director of the 


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1 Panel shall provide for the appointment of 

2 the 3 members of a private arbitration 

3 board under clause (i) by requesting the 

4 Director of the Federal Mediation and 

5 Conciliation Service to prepare a list of not 

6 less than 15 names of arbitrators with 

7 Federal sector experience and by providing 

8 the list to the parties. Within 10 days of 

9 receiving the list, the parties shall each se10 lect one person from the list. The 2 arbi11 trators selected by the parties shall then 

12 select a third person from the list within 7 

13 days. If either of the parties fails to select 

14 a person or if the 2 arbitrators are unable 

15 to agree on the third person within 7 days, 

16 the parties shall make the selection by al17 ternately striking names on the list until 

18 one arbitrator remains. 

19 ‘‘(iii) FRAMING ISSUES IN CON20 TROVERSY.—If the parties do not agree on 

21 the framing of the issues to be submitted 

22 for arbitration, the arbitration board shall 

23 frame the issues. 

24 ‘‘(iv) HEARINGS.—The arbitration 

25 board shall give the parties a full and fair 


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1 hearing, including an opportunity to 

2 present evidence in support of their claims 

3 and an opportunity to present their case in 

4 person, by counsel, or by other representa5 tive as they may elect. 

6 ‘‘(v) DECISIONS.—The arbitration 

7 board shall render its decision within 90 

8 days after the date of its appointment. De9 cisions of the arbitration board shall be 

10 conclusive and binding upon the parties. 

11 ‘‘(vi) COSTS.—The parties shall share 

12 costs of the arbitration equally. 

13 ‘‘(3) RATIFICATION OF AGREEMENTS.—Upon 

14 reaching a voluntary agreement or at the conclusion 

15 of the binding arbitration under paragraph (2)(B), 

16 the final agreement, except for those matters de17 cided by an arbitration board, shall be subject to 

18 ratification by the exclusive bargaining representa19 tive of the employees, if so requested by the bar20 gaining representative, and approval by the head of 

21 the agency in accordance with the provisions re22 ferred to in subsection (g)(2)(C). 

23 ‘‘(4) ENFORCEMENT.— 

24 ‘‘(A) ENFORCEMENT ACTIONS IN UNITED

25 STATES COURTS.—Each United States district 


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1 court and each United States court of a place 

2 subject to the jurisdiction of the United States 

3 shall have jurisdiction of enforcement actions 

4 brought under this section. Such an action may 

5 be brought in any judicial district in the State 

6 in which the violation of this section is alleged 

7 to have been committed, the judicial district in 

8 which the Federal Aviation Administration has 

9 its principal office, or the District of Columbia. 

10 ‘‘(B) ATTORNEY FEES.—The court may 

11 assess against the Federal Aviation Administra12 tion reasonable attorney fees and other litiga13 tion costs reasonably incurred in any case 

14 under this section in which the complainant has 

15 substantially prevailed.’’. 

16 (b) APPLICATION.—On and after the date of enact17 ment of this Act, any changes implemented by the Admin18 istrator of the Federal Aviation Administration on and 

19 after July 10, 2005, under section 40122(a) of title 49, 

20 United States Code (as in effect on the day before such 

21 date of enactment), without the agreement of the exclusive 

22 bargaining representative of the employees of the Adminis23 tration certified under section 7111 of title 5, United 

24 States Code, shall be null and void and the parties shall 

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1 plementation of such changes. The Administrator and the 

2 bargaining representative shall resume negotiations 

3 promptly, and, subject to subsection (c), their last mutual 

4 agreement shall be in effect until a new contract is adopt5 ed by the Administrator and the bargaining representa6 tive. If an agreement is not reached within 45 days after 

7 the date on which negotiations resume, the Administrator 

8 and the bargaining representative shall submit their issues 

9 in controversy to the Federal Service Impasses Panel in 

10 accordance with section 7119 of title 5, United States 

11 Code, for binding arbitration in accordance with para12 graphs (2)(B), (3), and (4) of section 40122(a) of title 

13 49, United States Code (as amended by subsection (a) of 

14 this section). 

15 (c) SAVINGS CLAUSE.—All cost of living adjustments 

16 and other pay increases, lump sum payments to employ17 ees, and leave and other benefit accruals implemented as 

18 part of the changes referred to in subsection (b) may not 

19 be reversed unless such reversal is part of the calculation 

20 of back pay under subsection (d). The Administrator shall 

21 waive any overpayment paid to, and not collect any funds 

22 for such overpayment, from former employees of the Ad23 ministration who received lump sum payments prior to 

24 their separation from the Administration. 

25 (d) BACK PAY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Employees subject to 

2 changes referred to in subsection (b) that are deter3 mined to be null and void under subsection (b) shall 

4 be eligible for pay that the employees would have re5 ceived under the last mutual agreement between the 

6 Administrator and the exclusive bargaining rep7 resentative of such employees before the date of en8 actment of this Act and any changes were imple9 mented without agreement of the bargaining rep10 resentative. The Administrator shall pay the employ11 ees such pay subject to the availability of amounts 

12 appropriated to carry out this subsection. If the ap13 propriated funds do not cover all claims of the em14 ployees for such pay, the Administrator and the bar15 gaining representative, pursuant to negotiations con16 ducted in accordance with section 40122(a) of title 

17 49, United States Code (as amended by subsection 

18 (a) of this section), shall determine the allocation of 

19 the appropriated funds among the employees on a 

20 pro rata basis. 

21 (2) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.— 

22 There is authorized to be appropriated $20,000,000 

23 to carry out this subsection. 

24 (e) INTERIM AGREEMENT.—If the Administrator and 

25 the exclusive bargaining representative of the employees 


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1 subject to the changes referred to in subsection (b) reach 

2 a final and binding agreement with respect to such 

3 changes before the date of enactment of this Act, such 

4 agreement shall supersede any changes implemented by 

5 the Administrator under section 40122(a) of title 49, 

6 United States Code (as in effect on the day before such 

7 date of enactment), without the agreement of the bar8 gaining representative, and subsections (b) and (c) shall 

9 not take effect. 

10 SEC. 602. MERIT SYSTEM PRINCIPLES AND PROHIBITED 

11 PERSONNEL PRACTICES. 

12 Section 40122(g)(2)(A) is amended to read as fol13 lows: 

14 ‘‘(A) sections 2301 and 2302, relating to 

15 merit system principles and prohibited per16 sonnel practices, including the provisions for in17 vestigation and enforcement as provided in 

18 chapter 12 of title 5;’’. 

19 SEC. 603. APPLICABILITY OF BACK PAY REQUIREMENTS. 

20 (a) APPLICABILITY OF BACK PAY REQUIREMENTS.— 

21 Section 40122(g)(2) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara23 graph (G); 

24 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub25 paragraph (H) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 


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

2 ‘‘(I) section 5596, relating to back pay.’’. 

3 (b) APPLICABILITY.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by 

5 subsection (a) shall apply to— 

6 (A) all proceedings pending on, or com7 menced after, the date of enactment of this Act 

8 in which an employee of the Federal Aviation 

9 Administration is seeking relief under section 

10 5596 of title 5, United States Code, that was 

11 available as of March 31, 1996; and 

12 (B) subject to paragraph (2), personnel ac13 tions of the Federal Aviation Administration 

14 under section 5596 of such title occurring be15 fore the date of enactment of this Act. 

16 (2) SPECIAL RULE.—The authority of the Merit 

17 Systems Protection Board to provide a remedy 

18 under section 5596 of such title, with respect to a 

19 personnel action of the Federal Aviation Administra20 tion occurring before the date of enactment of this 

21 Act, shall be limited to cases in which— 

22 (A) the Board, before such date of enact23 ment, found that the Federal Aviation Adminis24 tration committed an unjustified or unwar25 ranted personnel action but ruled that the 


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1 Board did not have the authority to provide a 

2 remedy for the personnel action under section 

3 5596 of such title; and 

4 (B) a petition for review is filed with the 

5 clerk of the Board not later than 6 months 

6 after such date of enactment. 

7 SEC. 604. FAA TECHNICAL TRAINING AND STAFFING. 

8 (a) STUDY.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

10 shall conduct a study on the training of the airway 

11 transportation systems specialists of the Federal 

12 Aviation Administration (in this section referred to 

13 as ‘‘FAA systems specialists’’). 

14 (2) CONTENTS.—The study shall— 

15 (A) include an analysis of the type of 

16 training provided to FAA systems specialists; 

17 (B) include an analysis of the type of 

18 training that FAA systems specialists need to 

19 be proficient on the maintenance of latest tech20 nologies; 

21 (C) include a description of actions that 

22 the Administration has undertaken to ensure 

23 that FAA systems specialists receive up-to-date 

24 training on the latest technologies; 


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1 (D) identify the amount and cost of FAA 

2 systems specialists training provided by ven3 dors; 

4 (E) identify the amount and cost of FAA 

5 systems specialists training provided by the Ad6 ministration after developing courses for the 

7 training of such specialists; 

8 (F) identify the amount and cost of travel 

9 that is required of FAA systems specialists in 

10 receiving training; and 

11 (G) include a recommendation regarding 

12 the most cost-effective approach to providing 

13 FAA systems specialists training. 

14 (3) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

15 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller Gen16 eral shall submit to the Committee on Transpor17 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent18 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

19 and Transportation of the Senate a report on the re20 sults of the study. 

21 (b) WORKLOAD OF SYSTEMS SPECIALISTS.— 

22 (1) STUDY BY NATIONAL ACADEMY OF

23 SCIENCES.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 

24 enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Fed25 eral Aviation Administration shall make appropriate 


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1 arrangements for the National Academy of Sciences 

2 to conduct a study of the assumptions and methods 

3 used by the Federal Aviation Administration to esti4 mate staffing needs for FAA systems specialists to 

5 ensure proper maintenance and certification of the 

6 national airspace system. 

7 (2) CONTENTS.—The study shall be conducted 

8 so as to provide the following: 

9 (A) A suggested method of modifying FAA 

10 systems specialists staffing models for applica11 tion to current local conditions or applying 

12 some other approach to developing an objective 

13 staffing standard. 

14 (B) The approximate cost and length of 

15 time for developing such models. 

16 (3) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study, 

17 the National Academy of Sciences shall consult with 

18 the exclusive bargaining representative of employees 

19 of the Federal Aviation Administration certified 

20 under section 7111 of title 5, United States Code, 

21 and the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad22 ministration. 

23 (4) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the 

24 initiation of the arrangements under subsection (a), 


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1 the National Academy of Sciences shall submit to 

2 Congress a report on the results of the study. 

3 SEC. 605. DESIGNEE PROGRAM. 

4 (a) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

5 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

6 shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and In7 frastructure of the House of Representatives and the Com8 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

9 Senate a report on the status of recommendations made 

10 by the Government Accountability Office in its October 

11 2004 report, ‘‘Aviation Safety: FAA Needs to Strengthen 

12 Management of Its Designee Programs’’ (GAO–05–40). 

13 (b) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 

14 (1) an assessment of the extent to which the 

15 Federal Aviation Administration has responded to 

16 recommendations of the Government Accountability 

17 Office referred to in subsection (a); 

18 (2) an identification of improvements, if any, 

19 that have been made to the designee programs re20 ferred to in the report of the Office as a result of 

21 such recommendations; 

22 (3) an identification of further action that is 

23 needed to implement such recommendations, im24 prove the Administration’s management control of 

25 the designee programs, and increase assurance that 


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1 designees meet the Administration’s performance 

2 standards; and 

3 (4) an assessment of the Administration’s orga4 nizational delegation and designee programs and a 

5 determination as to whether the Administration has 

6 sufficient monitoring and surveillance programs in 

7 place to properly oversee these programs. 

8 SEC. 606. STAFFING MODEL FOR AVIATION SAFETY INSPEC9 TORS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than October 31, 2009, 

11 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

12 shall develop a staffing model for aviation safety inspec13 tors. In developing the model, the Administrator shall fol14 low the recommendations outlined in the 2007 study re15 leased by the National Academy of Sciences entitled 

16 ‘‘Staffing Standards for Aviation Safety Inspectors’’ and 

17 consult with interested persons, including the exclusive 

18 collective bargaining representative of the aviation safety 

19 inspectors. 

20 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

22 necessary to carry out this section. 

23 SEC. 607. SAFETY CRITICAL STAFFING. 

24 (a) SAFETY INSPECTORS.—The Administrator of the 

25 Federal Aviation Administration shall increase the number 


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1 of safety critical positions in the Flight Standards Service 

2 and Aircraft Certification Service for a fiscal year com3 mensurate with the funding levels provided in subsection 

4 (b) for the fiscal year. Such increases shall be measured 

5 relative to the number of persons serving in safety critical 

6 positions as of September 30, 2008. 

