I
104TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 1971
To provide for aviation noise management and reduction in residential areas.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JUNE 29, 1995
Mr. ZIMMER introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
A BILL
To provide for aviation noise management and reduction
in residential areas.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Aviation Noise Limit
Act of 1995’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The accurate assessment and control of
aviation noise impact is necessary to protect the
public health and welfare while increasing and im-
proving aviation capacity.
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(2) Airspace management without noise impact
assessment and moderation can have a significant
impact on an area distant from an airport.
(3) The Federal system for determining noise
impact at airports, which currently serves as the
basis of noise compatibility programs receiving Fed-
eral assistance, does not adequately protect the pub-
lic health and welfare.
(4) The Federal system for determining noise
impact at airports does not take into account the
characteristics of an area, including the area’s prox-
imity to an airport and the area’s non-aircraft back-
ground noise.
(5) The Federal system for determining noise
impact at airports is less restrictive than the criteria
used by many State and local governments, usurping
a zoning role normally allocated to the States.
(6) The Federal system for determining noise
impact at airports is inconsistent with the mainte-
nance of accepted interior levels of quiet for existing
residences and has been demonstrated unsuccessful
in identifying problems and predicting community
reaction.
(7) The Federal system for determining noise
impact at airports does not protect against signifi-
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cant disturbances in human activities such as sleep
and conversation and promotes Federal interference
with the constitutionally protected right to quiet en-
joyment of private property.
(8) Research showing that low levels of noise
affects human health and welfare requires changes
in Federal programs managing noise levels.
(9) Population density, background noise levels,
and distance from an airport are factors which af-
fect an individual’s expectations with respect to avia-
tion noise and an individual’s acceptance of aviation
noise.
(10) Changes to the noise environment of a de-
veloped and populated area should be treated dif-
ferently from changes to the noise environment of a
nonpopulated or industrial area.
SEC. 3. AVIATION NOISE LIMITS.
(a) REDUCTION OF AVIATION NOISE IN AREAS IN
THE VICINITY OF AIRPORTS.—
(1) DEVELOPMENT OF PLAN.—The Secretary
shall develop a staged plan to reduce by at least 75
percent on or before January 1, 2001, the number
of individuals residing in residential areas in the vi-
cinity of an airport who are exposed to a yearly day-
night average sound level of 60 decibels or above.
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(2) CONSIDERATIONS.—In developing the plan
pursuant to paragraph (1), the Secretary shall con-
sider various methods for aviation noise reduction,
including soundproofing, relocation incentives, use of
quieter aircraft, operations restrictions, and revision
of air routes.
(3) FEDERAL DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—
As part of the plan to be developed pursuant to
paragraph (1), the Secretary shall make rec-
ommendations on actions and policy changes on the
part of Federal departments and agencies (including
but not limited to the Department of Transpor-
tation) which could assist in meeting the objective
described in paragraph (1).
(4) MODIFICATION
OF
REGULATIONS.—The
Secretary shall modify regulations issued pursuant
to section 102 of the Aviation and Safety Noise
Abatement Act of 1979 to assist in meeting the ob-
jective described in paragraph (1).
(b) MANAGEMENT
AND REDUCTION
OF AVIATION
NOISE IN OTHER AREAS.—
(1) AIRSPACE
TRAFFIC
CHANGES.—Beginning
on the date of the enactment of this Act, the Admin-
istrator may make an airspace traffic change only if
the Administrator determines that the change will
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not result in an increase in aviation noise in viola-
tion of paragraph (2).
(2) REQUIREMENTS.—A violation of any of the
following requirements, which apply only to residen-
tial areas that are not in the vicinity of an airport,
shall be considered to be a violation of this para-
graph:
(A) HOURLY
AVERAGE
SOUND
LEVEL.—
The hourly average sound level, with combined
aviation and nonaviation sources, over any 1-
hour period may not exceed 6 decibels above the
background sound level for such 1-hour period.
(B) SINGLE
EVENT
MAXIMUM
SOUND
LEVEL.—Under normal circumstances, the sin-
gle event maximum sound level—
(i) may not exceed 70 decibels;
(ii) during nighttime hours, may not
exceed 55 decibels; and
(iii) may not be more than 20 decibels
above the background sound level for the
1-hour period in which the event occurs.
The requirement of this subparagraph shall be
considered to have been met if there are no
more than 3 violations of the limits contained
in this subparagraph in a 24-hour period.
