H. R. 1848 
One Hundred Thirteenth Congress 
of the 
United States of America 
AT THE FIRST SESSION 
Begun and held at the City of Washington on Thursday, 
the third day of January, two thousand and thirteen 
An Act 
To ensure that the Federal Aviation Administration advances the safety of small 
airplanes, and the continued development of the general aviation industry, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Small Airplane Revitalization 
Act of 2013’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) A healthy small aircraft industry is integral to economic 
growth and to maintaining an effective transportation infra-
structure for communities and countries around the world. 
(2) Small airplanes comprise nearly 90 percent of general 
aviation aircraft certified by the Federal Aviation Administra-
tion. 
(3) General aviation provides for the cultivation of a 
workforce of engineers, manufacturing and maintenance profes-
sionals, and pilots who secure the economic success and defense 
of the United States. 
(4) General aviation contributes to well-paying jobs in the 
manufacturing and technology sectors in the United States 
and products produced by those sectors are exported in great 
numbers. 
(5) Technology developed and proven in general aviation 
aids in the success and safety of all sectors of aviation and 
scientific competence. 
(6) The average small airplane in the United States is 
now 40 years old and the regulatory barriers to bringing new 
designs to the market are resulting in a lack of innovation 
and investment in small airplane design. 
(7) Since 2003, the United States lost 10,000 active private 
pilots per year on average, partially due to a lack of cost- 
effective, new small airplanes. 
(8) General aviation safety can be improved by modernizing 
and revamping the regulations relating to small airplanes to 
clear the path for technology adoption and cost-effective means 
to retrofit the existing fleet with new safety technologies.
H. R. 1848—2 
SEC. 3. SAFETY AND REGULATORY IMPROVEMENTS FOR GENERAL 
AVIATION. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than December 15, 2015, the 
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall issue 
a final rule— 
(1) to advance the safety and continued development of 
small airplanes by reorganizing the certification requirements 
for such airplanes under part 23 to streamline the approval 
of safety advancements; and 
(2) that meets the objectives described in subsection (b). 
(b) OBJECTIVES DESCRIBED.—The objectives described in this 
subsection are based on the recommendations of the Part 23 Reorga-
nization Aviation Rulemaking Committee: 
(1) The establishment of a regulatory regime for small 
airplanes that will improve safety and reduce the regulatory 
cost burden for the Federal Aviation Administration and the 
aviation industry. 
(2) The establishment of broad, outcome-driven safety objec-
tives that will spur innovation and technology adoption. 
(3) The replacement of current, prescriptive requirements 
under part 23 with performance-based regulations. 
(4) The use of consensus standards accepted by the Federal 
Aviation Administration to clarify how the safety objectives 
of part 23 may be met using specific designs and technologies. 
(c) CONSENSUS-BASED STANDARDS.—In prescribing regulations 
under this section, the Administrator shall use consensus standards, 
as described in section 12(d) of the National Technology Transfer 
and Advancement Act of 1996 (15 U.S.C. 272 note), to the extent 
practicable while continuing traditional methods for meeting part 
23. 
(d) SAFETY COOPERATION.—The Administrator shall lead the 
effort to improve general aviation safety by working with leading 
aviation regulators to assist them in adopting a complementary 
regulatory approach for small airplanes. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) CONSENSUS STANDARDS.— 
(A) IN
GENERAL.—The term ‘‘consensus standards’’ 
means standards developed by an organization described 
in subparagraph (B) that may include provisions requiring 
that owners of relevant intellectual property have agreed 
to make that intellectual property available on a non-
discriminatory, royalty-free, or reasonable royalty basis to 
all interested persons. 
(B) 
ORGANIZATIONS
DESCRIBED.—An 
organization 
described in this subparagraph is a domestic or inter-
national organization that— 
(i) plans, develops, establishes, or coordinates, 
through a process based on consensus and using 
agreed-upon procedures, voluntary standards; and 
(ii) operates in a transparent manner, considers 
a balanced set of interests with respect to such stand-
ards, and provides for due process and an appeals 
process with respect to such standards. 
(2) PART 23.—The term ‘‘part 23’’ means part 23 of title 
14, Code of Federal Regulations.
H. R. 1848—3 
(3) PART 23 REORGANIZATION AVIATION RULEMAKING COM-
MITTEE.—The term ‘‘Part 23 Reorganization Aviation Rule-
making Committee’’ means the aviation rulemaking committee 
established by the Federal Aviation Administration in August 
2011 to consider the reorganization of the regulations under 
part 23. 
(4) SMALL AIRPLANE.—The term ‘‘small airplane’’ means 
an airplane which is certified to part 23 standards. 
Speaker of the House of Representatives. 
Vice President of the United States and
President of the Senate.