7 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi8 tion to amounts authorized by section 106(k) of title 49, 

9 United States Code, there is authorized to be appropriated 

10 to carry out subsection (a)— 

11 (1) $45,000,000 for fiscal year 2010; 

12 (2) $138,000,000 for fiscal year 2011; and 

13 (3) $235,000,000 for fiscal year 2012. 

14 Such sums shall remain available until expended. 

15 (c) IMPLEMENTATION OF STAFFING STANDARDS.— 

16 Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, upon 

17 completion of the flight standards service staffing model 

18 under section 605 of this Act, and validation of the model 

19 by the Administrator, there are authorized to be appro20 priated such sums as may be necessary to support the 

21 number of aviation safety inspectors, safety technical spe22 cialists, and operation support positions that such model 

23 determines are required to meet the responsibilities of the 

24 Flight Standards Service. 


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1 (d) SAFETY CRITICAL POSITIONS DEFINED.—In this 

2 section, the term ‘‘safety critical positions’’ means— 

3 (1) aviation safety inspectors, safety technical 

4 specialists, and operations support positions in the 

5 Flight Standards Service (as such terms are used in 

6 the Administration’s fiscal year 2009 congressional 

7 budget justification); and 

8 (2) manufacturing safety inspectors, pilots, en9 gineers, Chief Scientist Technical Advisors, safety 

10 technical specialists, and operational support posi11 tions in the Aircraft Certification Service (as such 

12 terms are used in the Administration’s fiscal year 

13 2009 congressional budget justification). 

14 SEC. 608. FAA AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER STAFFING. 

15 (a) STUDY BY NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES.— 

16 Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 

17 Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis18 tration shall enter into appropriate arrangements with the 

19 National Academy of Sciences to conduct a study of the 

20 assumptions and methods used by the Federal Aviation 

21 Administration (in this section referred to as the ‘‘FAA’’) 

22 to estimate staffing needs for FAA air traffic controllers 

23 to ensure the safe operation of the national airspace sys24 tem. 


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1 (b) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study, the 

2 National Academy of Sciences shall consult with the exclu3 sive bargaining representative of employees of the FAA 

4 certified under section 7111 of title 5, United States Code, 

5 the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, 

6 and representatives of the Civil Aeronautical Medical In7 stitute. 

8 (c) CONTENTS.—The study shall include an examina9 tion of representative information on human factors, traf10 fic activity, and the technology and equipment used in air 

11 traffic control. 

12 (d) RECOMMENDATIONS AND ESTIMATES.—In con13 ducting the study, the National Academy of Sciences shall 

14 develop— 

15 (1) recommendations for the development by 

16 the FAA of objective staffing standards to maintain 

17 the safety and efficiency of the national airspace sys18 tem with current and future projected air traffic lev19 els; and 

20 (2) estimates of cost and schedule for the devel21 opment of such standards by the FAA or its con22 tractors. 

23 (e) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

24 date of enactment of this Act, the National Academy of 

25 Sciences shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 


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1 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 

2 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

3 of the Senate a report on the results of the study. 

4 SEC. 609. ASSESSMENT OF TRAINING PROGRAMS FOR AIR 

5 TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia7 tion Administration shall conduct a study to assess the 

8 adequacy of training programs for air traffic controllers. 

9 (b) CONTENTS.—The study shall include— 

10 (1) a review of the current training system for 

11 air traffic controllers; 

12 (2) an analysis of the competencies required of 

13 air traffic controllers for successful performance in 

14 the current air traffic control environment; 

15 (3) an analysis of competencies required of air 

16 traffic controllers as the Federal Aviation Adminis17 tration transitions to the Next Generation Air 

18 Transportation System; and 

19 (4) an analysis of various training approaches 

20 available to satisfy the controller competencies iden21 tified under paragraphs (2) and (3). 

22 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

24 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

25 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 


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1 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

2 report on the results of the study. 

3 SEC. 610. COLLEGIATE TRAINING INITIATIVE STUDY. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia5 tion Administration shall conduct a study on training op6 tions for graduates of the Collegiate Training Initiative 

7 program conducted under section 44506(c) of title 49 

8 United States Code. The study shall analyze the impact 

9 of providing as an alternative to the current training pro10 vided at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center of the 

11 Administration a new controller orientation session for 

12 graduates of such programs at the Mike Monroney Aero13 nautical Center followed by on-the-job training for newly 

14 hired air traffic controllers who are graduates of such pro15 gram and shall include— 

16 (1) the cost effectiveness of such an alternative 

17 training approach; and 

18 (2) the effect that such an alternative training 

19 approach would have on the overall quality of train20 ing received by graduates of such programs. 

21 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

23 to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

24 of the House of Representatives and to the Committee on 


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1 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a 

2 report on the results of the study. 

3 SEC. 611. FAA TASK FORCE ON AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL FA4 CILITY CONDITIONS. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator of the 

6 Federal Aviation Administration shall establish a special 

7 task force to be known as the ‘‘FAA Task Force on Air 

8 Traffic Control Facility Conditions’’ (in this section re9 ferred to as the ‘‘Task Force’’). 

10 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 

11 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Task Force shall be 

12 composed of 12 members of whom— 

13 (A) 8 members shall be appointed by the 

14 Administrator; and 

15 (B) 4 members shall be appointed by labor 

16 unions representing employees who work at 

17 field facilities of the Administration. 

18 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Of the members ap19 pointed by the Administrator under paragraph 

20 (1)(A)— 

21 (A) 4 members shall be specialists on toxic 

22 mold abatement, ‘‘sick building syndrome,’’ and 

23 other hazardous building conditions that can 

24 lead to employee health concerns and shall be 

25 appointed by the Administrator in consultation 


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1 with the Director of the National Institute for 

2 Occupational Safety and Health; and 

3 (B) 2 members shall be specialists on the 

4 rehabilitation of aging buildings. 

5 (3) TERMS.—Members shall be appointed for 

6 the life of the Task Force. 

7 (4) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Task Force 

8 shall be filled in the manner in which the original 

9 appointment was made. 

10 (5) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Members shall serve 

11 without pay but shall receive travel expenses, includ12 ing per diem in lieu of subsistence, in accordance 

13 with subchapter I of chapter 57 of title 5, United 

14 States Code. 

15 (c) CHAIRPERSON.—The Administrator shall des16 ignate, from among the individuals appointed under sub17 section (b)(1), an individual to serve as chairperson of the 

18 Task Force. 

19 (d) TASK FORCE PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

20 (1) STAFF.—The Task Force may appoint and 

21 fix the pay of such personnel as it considers appro22 priate. 

23 (2) STAFF OF FEDERAL AGENCIES.—Upon re24 quest of the Chairperson of the Task Force, the 

25 head of any department or agency of the United 


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1 States may detail, on a reimbursable basis, any of 

2 the personnel of that department or agency to the 

3 Task Force to assist it in carrying out its duties 

4 under this section. 

5 (3) OTHER STAFF AND SUPPORT.—Upon re6 quest of the Task Force or a panel of the Task 

7 Force, the Administrator shall provide the Task 

8 Force or panel with professional and administrative 

9 staff and other support, on a reimbursable basis, to 

10 the Task Force to assist it in carrying out its duties 

11 under this section. 

12 (e) OBTAINING OFFICIAL DATA.—The Task Force 

13 may secure directly from any department or agency of the 

14 United States information (other than information re15 quired by any statute of the United States to be kept con16 fidential by such department or agency) necessary for the 

17 Task Force to carry out its duties under this section. 

18 Upon request of the chairperson of the Task Force, the 

19 head of that department or agency shall furnish such in20 formation to the Task Force. 

21 (f) DUTIES.— 

22 (1) STUDY.—The Task Force shall undertake a 

23 study of— 


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1 (A) the conditions of all air traffic control 

2 facilities across the Nation, including towers, 

3 centers, and terminal radar air control; 

4 (B) reports from employees of the Admin5 istration relating to respiratory ailments and 

6 other health conditions resulting from exposure 

7 to mold, asbestos, poor air quality, radiation 

8 and facility-related hazards in facilities of the 

9 Administration; 

10 (C) conditions of such facilities that could 

11 interfere with such employees’ ability to effec12 tively and safely perform their duties; 

13 (D) the ability of managers and super14 visors of such employees to promptly document 

15 and seek remediation for unsafe facility condi16 tions; 

17 (E) whether employees of the Administra18 tion who report facility-related illnesses are 

19 treated fairly; 

20 (F) utilization of scientifically approved re21 mediation techniques in a timely fashion once 

22 hazardous conditions are identified in a facility 

23 of the Administration; and 

24 (G) resources allocated to facility mainte25 nance and renovation by the Administration. 


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1 (2) FACILITY CONDITION INDICIES (FCI).—The 

2 Task Force shall review the facility condition 

3 indicies of the Administration (in this section re4 ferred to as the ‘‘FCI’’) for inclusion in the rec5 ommendations under subsection (g). 

6 (g) RECOMMENDATIONS.—Based on the results of 

7 the study and review of the FCI under subsection (f), the 

8 Task Force shall make recommendations as it considers 

9 necessary to— 

10 (1) prioritize those facilities needing the most 

11 immediate attention in order of the greatest risk to 

12 employee health and safety; 

13 (2) ensure that the Administration is using sci14 entifically approved remediation techniques in all fa15 cilities; and 

16 (3) assist the Administration in making pro17 grammatic changes so that aging air traffic control 

18 facilities do not deteriorate to unsafe levels. 

19 (h) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

20 on which initial appointments of members to the Task 

21 Force are completed, the Task Force shall submit to the 

22 Administrator, the Committee on Transportation and In23 frastructure of the House of Representatives, and the 

24 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 

25 the Senate a report on the activities of the Task Force, 


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1 including the recommendations of the Task Force under 

2 subsection (g). 

3 (i) IMPLEMENTATION.—Within 30 days of the receipt 

4 of the Task Force report under subsection (h), the Admin5 istrator shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

6 and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and 

7 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

8 of the Senate a report that includes a plan and timeline 

9 to implement the recommendations of the Task Force and 

10 to align future budgets and priorities of the Administra11 tion accordingly. 

12 (j) TERMINATION.—The Task Force shall terminate 

13 on the last day of the 30-day period beginning on the date 

14 on which the report under subsection (h) was submitted. 

15 (k) APPLICABILITY OF THE FEDERAL ADVISORY

16 COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act 

17 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Task Force. 

18 (l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

19 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of 

20 Transportation $250,000 to carry out this section. 

21 TITLE VII—AVIATION 

22 INSURANCE 

23 SEC. 701. GENERAL AUTHORITY. 

24 (a) EXTENSION OF POLICIES.—Section 44302(f)(1) 

25 is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking ‘‘September 30, 2009’’ and in2 serting ‘‘September 30, 2012’’; and 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘December 31, 2009’’ and in4 serting ‘‘December 31, 2019’’. 

5 (b) SUCCESSOR PROGRAM.—Section 44302(f) is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(3) SUCCESSOR PROGRAM.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After December 31, 

9 2019, coverage for the risks specified in a policy 

10 that has been extended under paragraph (1) 

11 shall be provided in an airline industry spon12 sored risk retention or other risk-sharing ar13 rangement approved by the Secretary. 

14 ‘‘(B) TRANSFER OF PREMIUMS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—On December 31, 

16 2019, and except as provided in clause (ii), 

17 premiums that are collected by the Sec18 retary from the airline industry after Sep19 tember 22, 2001, for any policy under this 

20 subsection, and interest earned thereon, as 

21 determined by the Secretary, shall be 

22 transferred to an airline industry spon23 sored risk retention or other risk-sharing 

24 arrangement approved by the Secretary. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT

2 TRANSFERRED.—The amount transferred 

3 pursuant to clause (i) shall be less— 

4 ‘‘(I) the amount of any claims 

5 paid out on such policies from Sep6 tember 22, 2001, through December 

7 31, 2019; 

8 ‘‘(II) the amount of any claims 

9 pending under such policies as of De10 cember 31, 2019; and 

11 ‘‘(III) the cost, as determined by 

12 the Secretary, of administering the 

13 provision of insurance policies under 

14 this chapter from September 22, 

15 2001, through December 31, 2019.’’. 

16 SEC. 702. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY TO LIMIT THIRD 

17 PARTY LIABILITY OF AIR CARRIERS ARISING 

18 OUT OF ACTS OF TERRORISM. 

19 Section 44303(b) is amended by striking ‘‘December 

20 31, 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2012’’. 

