H.R. 3935 — what changed

Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

“(b) Administration leadership

“(1) Administrator

“(A) In general—The head of the Administration is the Administrator, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

“(B) Qualifications—The Administrator shall—

“(i) be a citizen of the United States;

“(ii) not be an active duty or retired member of an Armed Force; and

“(iii) have experience in organizational management and a field directly related to aviation.

“(C) Fitness—In appointing an individual as Administrator, the President shall consider the fitness of such individual to carry out efficiently the duties and powers of the office.

“(D) Term of office—The Term of office for any individual appointed as Administrator shall be 5 years.

“(E) Reporting chain—Except as provided in subsection (f) or in other provisions of law, the Administrator reports directly to the Secretary of Transportation.

“(2) Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management

“(A) In general—The Administration has a Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management, who shall be a political appointee of the President.

“(B) Qualifications—The Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management shall—

“(i) be a citizen of the United States; and

“(ii) have experience in management and a field directly related to aviation.

“(C) Fitness—In appointing an individual as Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management, the President shall consider the fitness of the individual to carry out efficiently the duties and powers of the office, including the duty to act for the Administrator under the circumstances described in subparagraph (F).

“(D) Reporting chain—The Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management reports directly to the Administrator.

“(E) Duties—The Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management shall—

“(i) manage the Assistant Administrators and Chief Counsel established under subsection (d), except the Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement; and

“(ii) carry out duties and powers prescribed by the Administrator.

“(F) Succession plan—The Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management acts for the Administrator when the Administrator is absent or unable to serve, or when the office of the Administrator is vacant.

“(G) Compensation

“(i) Annual rate of basic pay—The annual rate of basic pay of the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management shall be set by the Secretary but shall not exceed the annual rate of basic pay payable to the Administrator.

“(ii) Exception—A retired regular officer of an Armed Force serving as the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management is entitled to hold a rank and grade not lower than that held when appointed as the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management and may elect to receive—

“(I) the pay provided for the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management under clause (i); or

“(II) the pay and allowances or the retired pay of the military grade held.

“(iii) Reimbursement of expenses—If the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management elects to receive compensation described in clause (ii)(II), the Administration shall reimburse the appropriate military department from funds available for the expenses of the Administration.

“(3) Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations

“(A) In general—The Administration has a Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations, who—

“(i) shall be appointed by the Administrator; and

“(ii) shall not be a political appointee.

“(B) Qualifications—The Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations shall—

“(i) be a citizen of the United States; and

“(ii) have experience in organizational management and a field directly related to aviation.

“(C) Fitness—In appointing an individual as Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations, the Administrator shall consider the fitness of the individual to carry out efficiently the duties and powers of the office, including the duty to act for the Administrator under the circumstances described in subparagraph (F).

“(D) Reporting chain—The Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations reports to the Administrator.

“(E) Duties—The Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations shall—

“(i) manage the Associate Administrators and Chief Operating Officer established under subsection (c) and the Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement established under subsection (d);

changed “(ii) develop and maintain a long-term strategic plan of the Administration; andAdministration;

changed “(iii) carry out other duties coordinate the safe integration of new entrants and powers prescribed by technologies into the Administrator.national airspace system; and

added “(iv) carry out other duties and powers prescribed by the Administrator.

“(F) Succession plan—The Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations acts for the Administrator when the Administrator and the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management are absent or unable to serve, or when the office of the Administrator and the Office of the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management are vacant.

“(G) Compensation—The annual rate of basic pay of the Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations shall be set by the Administrator but shall not exceed the annual rate of basic pay payable to the Administrator.

“(4) Leadership of the Administration defined—In this section, the term leadership of the Administration means—

“(A) the Administrator under paragraph (1);

“(B) the Deputy Administrator for Programs and Management under paragraph (2); and

“(C) the Deputy Administrator for Safety and Operations under paragraph (3).”

“(c) Associate administrators

“(1) In general—The Administration has Associate Administrators, as determined necessary by the Administrator, including—

changed “(A) appointed by the Administrator, an Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety, an Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation, an Associate Administrator for Security and Hazardous Materials Safety, a Chief Operating Officer of the Air Traffic Control System; andSystem;

changed “(B) appointed by the President, an Associate Administrator for Airports.Airports; and

added “(C) when authority under chapter 509 of title 51 is explicitly delegated by the Secretary of Transportation to the Administrator, an Associate Administrator for Commercial Space Transportation who shall be appointed by the Administrator.