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(C) DAY-NIGHT AVERAGE SOUND LEVEL.—
If the day-night average sound level, with com-
bined aviation and nonaviation sources, exceeds
45 decibels, then aviation activity may not con-
tribute more than 3 decibels to such sound
level.
(3) PAST AIRSPACE TRAFFIC CHANGES.—The
Administrator shall review airspace traffic changes
made by the Administrator which continue to be
subject to significant complaint or controversy and
shall take such actions as may be necessary to en-
sure that such air traffic changes do not result in
increases in aviation noise which violate aviation
noise limits contained in paragraph (2).
(d) DETERMINATION OF VICINITY OF AIRPORT.—
(1) ALTERNATIVE BOUNDARIES.—In the event
that operations procedures of an airport result in a
ground noise distribution substantially different
from the geographic area defined in section 4(10),
an airport operator may, on or before the 180th day
following the date of the enactment of this Act,
transmit to the Secretary for approval alternative
boundaries of the vicinity of the airport which con-
form to the ground noise distribution of the airport;
except that the geographic area enclosed by such al-
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ternative boundaries may not include an area with
a day-night average sound level of less than 60 deci-
bels for the 1-year period ending on the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(2) ACQUISITION OF PROPERTY.—In the event
that an airspace traffic change or other action
makes it unfeasible or impracticable to meet the
sound level limits contained in subsection (b) within
a residential area, then such area may be added to
the area considered to be in the vicinity of the air-
port upon acquisition of the property or by acquisi-
tion of easements to the property by the airport op-
erator or the Secretary of Transportation.
(e) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit
to Congress a report containing the plan to be developed
pursuant to subsection (a)(1), and a description of actions
taken with respect to airspace changes pursuant to sub-
section (b)(3), together with recommendations for appro-
priate administrative and legislative actions.
SEC. 4. RESPONSIBILITY OF SECRETARY OF TRANSPOR-
TATION.
In complying with this Act, the Secretary of Trans-
portation shall assume responsibility for all non-military
aviation activity, within and outside controlled airspace,
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and shall regulate such activity to ensure compliance with
the requirements of this Act in normal circumstances.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act, the following definitions
apply:
(1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis-
trator’’ means the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration.
(2) AIRSPACE
TRAFFIC
CHANGE.—The term
‘‘airspace traffic change’’ means a change in aircraft
flight paths, operating procedures, nature of aircraft
traffic, and quantity of aircraft traffic which is ap-
plicable in normal circumstances.
(3) AVERAGE SOUND LEVEL.—The term ‘‘aver-
age sound level’’ means the level, in decibels, of the
mean-square, A-weighted sound pressure during a
specified period, with reference to the square of the
standard 
reference 
sound 
pressure 
of 
micropascals.
(4) BACKGROUND
SOUND
LEVEL.—The term
‘‘background sound level’’ means the hourly average
sound level, in decibels, measured at a site rep-
resentative of a relatively quiet residential location
within an area (with aircraft noise contributions ex-
cluded).
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(5) DAY-NIGHT AVERAGE SOUND LEVEL.—The
term ‘‘day-night average sound level’’ means the 24-
hour average sound level, in decibels, for the period
from midnight to midnight, obtained after the addi-
tion of 10 decibels to sound levels during nighttime
hours.
(6) NIGHTTIME HOURS.—The term ‘‘nighttime
hours’’ means the periods between midnight and 7
a.m. and between 10 p.m. and midnight local time.
(7) NORMAL CIRCUMSTANCES.—The term ‘‘nor-
mal circumstances’’ means all circumstances other
than unusually adverse weather and emergency cir-
cumstances.
(8) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means
the Secretary of Transportation.
(9) SINGLE EVENT MAXIMUM SOUND LEVEL.—
The term ‘‘single event maximum sound level’’
means the level, in decibels, of the maximum A-
weighted sound pressure during an aircraft over-
flight obtained using a standard sound level meter
under a slow response setting.
(10) VICINITY OF AN AIRPORT.—The term ‘‘vi-
cinity of an airport’’ means the geographic area sur-
rounding an airport established before the date of
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the enactment of this Act described nominally as fol-
lows:
(A) The area extending in all directions a
distance of 1.5 miles from each runway estab-
lished before such date of the enactment.
(B) The rectangular area defined by draw-
ing a straight center line a distance of 4 miles
from the end of each runway established before
such date of the enactment in the direction of
heaviest traffic and extending 1.5 miles per-
pendicular from the center line on each side of
such runway.
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