21 SEC. 703. CLARIFICATION OF REINSURANCE AUTHORITY. 

22 Section 44304 is amended in the second sentence by 

23 striking ‘‘the carrier’’ and inserting ‘‘any insurance car24 rier’’. 


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1 SEC. 704. USE OF INDEPENDENT CLAIMS ADJUSTERS. 

2 Section 44308(c)(1) is amended in the second sen3 tence by striking ‘‘agent’’ and inserting ‘‘agent, or a 

4 claims adjuster who is independent of the underwriting 

5 agent,’’. 

6 SEC. 705. EXTENSION OF PROGRAM AUTHORITY. 

7 Section 44310 is amended by striking ‘‘December 31, 

8 2013’’ and inserting ‘‘December 31, 2019’’. 

9 TITLE VIII—MISCELLANEOUS 

10 SEC. 801. AIR CARRIER CITIZENSHIP. 

11 Section 40102(a)(15) is amended by adding at the 

12 end the following: 

13 ‘‘For purposes of subparagraph (C), an air carrier 

14 shall not be deemed to be under the actual control 

15 of citizens of the United States unless citizens of the 

16 United States control all matters pertaining to the 

17 business and structure of the air carrier, including 

18 operational matters such as marketing, branding, 

19 fleet composition, route selection, pricing, and labor 

20 relations.’’. 

21 SEC. 802. DISCLOSURE OF DATA TO FEDERAL AGENCIES IN 

22 INTEREST OF NATIONAL SECURITY. 

23 Section 40119(b) is amended by adding at the end 

24 the following: 

25 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON APPLICABILITY OF FREE26 DOM OF INFORMATION ACT.—Section 552a of title 5, 


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1 United States Code, shall not apply to disclosures 

2 that the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad3 ministration may make from the systems of records 

4 of the Administration to any Federal law enforce5 ment, intelligence, protective service, immigration, or 

6 national security official in order to assist the offi7 cial receiving the information in the performance of 

8 official duties.’’. 

9 SEC. 803. FAA ACCESS TO CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORDS 

10 AND DATABASE SYSTEMS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 401 is amended by add12 ing at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘§ 40130. FAA access to criminal history records or 

14 databases systems 

15 ‘‘(a) ACCESS TO RECORDS OR DATABASES SYS16 TEMS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—Notwith18 standing section 534 of title 28, and regulations 

19 issued to implement such section, the Administrator 

20 of the Federal Aviation Administration may access a 

21 system of documented criminal justice information 

22 maintained by the Department of Justice or by a 

23 State but may do so only for the purpose of carrying 

24 out civil and administrative responsibilities of the 

25 Administration to protect the safety and security of 


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1 the national airspace system or to support the mis2 sions of the Department of Justice, the Department 

3 of Homeland Security, and other law enforcement 

4 agencies. 

5 ‘‘(2) RELEASE OF INFORMATION.—In accessing 

6 a system referred to in paragraph (1), the Adminis7 trator shall be subject to the same conditions and 

8 procedures established by the Department of Justice 

9 or the State for other governmental agencies with 

10 access to the system. 

11 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION.—The Administrator may not 

12 use the access authorized under paragraph (1) to 

13 conduct criminal investigations. 

14 ‘‘(b) DESIGNATED EMPLOYEES.—The Administrator 

15 shall designate, by order, employees of the Administration 

16 who shall carry out the authority described in subsection 

17 (a). The designated employees may— 

18 ‘‘(1) have access to and receive criminal history, 

19 driver, vehicle, and other law enforcement informa20 tion contained in the law enforcement databases of 

21 the Department of Justice, or any jurisdiction of a 

22 State, in the same manner as a police officer em23 ployed by a State or local authority of that State 

24 who is certified or commissioned under the laws of 

25 that State; 


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1 ‘‘(2) use any radio, data link, or warning sys2 tem of the Federal Government, and of any jurisdic3 tion in a State, that provides information about 

4 wanted persons, be-on-the-lookout notices, warrant 

5 status, or other officer safety information to which 

6 a police officer employed by a State or local author7 ity in that State who is certified or commission 

8 under the laws of that State has access and in the 

9 same manner as such police officer; or 

10 ‘‘(3) receive Federal, State, or local government 

11 communications with a police officer employed by a 

12 State or local authority in that State in the same 

13 manner as a police officer employed by a State or 

14 local authority in that State who is commissioned 

15 under the laws of that State. 

16 ‘‘(c) SYSTEM OF DOCUMENTED CRIMINAL JUSTICE

17 INFORMATION DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘sys18 tem of documented criminal justice information’ means 

19 any law enforcement database, system, or communication 

20 containing information concerning identification, criminal 

21 history, arrests, convictions, arrest warrants, wanted or 

22 missing persons, including the National Crime Informa23 tion Center and its incorporated criminal history data24 bases and the National Law Enforcement Telecommuni25 cations System.’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap2 ter 401 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘40130. FAA access to criminal history records or databases systems.’’. 

3 SEC. 804. CLARIFICATION OF AIR CARRIER FEE DISPUTES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 47129 is amended— 

5 (1) in the section heading by striking ‘‘air 

6 carrier’’ and inserting ‘‘carrier’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘(as defined in 

8 section 40102 of this title)’’ and inserting ‘‘(as such 

9 terms are defined in section 40102)’’; 

10 (3) in the heading for subsection (d) by striking 

11 ‘‘AIR CARRIER’’ and inserting ‘‘AIR CARRIER AND

12 FOREIGN AIR CARRIER’’; 

13 (4) in the heading for paragraph (2) of sub14 section (d) by striking ‘‘AIR CARRIER’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘AIR CARRIER AND FOREIGN AIR CARRIER’’; 

16 (5) by striking ‘‘air carriers’’ each place it ap17 pears and inserting ‘‘air carriers or foreign air car18 riers’’; 

19 (6) by striking ‘‘air carrier’’ each place it ap20 pears and inserting ‘‘air carrier or foreign air car21 rier’’; and 

22 (7) by striking ‘‘air carrier’s’’ each place it ap23 pears and inserting ‘‘air carrier’s or foreign air car24 rier’s’’. 


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1 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The analysis for chap2 ter 471 is amended by striking the item relating to section 

3 47129 and inserting the following: 

‘‘47129. Resolution of airport-carrier disputes concerning airport fees.’’. 

4 SEC. 805. STUDY ON NATIONAL PLAN OF INTEGRATED AIR5 PORT SYSTEMS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transpor8 tation shall initiate a study to evaluate the formulation 

9 of the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (in 

10 this section referred to as the ‘‘plan’’) under section 47103 

11 of title 49, United States Code. 

12 (b) CONTENTS OF STUDY.—The study shall include 

13 a review of the following: 

14 (1) The criteria used for including airports in 

15 the plan and the application of such criteria in the 

16 most recently published version of the plan. 

17 (2) The changes in airport capital needs be18 tween fiscal years 2003 and 2008, as reported in the 

19 plan, as compared with the amounts apportioned or 

20 otherwise made available to individual airports over 

21 the same period of time. 

22 (3) A comparison of the amounts received by 

23 airports under the airport improvement program in 

24 airport apportionments, State apportionments, and 


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1 discretionary grants during such fiscal years with 

2 capital needs as reported in the plan. 

3 (4) The effect of transfers of airport apportion4 ments under title 49, United States Code. 

5 (5) Any other matters pertaining to the plan 

6 that the Secretary determines appropriate. 

7 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 

8 (1) SUBMISSION.—Not later than 36 months 

9 after the date of initiation of the study, the Sec10 retary shall submit to the Committee on Transpor11 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent12 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

13 and Transportation of the Senate a report on the re14 sults of the study. 

15 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include— 

16 (A) the findings of the Secretary on each 

17 of the subjects listed in subsection (b); 

18 (B) recommendations for any changes to 

19 policies and procedures for formulating the 

20 plan; and 

21 (C) recommendations for any changes to 

22 the methods of determining the amounts to be 

23 apportioned or otherwise made available to indi24 vidual airports. 


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1 SEC. 806. EXPRESS CARRIER EMPLOYEE PROTECTION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 201 of the Railway Labor 

3 Act (45 U.S.C. 181) is amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘All’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) IN

5 GENERAL.—All’’; 

6 (2) by inserting ‘‘and every express carrier’’ 

7 after ‘‘common carrier by air’’; and 

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

9 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULES FOR EXPRESS CARRIERS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An employee of an express 

11 carrier shall be covered by this Act only if that em12 ployee is in a position that is eligible for certification 

13 under part 61, 63, or 65 of title 14, Code of Federal 

14 Regulations, and only if that employee performs du15 ties for the express carrier that are eligible for such 

16 certification. All other employees of an express car17 rier shall be covered by the provisions of the Na18 tional Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.). 

19 ‘‘(2) AIR CARRIER STATUS.—Any person that is 

20 an express carrier shall be governed by paragraph 

21 (1) notwithstanding any finding that the person is 

22 also a common carrier by air. 

23 ‘‘(3) EXPRESS CARRIER DEFINED.—In this sec24 tion, the term ‘express carrier’ means any person (or 

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1 ment of freight or packages through an integrated 

2 network of air and surface transportation.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 1 of such 

4 Act (45 U.S.C. 151) is amended in the first paragraph 

5 by striking ‘‘, any express company that would have been 

6 subject to subtitle IV of title 49, United States Code, as 

7 of December 31, 1995,’’. 

8 SEC. 807. CONSOLIDATION AND REALIGNMENT OF FAA FA9 CILITIES. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF WORKING GROUP.—Not 

11 later than 9 months after the date of enactment of this 

12 Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall establish within 

13 the Federal Aviation Administration (in this section re14 ferred to as the ‘‘FAA’’) a working group to develop cri15 teria and make recommendations for the realignment of 

16 services and facilities (including regional offices) of the 

17 FAA to assist in the transition to next generation facilities 

18 and to help reduce capital, operating, maintenance, and 

19 administrative costs in instances in which cost reductions 

20 can be implemented without adversely affecting safety. 

21 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The working group shall be com22 posed of— 

23 (1) the Administrator of the FAA; 

24 (2) 2 representatives of air carriers; 


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1 (3) 2 representatives of the general aviation 

2 community; 

3 (4) 2 representatives of labor unions rep4 resenting employees who work at regional or field fa5 cilities of the FAA; and 

6 (5) 2 representatives of the airport community. 

7 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS CONTAINING REC8 OMMENDATIONS OF THE WORKING GROUP.— 

9 (1) SUBMISSION.—Not later than 6 months 

10 after convening the working group, the Adminis11 trator shall submit to the Committee on Transpor12 tation and Infrastructure of the House of Represent13 atives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

14 and Transportation of the Senate a report con15 taining the criteria and recommendations developed 

16 by the working group under this section. 

17 (2) CONTENTS.—The report shall include a jus18 tification for each recommendation to consolidate or 

19 realign a service or facility (including a regional of20 fice) and a description of the costs and savings asso21 ciated with the consolidation or realignment. 

22 (d) PUBLIC NOTICE AND COMMENT.—The Adminis23 trator shall publish the report submitted under subsection 

24 (c) in the Federal Register and allow 45 days for the sub25 mission of public comments. In addition, the AdminisVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00266 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 trator upon request shall hold a public hearing in a com2 munity that would be affected by a recommendation in the 

3 report. 

4 (e) OBJECTIONS.—Any interested person may file 

5 with the Administrator a written objection to a rec6 ommendation of the working group. 

7 (f) REPORT TO CONGRESS CONTAINING REC8 OMMENDATIONS OF THE ADMINISTRATOR.—Not later 

9 than 60 days after the last day of the period for public 

10 comment under subsection (d), the Administrator shall 

11 submit to the committees referred to in subsection (c)(1) 

12 a report containing the recommendations of the Adminis13 trator on realignment of services and facilities (including 

14 regional offices) of the FAA and copies of any public com15 ments and objections received by the Administrator under 

16 this section. 

17 (g) LIMITATION ON IMPLEMENTATION OF REALIGN18 MENTS AND CONSOLIDATIONS.—The Administrator may 

19 not realign or consolidate any services or facilities (includ20 ing regional offices) of the FAA before the Administrator 

21 has submitted the report under subsection (f). 

22 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi23 nitions apply: 

24 (1) FAA.—The term ‘‘FAA’’ means the Fed25 eral Aviation Administration. 


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1 (2) REALIGNMENT; CONSOLIDATION.— 

2 (A) IN GENERAL.—The terms ‘‘realign3 ment’’ and ‘‘consolidation’’ include any action 

4 that— 

5 (i) relocates functions, services, or 

6 personnel positions; 

7 (ii) severs existing facility functions or 

8 services; or 

9 (iii) any combination thereof. 