“(2) Qualifications—Associate Administrators shall be citizens of the United States.

“(3) Duties—The Associate Administrators shall carry out duties and powers of their office described in this section and those prescribed by the Administrator.

“(d) Chief Counsel; Assistant Administrators

“(1) In general—The Administration has Assistant Administrators and a Chief Counsel.

“(A) Chief Counsel—The Chief Counsel shall be appointed by the President and shall—

“(i) advise the Administrator on legal matters relating to the responsibilities, functions, and management of the Administration;

“(ii) at the request of the Administrator, provide guidance, counsel, and advice regarding, but shall not have final decision-making authority with regards to, the activities of the Administrator, including—

“(I) rulemaking activities;

“(II) policy and guidance document production;

“(III) exemption and waiver decisions; and

“(IV) certification and approval determinations;

“(iii) represent the Administration before the National Transportation Safety Board, Department of Transportation law judges, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Federal courts of the United States, and other bodies and courts, as appropriate;

“(iv) pursue enforcement actions on behalf of the Administrator; and

“(v) perform other functions as determined by the Administrator.

“(B) Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement—The Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement shall be appointed by the Administrator and shall—

“(i) be responsible for developing and managing the execution of a regulatory agenda for the Administration that meets statutory and Administration deadlines, including by—

“(I) prioritizing rulemaking projects that are necessary to improve safety;

“(II) establishing the regulatory agenda of the Administration; and

“(III) coordinating with offices of the Administration, the Department, and other Federal entities as appropriate to improve timely feedback generation and approvals when required by law;

“(ii) not delegate overall responsibility for meeting internal timelines and final completion of the regulatory activities of the Administration outside the Office of the Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement;

“(iii) on an ongoing basis—

“(I) review the Administration’s regulations in effect to improve safety;

“(II) reduce undue regulatory burden;

“(III) replace prescriptive regulations with performance-based regulations, as appropriate;

“(IV) prevent duplicative regulations; and

“(V) increase regulatory clarity and transparency whenever possible;

“(iv) make recommendations for the Administrator’s review under subsection (f)(3)(C)(ii);

“(v) receive, coordinate, and respond to petitions for rulemaking and for exemption as provided for in subpart A of part 11 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, and provide an initial response to a petitioner not later than 30 days after the receipt of such a petition—

“(I) acknowledging receipt of such petition;

“(II) confirming completeness of such petition;

“(III) providing an initial indication of the complexity of the request and how such complexity may impact the timeline for adjudication; and

“(IV) requesting any additional information, as appropriate, that would assist in the consideration of the petition;

“(vi) track the issuance of exemptions and waivers by the Administration to sections of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, and establish a methodology by which to determine if it would be more efficient and in the public’s interest to amend a rule to reduce the future need of waivers and exemptions; and

“(vii) promulgate regulatory updates as determined more efficient or in the public’s best interest under clause (vi).

“(C) Appointment—Additional Assistant Administrators, as determined necessary by the Administrator, may be appointed by the Administrator.

“(2) Qualifications—The Assistant Administrators shall be a citizen of the United States.

“(3) Duties—The Assistant Administrators shall carry out duties and powers of their office described in this section and those prescribed by the Administrator.

“(4) Management board of the Administration—In this section, the term Management Board of the Administration means—

“(A) the Associate Administrators and Chief Operating Officer established under subsection (c); and

“(B) the Assistant Administrators and Chief Counsel established under subsection (d).”

“(A) established by executive order; or

“(B) not explicitly directed by legislation to review the exercise of such duties, powers, and authorities by the Secretary or the Administrator.”

added “(i) Issuance of regulations—In the performance”

added “(ii) Petitions for rulemaking—The Administrator shall act”

added “(iii) Rulemaking timeline—The Administrator shall issue”

added “(iv) Reporting requirement—On February 1”

“(B) Approval of Secretary of Transportation

“(i) In general—The Administrator may not issue, unless the Secretary of Transportation approves the issuance of the regulation in advance, a proposed regulation or final regulation that—

“(I) is likely to result in the expenditure by State, local, and Tribal governments in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $250,000,000 or more (adjusted annually for inflation beginning with the year following the date of enactment of the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act) in any year; or

“(II) is significant.

