I 118th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 6448 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES November 17, 2023 Mr. Mann (for himself and Mr. Magaziner ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To require the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to conduct a study to compare the effects of allowing certain aircraft certified under part 23 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, to operate under part 121 of such title, and for other purposes.

1. Study on safety and airworthiness of certain aircraft (a) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall conduct a study on the effects of allowing post-2017 aircraft to operate under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations. (b) Considerations In conducting the study under subsection (a), the Administrator shall consider— (1) actions that Congress may take to incentivize aircraft manufacturers to produce aircraft that are right-sized to serve small communities; (2) recommendations of the National Transportation Safety Board contained in Safety Study 94/02, titled Commuter Airline Safety , and published by the Board in November 1994; (3) the final rule of the Federal Aviation Administration, titled Commuter Operations and General Certification and Operations Requirements , and published on December 20, 1995 (60 Fed. Reg. 65832); and (4) the operational disadvantages that air carriers face due to Federal regulations compared with foreign air carriers using post-2017 aircraft. (c) Composition of study group In conducting the study under subsection (a), the Administrator shall coordinate with, and solicit comments and input from an independent study group, which shall be comprised of the following members appointed by the Administrator: (1) Representatives of the aviation industry. (2) Representatives of small, rural, and remote communities affected by decreasing scheduled airline service, as well as communities in which subsidies are provided pursuant to subchapter II of chapter 417 of title 49, United States Code. (3) Aviation safety experts with specific knowledge of aircraft airworthiness requirements under part 23 and part 25 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations. (d) Report to congress (1) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall complete the study required under subsection (a) and submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representative and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Technology of the Senate a report on such study. (2) Contents The Administrator shall include in the report required under paragraph (1)— (A) a comparison of the safety of pre-1995 aircraft with the safety of post-2017 aircraft; (B) a description of the number of pre-1995 aircraft that are used for commercial purposes as of the date of enactment of this Act; (C) an assessment of whether air carriers operating under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, would purchase post-2017 aircraft for commercial purposes; and (D) an assessment of the economic need of scheduled airline service of small and rural communities and the longstanding challenges of improving scheduled service to these communities. (e) Definitions In this section: (1) Pre-1995 aircraft The term pre-1995 aircraft means passenger aircraft with at least 10 and not more than 19 seats that were certified under part 23 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, before March 29, 1995, and that operate under part 121 of such title. (2) Post-2017 aircraft The term post-2017 aircraft means passenger aircraft with at least 10 and not more than 19 seats certified under part 23 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, after August 30, 2017.