10 (B) EXCLUSION.—The term does not in11 clude a reduction in personnel resulting from 

12 workload adjustments. 

13 SEC. 808. ACCIDENTAL DEATH AND DISMEMBERMENT IN14 SURANCE FOR NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION 

15 SAFETY BOARD EMPLOYEES. 

16 Section 1113 is amended by adding at the end the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(i) ACCIDENTAL DEATH AND DISMEMBERMENT IN19 SURANCE.— 

20 ‘‘(1) AUTHORITY TO PROVIDE INSURANCE.— 

21 The Board may procure accidental death and dis22 memberment insurance for an employee of the 

23 Board who travels for an accident investigation or 

24 other activity of the Board outside the United States 


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1 or inside the United States under hazardous cir2 cumstances, as defined by the Board. 

3 ‘‘(2) CREDITING OF INSURANCE BENEFITS TO

4 OFFSET UNITED STATES TORT LIABILITY.—Any 

5 amounts paid to a person under insurance coverage 

6 procured under this subsection shall be credited as 

7 offsetting any liability of the United States to pay 

8 damages to that person under section 1346(b) of 

9 title 28, chapter 171 of title 28, chapter 163 of title 

10 10, or any other provision of law authorizing recov11 ery based upon tort liability of the United States in 

12 connection with the injury or death resulting in the 

13 insurance payment. 

14 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF INSURANCE BENEFITS.— 

15 Any amounts paid under insurance coverage pro16 cured under this subsection shall not— 

17 ‘‘(A) be considered additional pay or allow18 ances for purposes of section 5536 of title 5; or 

19 ‘‘(B) offset any benefits an employee may 

20 have as a result of government service, includ21 ing compensation under chapter 81 of title 5. 

22 ‘‘(4) ENTITLEMENT TO OTHER INSURANCE.— 

23 Nothing in this subsection shall be construed as af24 fecting the entitlement of an employee to insurance 

25 under section 8704(b) of title 5.’’. 


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1 SEC. 809. GAO STUDY ON COOPERATION OF AIRLINE IN2 DUSTRY IN INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUC3 TION CASES. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Comptroller General shall conduct 

5 a study to help determine how the Federal Aviation Ad6 ministration (in this section referred to as the ‘‘FAA’’) 

7 could better ensure the collaboration and cooperation of 

8 air carriers and foreign air carriers providing air transpor9 tation and relevant Federal agencies to develop and en10 force child safety control for adults traveling internation11 ally with children. 

12 (b) CONTENTS.—In conducting the study, the Comp13 troller General shall examine— 

14 (1) the nature and scope of exit policies and 

15 procedures of the FAA, air carriers, and foreign air 

16 carriers and how the enforcement of such policies 

17 and procedures is monitored, including ticketing and 

18 boarding procedures; 

19 (2) the extent to which air carriers and foreign 

20 air carriers cooperate in the investigations of inter21 national child abduction cases, including cooperation 

22 with the National Center for Missing and Exploited 

23 Children and relevant Federal, State, and local 

24 agencies; 

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1 tices and procedures of air carriers, foreign air car2 riers, and operators of other transportation modes 

3 that could improve the ability of the aviation com4 munity to ensure the safety of children traveling 

5 internationally with adults and, as appropriate, en6 hance the capability of air carriers and foreign air 

7 carriers to cooperate in the investigations of inter8 national child abduction cases; and 

9 (4) any liability issues associated with providing 

10 assistance in such investigations. 

11 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

12 of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 

13 submit to Congress a report on the results of the study. 

14 SEC. 810. LOST NATION AIRPORT, OHIO. 

15 (a) APPROVAL OF SALE.—The Secretary of Trans16 portation may approve the sale of Lost Nation Airport 

17 from the city of Willoughby, Ohio, to Lake County, Ohio, 

18 if— 

19 (1) Lake County meets all applicable require20 ments for sponsorship of the airport; and 

21 (2) Lake County agrees to assume the obliga22 tions and assurances of the grant agreements relat23 ing to the airport executed by the city of Willoughby 

24 under chapter 471 of title 49, United States Code, 


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1 and to operate and maintain the airport in accord2 ance with such obligations and assurances. 

3 (b) GRANTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may make a 

5 grant, from funds made available under section 

6 48103 of title 49, United States Code, to Lake 

7 County to assist in Lake County’s purchase of the 

8 Lost Nation Airport under subsection (a). 

9 (2) FEDERAL SHARE.—The Federal share of 

10 the grant under this subsection shall be for 90 per11 cent of the cost of Lake County’s purchase of the 

12 Lost Nation Airport, but in no event may the Fed13 eral share of the grant exceed $1,220,000. 

14 (3) APPROVAL.—The Secretary may make a 

15 grant under this subsection only if the Secretary re16 ceives such written assurances as the Secretary may 

17 require under section 47107 of title 49, United 

18 States Code, with respect to the grant and Lost Na19 tion Airport. 

20 (c) TREATMENT OF PROCEEDS FROM SALE.—The 

21 Secretary may grant to the city of Willoughby an exemp22 tion from the provisions of sections 47107 and 47133 of 

23 such title, any grant obligations of the city of Willoughby, 

24 and regulations and policies of the Federal Aviation Ad25 ministration to the extent necessary to allow the city of 


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1 Willoughby to use the proceeds from the sale approved 

2 under subsection (a) for any purpose authorized by the 

3 city of Willoughby. 

4 SEC. 811. POLLOCK MUNICIPAL AIRPORT, LOUISIANA. 

5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 

6 (1) Pollock Municipal Airport located in Pol7 lock, Louisiana (in this section referred to as the 

8 ‘‘airport’’), has never been included in the National 

9 Plan of Integrated Airport Systems pursuant to sec10 tion 47103 of title 49, United States Code, and is 

11 therefore not considered necessary to meet the cur12 rent or future needs of the national aviation system; 

13 and 

14 (2) closing the airport will not adversely affect 

15 aviation safety, aviation capacity, or air commerce. 

16 (b) REQUEST FOR CLOSURE.— 

17 (1) APPROVAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

18 provision of law, requirement, or agreement and sub19 ject to the requirements of this section, the Adminis20 trator of the Federal Aviation Administration 

21 shall— 

22 (A) approve a request from the town of 

23 Pollock, Louisiana, to close the airport as a 

24 public airport; and 


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1 (B) release the town from any term, condi2 tion, reservation, or restriction contained in a 

3 surplus property conveyance or transfer docu4 ment, and from any order or finding by the De5 partment of Transportation on the use and re6 payment of airport revenue applicable to the 

7 airport, that would otherwise prevent the clo8 sure of the airport and redevelopment of the fa9 cilities to nonaeronautical uses. 

10 (2) CONTINUED AIRPORT OPERATION PRIOR TO

11 APPROVAL.—The town of Pollock shall continue to 

12 operate and maintain the airport until the Adminis13 trator grants the town’s request for closure of the 

14 airport. 

15 (3) USE OF PROCEEDS FROM SALE OF AIR16 PORT.—Upon the approval of the request to close 

17 the airport, the town of Pollock shall obtain fair 

18 market value for the sale of the airport property and 

19 shall immediately upon receipt transfer all such pro20 ceeds from the sale of the airport property to the 

21 sponsor of a public airport designated by the Admin22 istrator to be used for the development or improve23 ment of such airport. 


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1 (4) RELOCATION OF AIRCRAFT.—Before closure 

2 of the airport, the town of Pollock shall provide ade3 quate time for any airport-based aircraft to relocate. 

4 SEC. 812. HUMAN INTERVENTION AND MOTIVATION STUDY 

5 PROGRAM. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 6 months after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

8 Federal Aviation Administration shall develop a human 

9 intervention and motivation study program for pilots and 

10 flight attendants involved in air carrier operations in the 

11 United States under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal 

12 Regulations. 

13 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

15 such sums as may be necessary for each of fiscal years 

16 2010 through 2012. Such sums shall remain available 

17 until expended. 

18 SEC. 813. WASHINGTON, DC, AIR DEFENSE IDENTIFICATION 

19 ZONE. 

20 (a) SUBMISSION OF PLAN TO CONGRESS.—Not later 

21 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

22 Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, in 

23 consultation with Secretary of Homeland Security and 

24 Secretary of Defense, shall submit to the Committee on 

25 Transportation and Infrastructure and Committee on 


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1 Homeland Security of the House of Representatives and 

2 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

3 of the Senate a plan for the Washington, DC, Air Defense 

4 Identification Zone. 

5 (b) CONTENTS OF PLAN.—The plan shall outline spe6 cific changes to the Washington, DC, Air Defense Identi7 fication Zone that will decrease operational impacts and 

8 improve general aviation access to airports in the National 

9 Capital Region that are currently impacted by the zone. 

10 SEC. 814. MERRILL FIELD AIRPORT, ANCHORAGE, ALASKA. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi12 sion of law, including the Federal Airport Act (as in effect 

13 on August 8, 1958), the United States releases, without 

14 monetary consideration, all restrictions, conditions, and 

15 limitations on the use, encumbrance, or conveyance of cer16 tain land located in the municipality of Anchorage, Alaska, 

17 more particularly described as Tracts 22 and 24 of the 

18 Fourth Addition to the Town Site of Anchorage, Alaska, 

19 as shown on the plat of U.S. Survey No. 1456, accepted 

20 June 13, 1923, on file in the Bureau of Land Manage21 ment, Department of Interior. 

22 (b) GRANTS.—Notwithstanding any other provision 

23 of law, the municipality of Anchorage shall be released 

24 from the repayment of any outstanding grant obligations 

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1 tration with respect to any land described in subsection 

2 (a) that is subsequently conveyed to or used by the De3 partment of Transportation and Public Facilities of the 

4 State of Alaska for the construction or reconstruction of 

5 a federally subsidized highway project. 

6 SEC. 815. 1940 AIR TERMINAL MUSEUM AT WILLIAM P. 

7 HOBBY AIRPORT, HOUSTON, TEXAS. 

8 It is the sense of Congress that the Nation— 

9 (1) supports the goals and ideals of the 1940 

10 Air Terminal Museum located at William P. Hobby 

11 Airport in the city of Houston, Texas; 

12 (2) congratulates the city of Houston and the 

13 1940 Air Terminal Museum on the 80-year history 

14 of William P. Hobby Airport and the vital role of the 

15 airport in Houston’s and the Nation’s transportation 

16 infrastructure; and 

17 (3) recognizes the 1940 Air Terminal Museum 

18 for its importance to the Nation in the preservation 

19 and presentation of civil aviation heritage and recog20 nizes the importance of civil aviation to the Nation’s 

21 history and economy. 

22 SEC. 816. DUTY PERIODS AND FLIGHT TIME LIMITATIONS 

23 APPLICABLE TO FLIGHT CREWMEMBERS. 

24 Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment 

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1 ministration shall initiate a rulemaking proceeding for the 

2 following purposes: 

3 (1) To require a flight crewmember who is em4 ployed by an air carrier conducting operations under 

5 part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, 

6 and who accepts an additional assignment for flying 

7 under part 91 of such title from the air carrier or 

8 from any other air carrier conducting operations 

9 under part 121 or 135 of such title, to apply the pe10 riod of the additional assignment (regardless of 

11 whether the assignment is performed by the flight 

12 crewmember before or after an assignment to fly 

13 under part 121 of such title) toward any limitation 

14 applicable to the flight crewmember relating to duty 

15 periods or flight times under part 121 of such title. 

16 (2) To require a flight crewmember who is em17 ployed by an air carrier conducting operations under 

18 part 135 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, 

19 and who accepts an additional assignment for flying 

20 under part 91 of such title from the air carrier or 

21 any other air carrier conducting operations under 

22 part 121 or 135 of such title, to apply the period of 

23 the additional assignment (regardless of whether the 

24 assignment is performed by the flight crewmember 

25 before or after an assignment to fly under part 135 


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1 of such title) toward any limitation applicable to the 

2 flight crewmember relating to duty periods or flight 

3 times under part 135 of such title. 

4 SEC. 817. PILOT PROGRAM FOR REDEVELOPMENT OF AIR5 PORT PROPERTIES. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

7 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the 

8 Federal Aviation Administration shall establish a pilot 

9 program at up to 4 public-use airports (as defined in sec10 tion 47102 of title 49, United States Code) that have a 

11 noise compatibility program approved by the Adminis12 trator under section 47504 of such title. 