“(ii) Significant defined—For purposes of this paragraph, a regulation is significant if the Administrator, in consultation with the Secretary (as appropriate), determines that the regulation—

“(I) will have an annual effect on the economy of $250,000,000 or more (adjusted annually for inflation beginning with the year following the date of enactment of the Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act);

“(II) raises novel or serious legal or policy issues that will substantially and materially affect other transportation modes; or

“(III) adversely affect, in a substantial and material way, the economy, a sector of the economy, productivity, competition, jobs, the environment, public health or safety, or a State, local, or Tribal government or communities.

“(iii) Emergency regulation—In an emergency, the Administrator may issue a final regulation described in clause (i) without prior approval of the Secretary. If the Secretary objects to such regulation in writing within 5 days (excluding Saturday, Sundays, and legal public holidays) of the issuance, the Administrator shall immediately rescind such regulation.

“(iv) Other regulations—The Secretary may not require that the Administrator submit a proposed or final regulation to the Secretary for approval, nor may the Administrator submit a proposed or final regulation to the Secretary for approval, if the regulation—

“(I) does not require the Secretary’s approval under clause (i) (excluding a regulation issued pursuant to clause (iii)); or

“(II) is a routine or frequent action or a procedural action.

“(v) Timeline—The Administrator shall submit a copy of any proposed or final regulation requiring approval by the Secretary under clause (i) to the Secretary, who shall either approve the regulation or return the regulation to the Administrator with comments within 30 days after receiving the regulation. If the Secretary fails to approve or return the regulation with comments to the Administrator within 30 days, the regulation shall be deemed to have been approved by the Secretary.

“(C) Periodic review

“(i) In general—In addition to the review requirements established under section 5.13(d) of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, the Administrator shall review any significant regulation issued 3 years after the effective date of the regulation.

“(ii) Discretional review—The Administrator may review any regulation that has been in effect for more than 3 years.

“(iii) Substance of review—In performing a review under clause (i) or (ii), the Administrator shall determine if—

“(I) the cost assumptions were accurate;

“(II) the intended benefit of the regulation is being realized;

“(III) the need remains to continue such regulation as in effect; and

“(IV) the Administrator recommends updates to such regulation based on the review criteria specified in section 5.13(d) of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(iv) Review management—Any periodic review of a regulation under this subparagraph shall be managed by the Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement, who may task an advisory committee or the Management Advisory Council established under subsection (p) to assist in performing the review.”

“(3) Duties and powers of the Administrator

“(A) In general—The Administrator shall carry out—

“(i) the duties and powers of the Secretary under this subsection related to aviation safety (except those related to transportation, packaging, marking, or description of hazardous material) and stated in—

“(I) subsections (c) and (d) of section 1132;

“(II) sections 40101(c), 40103(b), 40106(a), 40108, 40109(b), 40113(a), 40113(c), 40113(d), 40113(e), 40114(a), and 40117;

“(III) chapter 443;

“(IV) chapter 445, except sections 44502(a)(3), 44503, and 44509;

“(V) chapter 447, except sections 44721(b), and 44723;

“(VI) chapter 448;

“(VII) chapter 451;

“(VIII) chapter 453;

“(IX) section 46104;

“(X) subsections (d) and (h)(2) of section 46301, section 46303(c), sections 46304 through 46308, section 46310, section 46311, and sections 46313 through 46320;

“(XI) chapter 465;

“(XII) chapter 471;

“(XIII) chapter 475; and

“(XIV) chapter 509 of title 51; and

“(ii) such additional duties and powers as may be prescribed by the Secretary.

“(B) Applicability—Section 40101(d) applies to the duties and powers specified in subparagraph (A).

“(C) Transfer—Any of the duties and powers specified in subparagraph (A) may only be transferred to another part of the Department if specifically provided by law or in a reorganization plan submitted under chapter 9 of title 5.

