(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The first sen-
tence of section 1114(a) is amended by striking
‘‘and (e)’’ and inserting ‘‘(d), and (f)’’.
(c) DISCOVERY AND USE OF COCKPIT AND SURFACE
VEHICLE RECORDINGS AND TRANSCRIPTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 1154 is amended—
(A) in the section heading by striking
‘‘cockpit voice and other material’’ and
inserting ‘‘cockpit and surface vehicle
recordings and transcripts’’;
(B) in subsection (a)—
(i) by striking ‘‘cockpit voice re-
corder’’ each place it appears and inserting
‘‘cockpit or surface vehicle recorder’’;
(ii) by striking ‘‘section 1114(c)’’ each
place it appears and inserting ‘‘section
1114(c) or 1114(d)’’; and
(iii) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing:
‘‘(6) In this subsection—
‘‘(A) the term ‘recorder’ means a voice or video
recorder; and
‘‘(B) the term ‘transcript’ includes any written
depiction of visual information obtained from a video
recorder.’’.
(2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of
sections for chapter 11 is amended by striking the
item relating to section 1154 and inserting the fol-
lowing:
‘‘1154. Discovery and use of cockpit and surface vehicle recordings and tran-
scripts.’’.
(d) REQUIREMENTS FOR INSTALLATION AND USE OF
RECORDING DEVICES.—Section 329 is amended by add-
ing at the end the following:
‘‘(e) REQUIREMENTS FOR INSTALLATION AND USE
OF RECORDING DEVICES.—A requirement for the installa-
tion and use of an automatic voice, video, or data record-
ing device on an aircraft, vessel, or surface vehicle shall
not be construed to be the collection of information for
the purpose of any Federal law or regulation, if the
requirement—
‘‘(1) meets a safety need for the automatic re-
cording of realtime voice or data experience that is
restricted to a fixed period of the most recent oper-
ation of the aircraft, vessel, or surface vehicle;
‘‘(2) does not place a periodic reporting burden
on any person; and
‘‘(3) does not necessitate the collection and
preservation of data separate from the device.’’.
SEC. 6. PRIORITY OF INVESTIGATIONS.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1131(a)(2) is amended—
(1) by striking ‘‘(2) An investigation’’ and in-
serting ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to the requirements of this
paragraph, an investigation’’; and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
‘‘(B) If the Attorney General, in consultation with the
Chairman of the Board, determines and notifies the Board
that circumstances reasonably indicate that the accident
may have been caused by an intentional criminal act, the
Board shall relinquish investigative priority to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation. The relinquishment of investiga-
tive priority by the Board shall not otherwise affect the
authority of the Board to continue its investigation under
this section.
‘‘(C) If a law enforcement agency suspects and noti-
fies the Board that an accident being investigated by the
Board under paragraph (1)(A) through (D) may have
been caused by an intentional criminal act, the Board, in
consultation with the law enforcement agency, shall take
necessary actions to ensure that evidence of the criminal
act is preserved.’’.
(b) REVISION OF 1977 AGREEMENT.—Not later than
1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the
National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal
Bureau of Investigation shall revise their 1977 agreement
on the investigation of accidents to take into account the
amendments made by this Act.
SEC. 7. PUBLIC AIRCRAFT INVESTIGATION CLARIFICATION.
Section 1131(d) is amended by striking ‘‘1134(b)(2)’’
and inserting ‘‘1134(a), (b), (d), and (f)’’.
SEC. 8. AUTHORITY OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 11 of
subtitle II is amended by adding at the end the following:
‘‘§ 1137. Authority of the Inspector General
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of the
Department of Transportation, in accordance with the
mission of the Inspector General to prevent and detect
fraud and abuse, shall have authority to review only the
financial management and business operations of the Na-
tional Transportation Safety Board, including internal ac-
counting and administrative control systems, to determine
compliance with applicable Federal laws, rules, and regu-
lations.
‘‘(b) DUTIES.—In carrying out this section, the In-
spector General shall—
‘‘(1) keep the Chairman of the Board and Con-
gress fully and currently informed about problems
relating to administration of the internal accounting
and administrative control systems of the Board;
‘‘(2) issue findings and recommendations for
actions to address such problems; and
‘‘(3) report periodically to Congress on any
progress made in implementing actions to address
such problems.
‘‘(c) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.—In carrying out this
section, the Inspector General may exercise authorities
granted to the Inspector General under subsections (a)
and (b) of section 6 of the Inspector General Act of 1978
(5 U.S.C. App.).
‘‘(d) REIMBURSEMENT.—The Inspector General shall
be reimbursed by the Board for the costs associated with
carrying out activities under this section.’’.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec-
tions for such subchapter is amended by adding at the
end the following:
‘‘1137. Authority of the Inspector General.’’.
SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
Section 1118(a) is amended to read as follows:
‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro-
priated for the purposes of this chapter $57,000,000 for
fiscal year 2000, $65,000,000 for fiscal year 2001, and
$72,000,000 for fiscal year 2002. Such sums remain avail-
able until expended.’’.
Passed the House of Representatives September 30,
1999.
Attest:
JEFF TRANDAHL,
Clerk.