13 (b) GRANTS.—Under the pilot program, the Adminis14 trator may make a grant in a fiscal year, from funds made 

15 available under section 47117(e)(1)(A) of such title, to the 

16 operator of an airport participating in the pilot program— 

17 (1) to support joint planning (including plan18 ning described in section 47504(a)(2)(F) of such 

19 title), engineering design, and environmental permit20 ting for the assembly and redevelopment of real 

21 property purchased with noise mitigation funds 

22 made available under section 48103 or passenger fa23 cility revenues collected for the airport under section 

24 40117 of such title; and 


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1 (2) to encourage compatible land uses with the 

2 airport and generate economic benefits to the airport 

3 operator and an affected local jurisdiction. 

4 (c) GRANT REQUIREMENTS.—The Administrator 

5 may not make a grant under this section unless the grant 

6 is made— 

7 (1) to enable the airport operator and an af8 fected local jurisdiction to expedite their noise miti9 gation redevelopment efforts with respect to real 

10 property described in subsection (b)(1); 

11 (2) subject to a requirement that the affected 

12 local jurisdiction has adopted zoning regulations that 

13 permit compatible redevelopment of real property de14 scribed in subsection (b)(1); and 

15 (3) subject to a requirement that funds made 

16 available under section 47117(e)(1)(A) with respect 

17 to real property assembled and redeveloped under 

18 subsection (b)(1) plus the amount of any grants 

19 made for acquisition of such property under section 

20 47504 of such title are repaid to the Administrator 

21 upon the sale of such property. 

22 (d) COOPERATION WITH LOCAL AFFECTED JURIS23 DICTION.—An airport operator may use funds granted 

24 under this section for a purpose described in subsection 

25 (b) only in cooperation with an affected local jurisdiction. 


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1 (e) UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT SHARE.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The United States Govern3 ment share of the allowable costs of a project carried 

4 out under the pilot program shall be 80 percent. 

5 (2) DETERMINATION.—In determining the al6 lowable project costs of a project carried out under 

7 the pilot program for purposes of this subsection, 

8 the Administrator shall deduct from the total costs 

9 of the project that portion of the total costs of the 

10 project that are incurred with respect to real prop11 erty that is not owned or to be acquired by the air12 port operator pursuant to the noise compatibility 

13 program for the airport or that is not owned by an 

14 affected local jurisdiction or other public entity. 

15 (3) MAXIMUM AMOUNT.—Not more than 

16 $5,000,000 in funds made available under section 

17 47117(e) of title 49, United States Code, may be ex18 pended under this pilot program at any single pub19 lic-use airport. 

20 (f) SPECIAL RULES FOR REPAID FUNDS.—The 

21 amounts repaid to the Administrator with respect to an 

22 airport under subsection (c)(3)— 

23 (1) shall be available to the Administrator for 

24 the following actions giving preference to such ac25 tions in descending order: 


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1 (A) reinvestment in an approved noise 

2 compatibility project at the airport; 

3 (B) reinvestment in another project at the 

4 airport that is available for funding under sec5 tion 47117(e) of title 49, United States Code; 

6 (C) reinvestment in an approved airport 

7 development project at the airport that is eligi8 ble for funding under section 47114, 47115, or 

9 47117 of such title; 

10 (D) reinvestment in approved noise com11 patibility project at any other public airport; 

12 and 

13 (E) deposit in the Airport and Airway 

14 Trust Fund established under section 9502 of 

15 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 

16 9502); 

17 (2) shall be in addition to amounts authorized 

18 under section 48103 of title 49, United States Code; 

19 and 

20 (3) shall remain available until expended. 

21 (g) USE OF PASSENGER FACILITY REVENUE.—An 

22 operator of an airport participating in the pilot program 

23 may use passenger facility revenue collected for the airport 

24 under section 40117 of title 49, United States Code, to 

25 pay the portion of the total cost of a project carried out 


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1 by the operator under the pilot program that are not al2 lowable under subsection (e)(2). 

3 (h) SUNSET.—The Administrator may not make a 

4 grant under the pilot program after September 30, 2012. 

5 (i) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than the last 

6 day of the 30th month following the date on which the 

7 first grant is made under this section, the Administrator 

8 shall report to Congress on the effectiveness of the pilot 

9 program on returning real property purchased with noise 

10 mitigation funds made available under section 

11 47117(e)(1)(A) or 47505 or passenger facility revenues to 

12 productive use. 

13 (j) NOISE COMPATIBILITY MEASURES.—Section 

14 47504(a)(2) is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of subpara16 graph (D); 

17 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub18 paragraph (E) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

20 ‘‘(F) joint comprehensive land use plan21 ning, including master plans, traffic studies, en22 vironmental evaluation and economic and feasi23 bility studies, with neighboring local jurisdic24 tions undertaking community redevelopment in 

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1 terest acquired by the airport operator under 

2 this subsection is located, to encourage and en3 hance redevelopment opportunities that reflect 

4 zoning and uses that will prevent the introduc5 tion of additional incompatible uses and en6 hance redevelopment potential.’’. 

7 SEC. 818. HELICOPTER OPERATIONS OVER LONG ISLAND 

8 AND STATEN ISLAND, NEW YORK. 

9 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia10 tion Administration shall conduct a study on helicopter op11 erations over Long Island and Staten Island, New York. 

12 (b) CONTENTS.—In conducting the study, the Ad13 ministrator shall examine, at a minimum, the following: 

14 (1) The effect of helicopter operations on resi15 dential areas, including— 

16 (A) safety issues relating to helicopter op17 erations; 

18 (B) noise levels relating to helicopter oper19 ations and ways to abate the noise levels; and 

20 (C) any other issue relating to helicopter 

21 operations on residential areas. 

22 (2) The feasibility of diverting helicopters from 

23 residential areas. 

24 (3) The feasibility of creating specific air lanes 

25 for helicopter operations. 


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1 (4) The feasibility of establishing altitude limits 

2 for helicopter operations. 

3 (c) EXCEPTIONS.—Any determination under this sec4 tion on the feasibility of establishing limitations or restric5 tions for helicopter operations over Long Island and Stat6 en Island, New York, shall not apply to helicopters per7 forming operations for news organizations, the military, 

8 law enforcement, or providers of emergency services. 

9 (d) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

10 Nothing in this section shall be construed to interfere with 

11 the Federal Aviation Administration’s authority to ensure 

12 the safe and efficient use of the national airspace system. 

13 (e) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

14 of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub15 mit to Congress a report on the results of the study, in16 cluding information and recommendations concerning the 

17 issues examined under subsection (b). 

18 SEC. 819. CABIN TEMPERATURE AND HUMIDITY STAND19 ARDS STUDY. 

20 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

21 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal 

22 Aviation Administration shall conduct a study to deter23 mine whether onboard temperature standards are nec24 essary to protect cabin and cockpit crew members and pas25 sengers on an aircraft of an air carrier used to provide 


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1 air transportation from excessive heat and humidity on2 board such aircraft during standard operations or during 

3 an excessive flight delay. 

4 (b) TEMPERATURE REVIEW.—In conducting the 

5 study under subsection (a), the Administrator shall— 

6 (1) survey onboard cabin and cockpit tempera7 ture and humidity of a representative sampling of 

8 different aircraft types and operations; 

9 (2) address the appropriate placement of tem10 perature monitoring devices onboard the aircraft to 

11 determine the most accurate measurement of on12 board temperature and humidity and develop a sys13 tem for the reporting of excessive temperature and 

14 humidity onboard passenger aircraft by cockpit and 

15 cabin crew members; and 

16 (3) review the impact of implementing such on17 board temperature and humidity standards on the 

18 environment, fuel economy, and avionics and deter19 mine the costs associated with such implementation 

20 and the feasibility of using ground equipment or 

21 other mitigation measures to offset any such costs. 

22 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 18 

23 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Ad24 ministrator shall submit to Congress a report on the find25 ings of the study. 


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1 SEC. 820. CIVIL PENALTIES TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. 

2 Section 46301 is amended— 

3 (1) in subsection (a)(1)(A) by inserting ‘‘chap4 ter 451,’’ before ‘‘section 47107(b)’’; 

5 (2) in subsection (a)(5)(A)(i)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘or chapter 449’’ and in7 serting ‘‘chapter 449’’; and 

8 (B) by inserting after ‘‘44909)’’ the fol9 lowing: ‘‘, or chapter 451’’; and 

10 (3) in subsection (d)(2)— 

11 (A) by inserting after ‘‘44723)’’ the fol12 lowing: ‘‘, chapter 451 (except section 45107)’’; 

13 and 

14 (B) by inserting after ‘‘44909),’’ the fol15 lowing: ‘‘section 45107 or’’. 

16 SEC. 821. STUDY AND REPORT ON ALLEVIATING CONGES17 TION. 

18 Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment 

19 of this Act, the Comptroller General shall conduct a study 

20 and submit a report to Congress regarding effective strat21 egies to alleviate congestion in the national airspace at air22 ports during peak travel times, by evaluating the effective23 ness of reducing flight schedules and staggering flights, 

24 developing incentives for airlines to reduce the number of 

25 flights offered, and instituting slots and quotas at air26 ports. In addition, the Comptroller General shall compare 


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1 the efficiency of implementing the strategies in the pre2 ceding sentence with redesigning airspace and evaluate 

3 any legal obstacles to implementing such strategies. 

4 SEC. 822. AIRLINE PERSONNEL TRAINING ENHANCEMENT. 

5 Not later than one year after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue 

7 regulations under chapter 447 of title 49, United States 

8 Code, that require air carriers to provide initial and an9 nual recurring training for flight attendants and gate at10 tendants regarding serving alcohol, dealing with disruptive 

11 passengers, and recognizing intoxicated persons. The 

12 training shall include situational training on methods of 

13 handling an intoxicated person who is belligerent. 

14 SEC. 823. STUDY ON FEASIBILITY OF DEVELOPMENT OF A 

15 PUBLIC INTERNET WEB-BASED SEARCH EN16 GINE ON WIND TURBINE INSTALLATION OB17 STRUCTION. 

18 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia19 tion Administration shall carry out a study on the feasi20 bility of developing a publicly searchable, Internet Web21 based resource that provides information regarding the ac22 ceptable height and distance that wind turbines may be 

23 installed in relation to aviation sites and the level of ob24 struction such turbines may present to such sites. 


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1 (b) CONSIDERATIONS.—In conducting the study, the 

2 Administrator shall consult, if appropriate, with the Secre3 taries of the Army, Navy and Air Force, Homeland Secu4 rity, Agriculture, and Energy to coordinate the require5 ments of each agency for future air space needs, determine 

6 what the acceptable risks are to existing infrastructure of 

7 each agency, and define the different levels of risk for such 

8 infrastructure. 

9 (c) IMPACT OF WIND TURBINES ON RADAR SIG10 NALS.—In conducting the study, the Administrator shall 

11 consider the impact of the operation of wind turbines, indi12 vidually and in collections, on radar signals and evaluate 

13 the feasibility of providing quantifiable measures of num14 bers of turbines and distance from radars that are accept15 able. 

16 (d) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

17 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall submit a re18 port on the results of the study to the Committee on 

19 Transportation and Infrastructure, Committee on Home20 land Security, Committee on Armed Services, Committee 

21 on Agriculture, and Committee on Science and Technology 

22 of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

23 Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Committee on 

24 Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Committee 


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1 on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, andCommittee on 

2 Armed Services of the Senate. 

3 SEC. 824. FAA RADAR SIGNAL LOCATIONS. 

4 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia5 tion Administration shall conduct a study on the locations 

6 of Federal Aviation Administration radar signals (in this 

7 section referred to as ‘‘FAA radars’’) in the United States, 

8 including the impact of such locations on— 

9 (1) the development and installation of renew10 able energy technologies, including wind turbines; 

11 and 

12 (2) the ability of State and local authorities to 

13 identify and plan for the location of such renewable 

14 energy technologies. 

15 (b) CONSULTATION.—In conducting the study, the 

16 Administrator may consult with the heads of appropriate 

17 agencies as needed. 

18 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

19 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall 

20 transmit to Congress a report on the results of the study. 

21 (d) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCESS.—The Administrator 

22 shall develop an effective administrative process for reloca23 tion of FAA radars, when appropriate, and testing and 

24 deployment of alternate solutions, as necessary. 


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1 (e) LIMITATION ON STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION.— 

2 Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect the 

3 authority of the Administrator to issue hazard determina4 tions. 

5 SEC. 825. WIND TURBINE LIGHTING. 

6 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator of the Federal Avia7 tion Administration shall conduct a study on wind turbine 

8 lighting systems. 

9 (b) CONTENTS.—In conducting the study, the Ad10 ministrator shall examine the following: 

11 (1) The effect of wind turbine lighting on resi12 dential areas. 

13 (2) The safety issues associated with alternative 

14 lighting strategies, technologies, and regulations. 