“(D) Administrative finality—A decision of the Administrator in carrying out the duties or powers specified in subparagraph (A) is administratively final.”

Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by striking subsection (g) and inserting the following:

“(g) Office of Innovation

“(1) In general—There is established within the Federal Aviation Administration an Office of Innovation (in this subsection referred to as the “Office”) comprised of employees of the Administration who shall—

“(A) have a diverse set of expertise;

“(B) assist the leadership of the Administration and the Management Board of the Administration with—

“(i) scoping complex regulatory issues and drafting documents on topics that span multiple offices or lines of business of the Administration;

“(ii) evaluating internal processes; and

“(iii) positioning the Administration to support aerospace innovation; and

“(C) receive taskings from the leadership of the Administration and the Management Board of the Administration, as determined necessary by such individuals, and work collaboratively with relevant program offices of the Administration, as necessary, to respond to such taskings.

“(2) Appointment of members

“(A) Appointments—The Administrator shall appoint a maximum of 15 employees to serve a 2-year term as a member of the Office of Innovation with at least 1 employee appointed from each of the following:

“(i) Office of Aviation Safety.

“(ii) The Air Traffic Organization.

“(iii) Office of Airports.

“(iv) Office of Security and Hazardous Materials Safety.

changed “(v) When authority under chapter 509 of title 51 is explicitly delegated by the Secretary of Transportation to the Administrator, the Office of Commercial Space Transportation.

“(vi) Office of the Chief Counsel.

“(vii) Office of Policy, International Affairs, and Environment.

“(B) Consultation—The Office may consult, as necessary, with other personnel of the Administration.

“(3) Selection of members—An employee appointed under paragraph (2)—

“(A) may be appointed from nominations made by Associate Administrators, Assistant Administrators, and the Chief Counsel of the Administration;

“(B) shall not be a senior executive of the Administration;

“(C) shall have been an employee of the Administration for at least 2 years; and

“(D) shall have expertise in the authorities and duties of the respective office of the employee.

“(4) Innovation office lead—The Administrator shall appoint a lead of the Office who shall report to the leadership of the Administration and who—

“(A) may have a set term, as determined by the Administrator;

“(B) shall manage the personnel and activities of such Office; and

“(C) may be a detailed employee of any office of the Administration, notwithstanding the numerical limits placed on appointments in paragraph (2)(A).

“(5) Status—An appointment of an employee to the Office established under this subsection shall not impact the status or position of such employee in the respective office of such employee and such employee shall be considered a detailed employee to the Office of Innovation.

“(6) Resources—The Administrator shall provide resources and staff, as necessary, to the Office to support the activities of the Office described in paragraph (1), not to exceed more than 6 full-time equivalent positions, including any necessary project managers.”

Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by striking subsection (i) and inserting the following:

“(i) FAA Ombudsman

“(1) Establishment—There is established within the Federal Aviation Administration an Ombudsman who shall coordinate or facilitate the adjudication of covered submissions.

“(2) Ombudsman

“(A) In general—The Ombudsman shall be appointed by the Administrator and report to the Assistant Administrator for Government and Industry Affairs.

“(B) Term—The Ombudsman shall be appointed for a term of 5 years.

“(3) Duties—The duties of the Ombudsman shall be as follows:

“(A) Work with the relevant offices within the Administration to—

“(i) with respect to a covered submission, resolve, provide a status update, or provide clarity on the status of such submissions;

“(ii) bring to the attention of the relevant office of the Administration concerns, as necessary, regarding Administration processes or considerations discovered while coordinating an activity related to a covered submission under this subsection; and

“(iii) address any gaps and communication lapses in Administration coordination processes.

“(B) Determine if, based on a coordinated activity carried out under this subsection, reconsideration with respect to covered submissions or administrative actions are necessary and report to the Administrator or the relevant office within the Administration with recommendations relating to such reconsideration.

“(C) Determine if trends materialize that could warrant process, procedural, or resource changes and report recommendations regarding such changes to the Administrator and relevant offices within the Administration.

“(D) Ensure that reporting, processing, or dispute resolution mechanisms within the Administration are transparent and accessible to the public, and facilitate the use of such reporting, processing, or dispute resolution mechanisms, when appropriate.

