A bill to require the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to review certain decisions to grant categorical exclusions for Next Generation flight procedures and to consult with the airports at which such procedures will be implemented.

Bill: 114-s-2406
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. McCain, John [R-AZ]
Introduced: 2015-12-16
Policy area: Transportation and Public Works
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Aviation and airports

Community life and organization

Department of Transportation

Environmental assessment, monitoring, research
Latest action: action_date: 2015-12-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

Summaries:
action_date: 2015-12-16
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p>This bill amends the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 to require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), at least 90 days before applying a categorical exclusion to a new navigation procedure at an Operational Evolution Partnership (OEP) airport (a commercial U.S. airport with significant activity), to: (1) notify and consult with the operator of the airport, and (2) consider consultations or other engagement with the community in which the airport is located to inform the public of the procedure.</p> <p>The FAA shall review a decision that it made on or after February 14, 2012, and before this Act's enactment to grant a categorical exclusion with respect to a procedure to be implemented at an OEP airport that was a material change from procedures previously in effect to determine if implementation of the procedure had a significant effect on the human environment in the community in which the airport is located, if the operator of that airport requests such a review and demonstrates that there is good cause to believe that the implementation had such effect. If, in conducting such a review, the FAA determines that implementing the procedure had such a significant effect, it shall: (1) consult with the operator of the airport to identify measures to mitigate the effect, and (2) consider the use of alternative flight paths.</p>

tv_txt: II 114th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 2406 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES December 16, 2015 Mr. McCain (for himself and Mr. Flake ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation A BILL To require the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to review certain decisions to grant categorical exclusions for Next Generation flight procedures and to consult with the airports at which such procedures will be implemented.

1. Review and notifications of categorical exclusions granted for Next Generation flight procedures Section 213(c) of the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 ( Public Law 112–95 ; 49 U.S.C. 40101 note) is amended by adding at the end the following: (3) Notifications and consultations Not less than 90 days before applying a categorical exclusion under this subsection to a new procedure at an OEP airport, the Administrator shall— (A) notify and consult with the operator of the airport at which the procedure would be implemented; and (B) consider consultations or other engagement with the community in the which the airport is located to inform the public of the procedure. (4) Review of certain categorical exclusions (A) In general The Administrator shall review a decision of the Administrator made on or after February 14, 2012, and before the date of the enactment of this paragraph to grant a categorical exclusion under this subsection with respect to a procedure to be implemented at an OEP airport that was a material change from procedures previously in effect at the airport to determine if the implementation of the procedure had a significant effect on the human environment in the community in which the airport is located if the operator of that airport requests such a review and demonstrates that there is good cause to believe that the implementation of the procedure had such an effect. (B) Content of review If, in conducting a review under subparagraph (A) with respect to a procedure implemented at an OEP airport, the Administrator, in consultation with the operator of the airport, determines that implementing the procedure had a significant effect on the human environment in the community in which the airport is located, the Administrator shall— (i) consult with the operator of the airport to identify measures to mitigate the effect of the procedure on the human environment; and (ii) in conducting such consultations, consider the use of alternative flight paths. (C) Human environment defined In this paragraph, the term human environment has the meaning given that term in section 1508.14 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of this paragraph). .