15 (3) Potential energy savings associated with al16 ternative lighting strategies, technologies, and regu17 lations. 

18 (4) The feasibility of implementing alternative 

19 lighting strategies or technologies. 

20 (5) Any other issue relating to wind turbine 

21 lighting. 

22 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

23 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

24 to Congress a report on the results of the study, including 


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1 information and recommendations concerning the issues 

2 examined under subsection (b). 

3 SEC. 826. PROHIBITION ON USE OF CERTAIN FUNDS. 

4 The Secretary may not use any funds authorized in 

5 this Act to name, rename, designate, or redesignate any 

6 project or program under this act for an individual then 

7 serving as a Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 

8 or Senator of the United States Congress. 

9 SEC. 827. LIMITING ACCESS TO FLIGHT DECKS OF ALL10 CARGO AIRCRAFT. 

11 (a) STUDY.—Not later than 180 days after the date 

12 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal 

13 Aviation Administration, in consultation with appropriate 

14 air carriers, aircraft manufacturers, and air carrier labor 

15 representatives, shall conduct a study to identify a phys16 ical means, or a combination of physical and procedural 

17 means, of limiting access to the flight decks of all-cargo 

18 aircraft to authorized flight crew members. 

19 (b) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

20 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit 

21 to Congress a report on the results of the study. 

22 SEC. 828. WHISTLEBLOWERS AT FAA. 

23 It is the sense of Congress that whistleblowers at the 

24 Federal Aviation Administration be granted the full pro25 tection of the law. 


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1 SEC. 829. COLLEGE POINT MARINE TRANSFER STATION, 

2 NEW YORK. 

3 (a) FINDING.—Congress finds that the Federal Avia4 tion Administration, in determining whether the proposed 

5 College Point Marine Transfer Station in New York City, 

6 New York, if constructed, would constitute a hazard to 

7 air navigation, has not followed published policy state8 ments of the Federal Aviation Administration, including— 

9 (1) Advisory Circular Number 150/5200–33B 

10 2, entitled ‘‘Hazardous Wildlife Attractants on or 

11 Near Airports’’; 

12 (2) Advisory Circular Number 150/5300–13, 

13 entitled ‘‘Airport Design’’; and 

14 (3) the publication entitled ‘‘Policies and Proce15 dures Memorandum—Airports Division’’, Number 

16 5300.1B, dated Feb. 5, 1999. 

17 (b) DESIGNATION OF TRANSFER STATION AS HAZ18 ARD TO AIR NAVIGATION.—The Administrator of the Fed19 eral Aviation Administration shall take such actions as 

20 may be necessary to designate the proposed College Point 

21 Marine Transfer Station in New York City, New York, 

22 as a hazard to air navigation. 

23 SEC. 830. PILOT TRAINING AND CERTIFICATION. 

24 (a) INITIATION OF STUDY.—Not later than 3 months 

25 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 

26 General shall initiate a study on commercial airline pilot 


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1 training and certification programs. The study shall in2 clude the data collected under subsection (b). 

3 (b) DATA COLLECTED.—In conducting the study, the 

4 Comptroller General shall collect data on— 

5 (1) commercial pilot training and certification 

6 programs at United States air carriers, including re7 gional and commuter air carriers; 

8 (2) the number of training hours required for 

9 pilots operating new aircraft types before assuming 

10 pilot in command duties; 

11 (3) how United States air carriers update and 

12 train pilots on new technologies in aircraft types in 

13 which they hold certifications; 

14 (4) what remedial actions are taken in cases of 

15 repeated unsatisfactory check-rides by commercial 

16 airline pilots; 

17 (5) what stall warning systems are included in 

18 flight simulator training compared to classroom in19 struction; and 

20 (6) the information required to be provided by 

21 pilots on their job applications and the ability of 

22 United States air carriers to verify the information 

23 provided. 

24 (c) CONTENTS OF STUDY.—The study shall include, 

25 at a minimum— 


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1 (1) a review of Federal Aviation Administration 

2 and international standards regarding commercial 

3 airline pilot training and certification programs; 

4 (2) the results of interviews that the Comp5 troller General shall conduct with United States air 

6 carriers, pilot organizations, the National Transpor7 tation Safety Board, the Federal Aviation Adminis8 tration, and such other parties as the Comptroller 

9 General determines appropriate; and 

10 (3) such other matters as the Comptroller Gen11 eral determines are appropriate. 

12 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 12 months after the 

13 date of initiation of the study, the Comptroller General 

14 shall submit to the Administrator, the Committee on 

15 Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Rep16 resentatives, and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 

17 and Transportation of the Senate a report on the results 

18 of the study, together with the findings and recommenda19 tions of the Comptroller General regarding the study. 

20 SEC. 831. ST. GEORGE, UTAH. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding section 16 of the 

22 Federal Airport Act (as in effect on August 28, 1973) or 

23 sections 47125 and 47153 of title 49, United States Code, 

24 the Secretary of Transportation is authorized, subject to 

25 subsection (b), to grant releases from any of the terms, 


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1 conditions, reservations, and restrictions contained in the 

2 deed of conveyance dated August 28, 1973, under which 

3 the United States conveyed certain property to the city 

4 of St. George, Utah, for airport purposes. 

5 (b) CONDITION.—Any release granted by the Sec6 retary under the subsection (a) shall be subject to the fol7 lowing conditions: 

8 (1) The city of St. George shall agree that in 

9 conveying any interest in the property that the 

10 United States conveyed to the city by deed dated 

11 August 28, 1973, the city will receive an amount for 

12 such interest that is equal to the fair market value. 

13 (2) Any such amount so received by the city of 

14 St. George shall be used by the city for the develop15 ment, improvement, operation, or maintenance of a 

16 replacement public airport. 

17 SEC. 832. REPLACEMENT OF TERMINAL RADAR APPROACH 

18 CONTROL AT PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL 

19 AIRPORT. 

20 The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Adminis21 tration shall take such actions as may be necessary to en22 sure that any air traffic control tower or facility placed 

23 into operation at Palm Beach International Airport after 

24 September 30, 2009, to replace an air traffic control tower 

25 or facility placed into operation before September 30, 


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1 2009, includes an operating terminal radar approach con2 trol. 

3 SEC. 833. SANTA MONICA AIRPORT, CALIFORNIA. 

4 It is the sense of Congress that the Administrator 

5 of the Federal Aviation Administration should enter into 

6 good faith discussions with the city of Santa Monica, Cali7 fornia, to achieve runway safety area solutions consistent 

8 with Federal Aviation Administration design guidelines to 

9 address safety concerns at Santa Monica Airport. 

10 TITLE IX—FEDERAL AVIATION 

11 RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

12 SEC. 901. SHORT TITLE. 

13 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Federal Aviation Re14 search and Development Reauthorization Act of 2009’’. 

15 SEC. 902. DEFINITIONS. 

16 As used in this title, the following definition apply: 

17 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis18 trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal 

19 Aviation Administration. 

20 (2) FAA.—The term ‘‘FAA’’ means the Fed21 eral Aviation Administration. 

22 (3) NASA.—The term ‘‘NASA’’ means the Na23 tional Aeronautics and Space Administration. 

24 (4) NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL.—The term 

25 ‘‘National Research Council’’ means the National 


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1 Research Council of the National Academies of 

2 Science and Engineering. 

3 (5) NOAA.—The term ‘‘NOAA’’ means the Na4 tional Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 

5 (6) NSF.—The term ‘‘NSF’’ means the Na6 tional Science Foundation. 

7 (7) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

8 the Secretary of Transportation. 

9 SEC. 903. INTERAGENCY RESEARCH INITIATIVE ON THE IM10 PACT OF AVIATION ON THE CLIMATE. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator, in coordina12 tion with NASA and the United States Climate Change 

13 Science Program, shall carry out a research initiative to 

14 assess the impact of aviation on the climate and, if war15 ranted, to evaluate approaches to mitigate that impact. 

16 (b) RESEARCH PLAN.—Not later than one year after 

17 the date of enactment of this Act, the participating Fed18 eral entities shall jointly develop a plan for the research 

19 program that contains the objectives, proposed tasks, mile20 stones, and 5-year budgetary profile. 

21 SEC. 904. RESEARCH PROGRAM ON RUNWAYS. 

22 (a) RESEARCH PROGRAM.—The Administrator shall 

23 maintain a program of research grants to universities and 

24 nonprofit research foundations for research and tech25 nology demonstrations related to— 


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1 (1) improved runway surfaces; and 

2 (2) engineered material restraining systems for 

3 runways at both general aviation airports and air4 ports with commercial air carrier operations. 

5 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

6 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec7 essary for each of the fiscal years 2010 through 2012 to 

8 carry out this section. 

9 SEC. 905. RESEARCH ON DESIGN FOR CERTIFICATION. 

10 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF PROGRAM.—Not later than 

11 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

12 FAA, in consultation with other agencies as appropriate, 

13 shall establish a research program on methods to improve 

14 both confidence in and the timeliness of certification of 

15 new technologies for their introduction into the national 

16 airspace system. 

17 (b) RESEARCH PLAN.—Not later than 1 year after 

18 the date of enactment of this Act, as part of the activity 

19 described in subsection (a), the FAA shall develop a plan 

20 for the research program that contains the objectives, pro21 posed tasks, milestones, and five-year budgetary profile. 

22 (c) REVIEW.—The Administrator shall have the Na23 tional Research Council conduct an independent review of 

24 the research program plan and provide the results of that 

25 review to the Committee on Science and Technology and 


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1 the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of 

2 the House of Representatives and the Committee on Com3 merce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate not later 

4 than 18 months after the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 906. CENTERS OF EXCELLENCE. 

6 (a) GOVERNMENT’S SHARE OF COSTS.—Section 

7 44513(f) is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(f) GOVERNMENT’S SHARE OF COSTS.—The United 

9 States Government’s share of establishing and operating 

10 the center and all related research activities that grant 

11 recipients carry out shall not exceed 75 percent of the 

12 costs. The United States Government’s share of an indi13 vidual grant under this section shall not exceed 90 percent 

14 of the costs.’’. 

15 (b) ANNUAL REPORT.—The Administrator shall 

16 transmit annually to the Committee on Science and Tech17 nology and the Committee on Transportation and Infra18 structure of the House of Representatives and the Com19 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

20 Senate at the time of the President’s budget request a re21 port that lists— 

22 (1) the research projects that have been initi23 ated by each Center of Excellence in the preceding 

24 year; 


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1 (2) the amount of funding for each research 

2 project and the funding source; 

3 (3) the institutions participating in each project 

4 and their shares of the overall funding for each re5 search project; and 

6 (4) the level of cost-sharing for each research 

7 project. 

8 SEC. 907. AIRPORT COOPERATIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

9 Section 44511(f) is amended— 

10 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘establish a 4- 

11 year pilot’’ and inserting ‘‘maintain an’’; and 

12 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘expiration of the pro14 gram’’ and inserting ‘‘expiration of the pilot 

15 program’’; and 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘program, including rec17 ommendations as to the need for establishing a 

18 permanent airport cooperative research pro19 gram’’ and inserting ‘‘program’’. 

20 SEC. 908. UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS. 

21 (a) RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—Section 44504(b) is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (6) by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

24 the semicolon; 


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1 (2) in paragraph (7) by striking the period at 

2 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

4 ‘‘(8) in conjunction with other Federal agencies, 

5 as appropriate, to develop technologies and methods 

6 to assess the risk of and prevent defects, failures, 

7 and malfunctions of products, parts, and processes, 

8 for use in all classes of unmanned aircraft systems 

9 that could result in a catastrophic failure of the un10 manned aircraft that would endanger other aircraft 

11 in the national airspace system.’’. 

12 (b) SYSTEMS, PROCEDURES, FACILITIES, AND DE13 VICES.—Section 44505(b) is amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (4) by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

15 the semicolon; 

16 (2) in paragraph (5)(C) by striking the period 

17 at the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

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

19 ‘‘(6) to develop a better understanding of the 

20 relationship between human factors and unmanned 

21 aircraft systems safety; and 

22 ‘‘(7) to develop dynamic simulation models for 

23 integrating all classes of unmanned aircraft systems 

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1 radation of existing levels of safety for all national 

2 airspace system users.’’. 