“(E) Perform other duties as prescribed by the Assistant Administrator.

“(4) Discretion on coordination and review

“(A) In general—The Ombudsman shall determine whether to coordinate a review of a covered submission in order to provide a response, coordinate the reconsideration of an administrative action, or take no additional action. In making a determination under this subparagraph, the Ombudsman shall consider—

“(i) whether there are reporting, processing, or dispute resolution mechanisms that have not been exhausted or that may be more appropriate for dealing with, investigating, and responding to such covered submission;

“(ii) whether the subject or outcome of a covered submission is alleged to be—

“(I) contrary to law or regulation;

“(II) arbitrary and capricious; or

“(III) performed in an unreasonably inefficient or untimely manner; and

“(iii) such other factors as the Ombudsman considers appropriate.

“(B) Exception—With regard to a covered submission concerning an activity relating to an alleged violation of an order, a regulation, or any other provision of Federal law by the Administration or whistleblower retaliation, the Ombudsman shall refer such covered submission to the appropriate Federal entity to adjudicate or investigate the subject of such submission.

“(C) Cooperation—The Administrator shall ensure that the officers and employees of the Administration fully cooperate with the activities of the Ombudsman and provide such information, documents, or materials as may be requested by the Ombudsman.

“(5) Response requirement—The Ombudsman shall ensure that the Administration provides an initial response to or status update on covered submissions within 10 business days of the Ombudsman receiving such submission.

“(6) Definitions—In this subsection:

“(A) Administrative action—The term administrative action means—

“(i) an action taken by the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to issue, deny, modify, or revoke a certificate, registration, approval, waiver, license, exemption, determination, interpretation, or any other authorizing action; or

“(ii) the lack of any action (or activity related to an action) described in clause (i) necessary to be taken by the Administrator.

“(B) Covered submission—The term covered submission means an inquiry or objection relating to—

“(i) an aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance certification;

changed “(ii) a an airman or pilot certificate, including scheduling an associated appointment with Administration personnel or designees;

“(iii) a medical certificate;

“(iv) an operator certificate;

changed “(v) when authority under chapter 509 of title 51 is explicitly delegated by the Secretary of Transportation to the Administrator, a commercial space transportation license;license or permit issued under chapter 509 of title 51;

“(vi) an aircraft registration;

“(vii) an operational approval, waiver, or exemption;

“(viii) a legal interpretation;

“(ix) an outstanding determination;

“(x) an application of agency guidance; and

“(xi) any certificate not otherwise described in this subparagraph that is issued pursuant to chapter 447.”

Section 106 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended—

“(p) Management advisory council

“(1) Establishment—The Administrator shall establish an advisory council which shall be known as the Federal Aerospace Management Advisory Council (in this subsection referred to as the “Council”).

“(2) Membership—The Council shall consist of 13 members, who shall consist of—

“(A) a designee of the Secretary of Transportation;

“(B) a designee of the Secretary of Defense;

“(C) 5 members representing aerospace and technology interests, appointed by the Administrator;

“(D) 5 members representing aerospace and technology interests, appointed by the Secretary of Transportation; and

“(E) 1 member, appointed by the Secretary of Transportation, who is the head of a union representing air traffic control system employees.

“(3) Qualifications—No officer or employee of the United States Government may be appointed to the Council under subparagraph (C) or (D) of paragraph (2).

“(4) Functions

“(A) In general

“(i) Advise; counsel—The Council shall provide advice and counsel to the Administrator on issues which affect or are affected by the activities of the Administrator.

“(ii) Resource—The Council shall function as an oversight resource for management, policy, spending, and regulatory matters under the jurisdiction of the Administrator.

“(iii) Submissions to Administration—With respect to Administration management, policy, spending, funding, data management and analysis, safety initiatives, international agreements, activities of the International Civil Aviation Organization, and regulatory matters affecting the aerospace industry and the national airspace system, the Council may—

“(I) regardless of whether solicited by the Administrator, submit comments, recommended modifications, proposals, and supporting or dissenting views to the Administrator; and

“(II) request the Administrator include in any submission to Congress, the Secretary, or the general public, and in any submission for publication in the Federal Register, a description of the comments, recommended modifications, and dissenting or supporting views received from the Council under subclause (I).