3 SEC. 909. RESEARCH GRANTS PROGRAM INVOLVING UN4 DERGRADUATE STUDENTS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator shall establish 

6 a program to utilize colleges and universities, including 

7 Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic 

8 serving institutions, tribally controlled colleges and univer9 sities, and Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian serving in10 stitutions in conducting research by undergraduate stu11 dents on subjects of relevance to the FAA. Grants may 

12 be awarded under this section for— 

13 (1) research projects to be carried out primarily 

14 by undergraduate students; 

15 (2) research projects that combine under16 graduate research with other research supported by 

17 the FAA; 

18 (3) research on future training requirements re19 lated to projected changes in regulatory require20 ments for aircraft maintenance and power plant li21 censees; and 

22 (4) research on the impact of new technologies 

23 and procedures, particularly those related to aircraft 

24 flight deck and air traffic management functions, 


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1 and on training requirements for pilots and air traf2 fic controllers. 

3 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

4 authorized to be appropriated $5,000,000 for each of the 

5 fiscal years 2010 through 2012, for research grants under 

6 this section. 

7 SEC. 910. AVIATION GAS RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT 

8 PROGRAM. 

9 (a) CONTINUATION OF PROGRAM.—The Adminis10 trator, in coordination with the NASA Administrator, 

11 shall continue research and development activities into 

12 technologies for modification of existing general aviation 

13 piston engines to enable their safe operation using un14 leaded aviation fuel. 

15 (b) ROADMAP.—Not later than 120 days after the 

16 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall de17 velop a research and development roadmap for the pro18 gram continued in subsection (a), containing the specific 

19 research and development objectives and the anticipated 

20 timetable for achieving the objectives. 

21 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 130 days after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall provide 

23 the roadmap specified in subsection (b) to the Committee 

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1 tives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

2 Transportation of the Senate. 

3 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

4 authorized to be appropriated $750,000 for each of the 

5 fiscal years 2010 through 2012 to carry out this section. 

6 SEC. 911. REVIEW OF FAA’S ENERGY- AND ENVIRONMENT7 RELATED RESEARCH PROGRAMS. 

8 (a) STUDY.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

9 arrangement with the National Research Council for a re10 view of the FAA’s energy- and environment-related re11 search programs. The review shall assess whether— 

12 (1) the programs have well-defined, prioritized, 

13 and appropriate research objectives; 

14 (2) the programs are properly coordinated with 

15 the energy- and environment-related research pro16 grams of NASA, NOAA, and other relevant agen17 cies; 

18 (3) the programs have allocated appropriate re19 sources to each of the research objectives; and 

20 (4) there exist suitable mechanisms for 

21 transitioning the research results into the FAA’s 

22 operational technologies and procedures and certifi23 cation activities. 

24 (b) REPORT.—A report containing the results of the 

25 review shall be provided to the Committee on Science and 


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1 Technology of the House of Representatives and the Com2 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the 

3 Senate within 18 months of the enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 912. REVIEW OF FAA’S AVIATION SAFETY-RELATED RE5 SEARCH PROGRAMS. 

6 (a) REVIEW.—The Administrator shall enter into an 

7 arrangement with the National Research Council for an 

8 independent review of the FAA’s aviation safety-related 

9 research programs. The review shall assess whether— 

10 (1) the programs have well-defined, prioritized, 

11 and appropriate research objectives; 

12 (2) the programs are properly coordinated with 

13 the safety research programs of NASA and other 

14 relevant Federal agencies; 

15 (3) the programs have allocated appropriate re16 sources to each of the research objectives; and 

17 (4) there exist suitable mechanisms for 

18 transitioning the research results from the programs 

19 into the FAA’s operational technologies and proce20 dures and certification activities in a timely manner. 

21 (b) AVIATION SAFETY-RELATED RESEARCH PRO22 GRAMS TO BE ASSESSED.—The FAA aviation safety-re23 lated research programs to be assessed under the review 

24 shall include, at a minimum, the following: 


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1 (1) Air traffic control/technical operations 

2 human factors. 

3 (2) Runway incursion reduction. 

4 (3) Flightdeck/maintenance system integration 

5 human factors. 

6 (4) Airports technology research—safety. 

7 (5) Airport cooperative research program—safe8 ty. 

9 (6) Weather program. 

10 (7) Atmospheric hazards/digital system safety. 

11 (8) Fire research and safety. 

12 (9) Propulsion and fuel systems. 

13 (10) Advanced materials/structural safety. 

14 (11) Aging aircraft. 

15 (12) Aircraft catastrophic failure prevention re16 search. 

17 (13) Aeromedical research. 

18 (14) Aviation safety risk analysis. 

19 (15) Unmanned aircraft systems research. 

20 (c) REPORT.—Not later than 14 months after the 

21 date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall sub22 mit to Congress a report on the results of the review. 

23 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—In addi24 tion to amounts authorized to be appropriated by the 

25 amendments made by this Act, there is authorized to be 


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1 appropriated $700,000 for fiscal year 2010 to carry out 

2 this section. 

3 SEC. 913. RESEARCH PROGRAM ON ALTERNATIVE JET 

4 FUEL TECHNOLOGY FOR CIVIL AIRCRAFT. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF RESEARCH PROGRAM.— 

6 Using amounts made available under section 48102(a) of 

7 title 49, United States Code, the Secretary of Transpor8 tation shall conduct a research program related to devel9 oping jet fuel from alternative sources (such as coal, nat10 ural gas, biomass, ethanol, butanol, and hydrogen) 

11 through grants or other measures authorized under sec12 tion 106(l)(6) of such title, including reimbursable agree13 ments with other Federal agencies. 

14 (b) PARTICIPATION BY EDUCATIONAL AND RE15 SEARCH INSTITUTIONS.—In conducting the program, the 

16 Secretary shall provide for participation by educational 

17 and research institutions that have existing facilities and 

18 experience in the development and deployment of tech19 nology for alternative jet fuels. 

20 (c) DESIGNATION OF INSTITUTE AS A CENTER OF

21 EXCELLENCE.—Not later than 6 months after the date 

22 of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal 

23 Aviation Administration shall designate an institution de24 scribed in subsection (a) as a Center of Excellence for Al25 ternative Jet Fuel Research. 


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1 SEC. 914. CENTER FOR EXCELLENCE IN AVIATION EMPLOY2 MENT. 

3 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Administrator shall es4 tablish a Center for Excellence in Aviation Employment 

5 (in this section referred to as the ‘‘Center’’). 

6 (b) APPLIED RESEARCH AND TRAINING.—The Cen7 ter shall conduct applied research and training on— 

8 (1) human performance in the air transpor9 tation environment; 

10 (2) air transportation personnel, including air 

11 traffic controllers, pilots, and technicians; and 

12 (3) any other aviation human resource issues 

13 pertinent to developing and maintaining a safe and 

14 efficient air transportation system. 

15 (c) DUTIES.—The Center shall— 

16 (1) in conjunction with the Collegiate Training 

17 Initiative and other air traffic controller training 

18 programs, develop, implement, and evaluate a com19 prehensive, best-practices based training program 

20 for air traffic controllers; 

21 (2) work with the Office of Human Resource 

22 Management of the FAA as that office develops and 

23 implements a strategic recruitment and marketing 

24 program to help the FAA compete for the best quali25 fied employees and incorporate an employee value 

26 proposition process that results in attracting a 


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1 broad-based and diverse aviation workforce in mis2 sion critical positions, including air traffic controller, 

3 aviation safety inspector, airway transportation safe4 ty specialist, and engineer; 

5 (3) through industry surveys and other research 

6 methodologies and in partnership with the 

7 ‘‘Taskforce on the Future of the Aerospace Work8 force’’ and the Secretary of Labor, establish a base9 line of general aviation employment statistics for 

10 purposes of projecting and anticipating future work11 force needs and demonstrating the economic impact 

12 of general aviation employment; 

13 (4) conduct a comprehensive analysis of the air14 frame and powerplant technician certification proc15 ess and employment trends for maintenance repair 

16 organization facilities, certificated repair stations, 

17 and general aviation maintenance organizations; 

18 (5) establish a best practices model in aviation 

19 maintenance technician school environments; and 

20 (6) establish a workforce retraining program to 

21 allow for transition of recently unemployed and high22 ly skilled mechanics into aviation employment. 

23 (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

24 are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator 


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1 such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section. 

2 Such sums shall remain available until expended. 

3 TITLE X—AIRPORT AND AIRWAY 

4 TRUST FUND FINANCING 

5 SEC. 1001. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Airport and Airway 

7 Trust Fund Financing Act of 2009’’. 

8 SEC. 1002. EXTENSION AND MODIFICATION OF TAXES 

9 FUNDING AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST 

10 FUND. 

11 (a) RATE OF TAX ON AVIATION-GRADE KEROSENE

12 AND AVIATION GASOLINE.— 

13 (1) AVIATION-GRADE KEROSENE.—Subpara14 graph (A) of section 4081(a)(2) of the Internal Rev15 enue Code of 1986 (relating to rates of tax) is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of clause (ii), 

17 by striking the period at the end of clause (iii) and 

18 inserting ‘‘, and’’, and by adding at the end the fol19 lowing new clause: 

20 ‘‘(iv) in the case of aviation-grade ker21 osene, 35.9 cents per gallon.’’. 

22 (2) AVIATION GASOLINE.—Clause (ii) of section 

23 4081(a)(2)(A) of such Code is amended by striking 

24 ‘‘19.3 cents’’ and inserting ‘‘24.1 cents’’. 


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1 (3) FUEL REMOVED DIRECTLY INTO FUEL

2 TANK OF AIRPLANE USED IN NONCOMMERCIAL AVIA3 TION.—Subparagraph (C) of section 4081(a)(2) of 

4 such Code is amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(C) TAXES IMPOSED ON FUEL USED IN

6 COMMERCIAL AVIATION.—In the case of avia7 tion-grade kerosene which is removed from any 

8 refinery or terminal directly into the fuel tank 

9 of an aircraft for use in commercial aviation by 

10 a person registered for such use under section 

11 4101, the rate of tax under subparagraph 

12 (A)(iv) shall be 4.3 cents per gallon.’’. 

13 (4) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

14 (A) Clause (iii) of section 4081(a)(2)(A) of 

15 such Code is amended by inserting ‘‘other than 

16 aviation-grade kerosene’’ after ‘‘kerosene’’. 

17 (B) The following provisions of such Code 

18 are each amended by striking ‘‘kerosene’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘aviation-grade kerosene’’: 

20 (i) Section 4081(a)(3)(A)(ii). 

21 (ii) Section 4081(a)(3)(A)(iv). 

22 (iii) Section 4081(a)(3)(D). 

23 (C) Section 4081(a)(3)(D) of such Code is 

24 amended— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(C)(i)’’ 

2 in clause (i) and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

3 (2)(C)’’, and 

4 (ii) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(C)(ii)’’ 

5 in clause (ii) and inserting ‘‘paragraph 

6 (2)(A)(iv)’’. 

7 (D) Section 4081(a)(4) of such Code is 

8 amended— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘paragraph (2)(C)(i)’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘paragraph (2)(C)’’, and 

11 (ii) by striking ‘‘KEROSENE’’ in the 

12 heading and inserting ‘‘AVIATION-GRADE

13 KEROSENE’’. 

14 (E) Section 4081(d)(2) of such Code is 

15 amended by inserting ‘‘, (a)(2)(A)(iv),’’ after 

16 ‘‘subsections (a)(2)(A)(ii)’’. 

17 (b) EXTENSION.— 

18 (1) FUELS TAXES.—Paragraph (2) of section 

19 4081(d) of such Code is amended by striking ‘‘gal20 lon—’’ and all that follows and inserting ‘‘gallon 

21 after September 30, 2012’’. 

22 (2) TAXES ON TRANSPORTATION OF PERSONS

23 AND PROPERTY.— 

24 (A) PERSONS.—Clause (ii) of section 

25 4261(j)(1)(A) of such Code is amended by 


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1 striking ‘‘September 30, 2009’’ and inserting 

2 ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

3 (B) PROPERTY.—Clause (ii) of section 

4 4271(d)(1)(A) of such Code is amended by 

5 striking ‘‘September 30, 2009’’ and inserting 

6 ‘‘September 30, 2012’’. 

7 (c) EXEMPTION FOR AVIATION-GRADE KEROSENE

8 REMOVED INTO AN AIRCRAFT.—Subsection (e) of section 

9 4082 of such Code is amended— 

10 (1) by striking ‘‘kerosene’’ and inserting ‘‘avia11 tion-grade kerosene’’, 

12 (2) by striking ‘‘section 4081(a)(2)(A)(iii)’’ and 

13 inserting ‘‘section 4081(a)(2)(A)(iv)’’, and 

14 (3) by striking ‘‘KEROSENE’’ in the heading 

15 and inserting ‘‘AVIATION-GRADE KEROSENE’’. 

16 (d) RETAIL TAX ON AVIATION FUEL.— 

17 (1) EXEMPTION FOR PREVIOUSLY TAXED

18 FUEL.—Paragraph (2) of section 4041(c) of such 

19 Code is amended by inserting ‘‘at the rate specified 

20 in subsection (a)(2)(A)(iv) thereof’’ after ‘‘section 

21 4081’’. 

22 (2) RATE OF TAX.—Paragraph (3) of section 

23 4041(c) of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(3) RATE OF TAX.—The rate of tax imposed 

25 by this subsection shall be the rate of tax in effect 


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1 under section 4081(a)(2)(A)(iv) (4.3 cents per gallon 

2 with respect to any sale or use for commercial avia3 tion).’’. 

4 (e) REFUNDS RELATING TO AVIATION-GRADE KER5 OSENE.— 

6 (1) KEROSENE USED IN COMMERCIAL AVIA7 TION.—Clause (ii) of section 6427(l)(4)(A) of such 

8 Code is amended by striking ‘‘specified in section 

9 4041(c) or 4081(a)(2)(A)(iii), as the case may be,’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘so imposed’’. 

11 (2) KEROSENE USED IN AVIATION.—Paragraph 

12 (4) of section 6427(l) of such Code is amended— 

13 (A) by striking subparagraph (B) and re14 designating subparagraph (C) as subparagraph 

15 (B), and 

16 (B) by amending subparagraph (B), as re17 designated by subparagraph (A), to read as fol18 lows: 

19 ‘‘(B) PAYMENTS TO ULTIMATE, REG20 ISTERED VENDOR.—With respect to any ker21 osene used in aviation (other than kerosene to 

22 which paragraph (6) applies), if the ultimate 

23 purchaser of such kerosene waives (at such time 

24 and in such form and manner as the Secretary 

25 shall prescribe) the right to payment under 


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1 paragraph (1) and assigns such right to the ul2 timate vendor, then the Secretary shall pay 

3 (without interest) the amount which would be 

4 paid under paragraph (1) to such ultimate ven5 dor, but only if such ultimate vendor— 

6 ‘‘(i) is registered under section 4101, 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of sub9 paragraph (A), (B), or (D) of section 

10 6416(a)(1).’’. 

11 (3) AVIATION-GRADE KEROSENE NOT USED IN

12 AVIATION.—Subsection (l) of section 6427 of such 

13 Code is amended by redesignating paragraph (5) as 

14 paragraph (6) and by inserting after paragraph (4) 

15 the following new paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(5) REFUNDS FOR AVIATION-GRADE KER17 OSENE NOT USED IN AVIATION.—If tax has been im18 posed under section 4081 at the rate specified in 

19 section 4081(a)(2)(A)(iv) and the fuel is used other 

20 than in an aircraft, the Secretary shall pay (without 

21 interest) to the ultimate purchaser of such fuel an 

22 amount equal to the amount of tax imposed on such 

23 fuel reduced by the amount of tax that would be im24 posed under section 4041 if no tax under section 

25 4081 had been imposed.’’. 


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1 (4) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

2 (A) Section 6427(i)(4) of such Code is 

3 amended— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘paragraph (4)(C) or 

5 (5)’’ both places it appears and inserting 

6 ‘‘paragraph (4)(B) or (6)’’, and 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘, (l)(4)(C)(ii), and 

8 (l)(5)’’ and inserting ‘‘and (l)(6)’’. 

9 (B) Section 6427(l)(1) of such Code is 

10 amended by striking ‘‘paragraph (4)(C)(i)’’ and 

11 inserting ‘‘paragraph (4)(B)(i)’’. 

12 (C) Section 4082(d)(2)(B) of such Code is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘6427(l)(5)(B)’’ and in14 serting ‘‘6427(l)(6)(B)’’. 

15 (f) AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND.— 

16 (1) EXTENSION OF TRUST FUND AUTHORI17 TIES.— 

18 (A) EXPENDITURES FROM TRUST FUND.— 

19 Paragraph (1) of section 9502(d) of such Code 

20 is amended— 

21 (i) by striking ‘‘October 1, 2009’’ in 

22 the matter preceding subparagraph (A) 

23 and inserting ‘‘October 1, 2012’’, and 


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1 (ii) by inserting ‘‘or the FAA Reau2 thorization Act of 2009’’ before the semi3 colon at the end of subparagraph (A). 

4 (B) LIMITATION ON TRANSFERS TO TRUST

5 FUND.—Paragraph (2) of section 9502(e) of 

6 such Code is amended by striking ‘‘October 1, 

7 2009’’ and inserting ‘‘October 1, 2012’’. 

8 (2) TRANSFERS TO TRUST FUND.—Subpara9 graph (C) of section 9502(b)(1) of such Code is 

10 amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘(C) section 4081 with respect to aviation 

12 gasoline and aviation-grade kerosene, and’’. 

13 (3) TRANSFERS ON ACCOUNT OF CERTAIN RE14 FUNDS.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (d) of sec16 tion 9502 of such Code is amended— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘(other than subsection 

18 (l)(4) thereof)’’ in paragraph (2), and 

19 (ii) by striking ‘‘(other than payments 

20 made by reason of paragraph (4) of section 

21 6427(l))’’ in paragraph (3). 

22 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

23 (i) Section 9503(b)(4) of such Code is 

24 amended by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of 

25 subparagraph (C), by striking the period 


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1 at the end of subparagraph (D) and insert2 ing a comma, and by inserting after sub3 paragraph (D) the following: 

4 ‘‘(E) section 4081 to the extent attrib5 utable to the rate specified in clause (ii) or (iv) 

6 of section 4081(a)(2)(A), or 

7 ‘‘(F) section 4041(c).’’. 

8 (ii) Section 9503(c) of such Code is 

9 amended by striking the last paragraph 

10 (relating to transfers from the Trust Fund 

11 for certain aviation fuel taxes). 

12 (iii) Section 9502(a) of such Code is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘, section 

14 9503(c)(7),’’. 

15 (4) TRANSFERS ON ACCOUNT OF AVIATION16 GRADE KEROSENE NOT USED IN AVIATION.—Section 

17 9502(d) of such Code is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following new paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(7) TRANSFERS FROM AIRPORT AND AIRWAY

20 TRUST FUND ON ACCOUNT OF AVIATION-GRADE

21 KEROSENE NOT USED IN AVIATION.—The Secretary 

22 of the Treasury shall pay from time to time from the 

23 Airport and Airway Trust Fund into the Highway 

24 Trust Fund amounts as determined by the Secretary 

25 of the Treasury equivalent to amounts transferred to 


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1 the Airport and Airway Trust Fund with respect to 

2 aviation-grade kerosene not used in aviation.’’. 

3 (5) EXPENDITURES FOR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL

4 MODERNIZATION.—Section 9502(d) of such Code, as 

5 amended by this title, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new paragraph: 

7 ‘‘(8) EXPENDITURES FOR AIR TRAFFIC CON8 TROL MODERNIZATION.—The following amounts 

9 may be used only for making expenditures to carry 

10 out air traffic control modernization: 

11 ‘‘(A) So much of the amounts appropriated 

12 under subsection (b)(1)(C) as the Secretary es13 timates are attributable to— 

14 ‘‘(i) 14.1 cents per gallon of the tax 

15 imposed at the rate specified in section 

16 4081(a)(2)(A)(iv) in the case of aviation17 grade kerosene used other than in commer18 cial aviation (as defined in section 

19 4083(b)), and 

20 ‘‘(ii) 4.8 cents per gallon of the tax 

21 imposed at the rate specified in section 

22 4081(a)(2)(A)(ii) in the case of aviation 

23 gasoline used other than in commercial 

24 aviation (as so defined). 


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1 ‘‘(B) Any amounts credited to the Airport 

2 and Airway Trust Fund under section 9602(b) 

3 with respect to amounts described in this para4 graph.’’. 

5 (g) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

6 (1) MODIFICATIONS.—Except as provided in 

7 paragraph (2), the amendments made by this section 

8 shall apply to fuels removed, entered, or sold after 

9 December 31, 2009. 

10 (2) EXTENSIONS.—The amendments made by 

11 subsections (b) and (f)(1) shall take effect on the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act. 

13 (h) FLOOR STOCKS TAX.— 

14 (1) IMPOSITION OF TAX.—In the case of avia15 tion fuel which is held on January 1, 2010, by any 

16 person, there is hereby imposed a floor stocks tax on 

17 aviation fuel equal to— 

18 (A) the tax which would have been imposed 

19 before such date on such fuel had the amend20 ments made by this section been in effect at all 

21 times before such date, reduced by 

22 (B) the sum of— 

23 (i) the tax imposed before such date 

24 on such fuel under section 4081 of the InVerDate Nov 24 2008 23:02 Jun 01, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00321 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H915.RFS H915

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1 ternal Revenue Code of 1986, as in effect 

2 on such date, and 

3 (ii) in the case of kerosene held exclu4 sively for such person’s own use, the 

5 amount which such person would (but for 

6 this clause) reasonably expect (as of such 

7 date) to be paid as a refund under section 

8 6427(l) of such Code with respect to such 

9 kerosene. 

10 (2) LIABILITY FOR TAX AND METHOD OF PAY11 MENT.— 

12 (A) LIABILITY FOR TAX.—A person hold13 ing aviation fuel on January 1, 2010, shall be 

14 liable for such tax. 

15 (B) TIME AND METHOD OF PAYMENT.— 

16 The tax imposed by paragraph (1) shall be paid 

17 on April 30, 2010, and in such manner as the 

18 Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe. 

19 (3) TRANSFER OF FLOOR STOCK TAX REVE20 NUES TO TRUST FUNDS.—For purposes of deter21 mining the amount transferred to the Airport and 

22 Airway Trust Fund, the tax imposed by this sub23 section shall be treated as imposed by the provision 

24 of section 4081 of the Internal Revenue Code of 


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1 1986 which applies with respect to the aviation fuel 

2 involved. 

3 (4) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub4 section— 

5 (A) AVIATION FUEL.—The term ‘‘aviation 

6 fuel’’ means aviation-grade kerosene and avia7 tion gasoline, as such terms are used within the 

8 meaning of section 4081 of the Internal Rev9 enue Code of 1986. 

10 (B) HELD BY A PERSON.—Aviation fuel 

11 shall be considered as held by a person if title 

12 thereto has passed to such person (whether or 

13 not delivery to the person has been made). 

14 (C) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

15 means the Secretary of the Treasury or the 

16 Secretary’s delegate. 

17 (5) EXCEPTION FOR EXEMPT USES.—The tax 

18 imposed by paragraph (1) shall not apply to any 

19 aviation fuel held by any person exclusively for any 

20 use to the extent a credit or refund of the tax is al21 lowable under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

22 for such use. 

23 (6) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN AMOUNTS OF

24 FUEL.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—No tax shall be im2 posed by paragraph (1) on any aviation fuel 

3 held on January 1, 2010, by any person if the 

4 aggregate amount of such aviation fuel held by 

5 such person on such date does not exceed 2,000 

6 gallons. The preceding sentence shall apply only 

7 if such person submits to the Secretary (at the 

8 time and in the manner required by the Sec9 retary) such information as the Secretary shall 

10 require for purposes of this subparagraph. 

11 (B) EXEMPT FUEL.—For purposes of sub12 paragraph (A), there shall not be taken into ac13 count any aviation fuel held by any person 

14 which is exempt from the tax imposed by para15 graph (1) by reason of paragraph (6). 

16 (C) CONTROLLED GROUPS.—For purposes 

17 of this subsection— 

18 (i) CORPORATIONS.— 

19 (I) IN GENERAL.—All persons 

20 treated as a controlled group shall be 

21 treated as 1 person. 

22 (II) CONTROLLED GROUP.—The 

23 term ‘‘controlled group’’ has the 

24 meaning given to such term by sub25 section (a) of section 1563 of such 


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1 Code; except that for such purposes 

2 the phrase ‘‘more than 50 percent’’ 

3 shall be substituted for the phrase ‘‘at 

4 least 80 percent’’ each place it ap5 pears in such subsection. 

6 (ii) NONINCORPORATED PERSONS

7 UNDER COMMON CONTROL.—Under regula8 tions prescribed by the Secretary, prin9 ciples similar to the principles of subpara10 graph (A) shall apply to a group of per11 sons under common control if 1 or more of 

12 such persons is not a corporation. 

13 (7) OTHER LAWS APPLICABLE.—All provisions 

14 of law, including penalties, applicable with respect to 

15 the taxes imposed by section 4081 of such Code on 

16 the aviation fuel involved shall, insofar as applicable 

17 and not inconsistent with the provisions of this sub18 section, apply with respect to the floor stock taxes 

19 imposed by paragraph (1) to the same extent as if 

20 such taxes were imposed by such section. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 21, 2009. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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