“(iv) Reasoning—Together with a Council submission that is published or described under clause (iii)(II), the Administrator shall provide the reasons for any differences between the views of the Council and the views or actions of the Administrator.

“(v) Cost-benefit analysis—The Council shall review the rulemaking cost-benefit analysis process and develop recommendations to improve the analysis and ensure that the public interest is fully protected.

“(vi) Process review—The Council shall review the process through which the Administration determines to use advisory circulars, service bulletins, and other externally facing guidance and regulatory material.

“(B) Meetings—The Council shall meet on a regular and periodic basis or at the call of the chair or of the Administrator.

“(C) Access to documents and staff—The Administration may give the Council appropriate access to relevant documents and personnel of the Administration, and the Administrator shall make available, consistent with the authority to withhold commercial and other proprietary information under section 552 of title 5 (commonly known as the “Freedom of Information Act”), cost data associated with the acquisition and operation of air traffic service systems.

“(D) Disclosure of commercial or proprietary data—Any member of the Council who receives commercial or other proprietary data as provided for in this paragraph from the Administrator shall be subject to the provisions of section 1905 of title 18, pertaining to unauthorized disclosure of such information.

“(5) Application of Chapter 10 of title 5—Chapter 10 of title 5 does not apply to—

“(A) the Council;

“(B) such aviation rulemaking committees as the Administrator shall designate; or

“(C) such aerospace rulemaking committees as the Secretary shall designate.

“(6) Administrative matters

“(A) Terms—Members of the Council appointed under paragraph (2)(C) shall be appointed for a term of 3 years.

“(B) Term for air traffic control representative—The member appointed under paragraph (2)(D) shall be appointed for a term of 3 years, except that the term of such individual shall end whenever the individual no longer meets the requirements of paragraph (2)(D).

“(C) Vacancy—Any vacancy on the Council shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointment, except that any member appointed to fill a vacancy occurring before the expiration of the term for which the member’s predecessor was appointed shall be appointed for the remainder of that term.

“(D) Continuation in office—A member of the Council whose term expires shall continue to serve until the date on which the member’s successor takes office.

“(E) Removal—Any member of the Council appointed under paragraph (2) may be removed for cause by whomever makes the appointment.

“(F) Chair; vice chair—The Council shall elect a chair and a vice chair from among the members appointed under subparagraphs (C) and (D) of paragraph (2), each of whom shall serve for a term of 1 year. The vice chair shall perform the duties of the chair in the absence of the chair.

“(G) Travel and per diem—Each member of the Council shall be paid actual travel expenses, and per diem in lieu of subsistence expenses when away from the usual place of residence of the member, in accordance with section 5703 of title 5.

“(H) Detail of personnel from the administration—The Administrator shall make available to the Council such staff, information, and administrative services and assistance as may reasonably be required to enable the Council to carry out its responsibilities under this subsection.”

“(q) Aviation Noise Officer

“(1) In general—The Administration has an Aviation Noise Officer, who shall be appointed by the Administrator.

“(2) Regional officers—The Aviation Noise Officer shall designate, within each region of the Administration, a Regional Aviation Noise Officer.

“(3) Duties—The Aviation Noise Officer, in coordination with the Regional Aviation Noise Officers, shall—

“(A) serve as a liaison with the public, including community groups, on issues regarding aircraft noise;

changed “(B) make recommendations to the Administrator to address concerns raised by the public in decision making processes; public; and

“(C) be consulted when the Administration proposes changes in aircraft routes so as to minimize any increases in aircraft noise over populated areas.

“(4) Number of full-time equivalent employees—The appointment of an Aviation Noise Officer under this subsection shall not result in an increase in the number of full-time equivalent employees in the Administration.”

“(d) Non-compliant airports

“(1) In general—The Secretary shall include in the plan a detailed statement listing airports the Secretary has reason to believe are not in compliance with grant assurances or other requirements with respect to airport lands and shall include—

“(A) the circumstances of noncompliance;

“(B) the timeline for corrective action with respect to such noncompliance; and

“(C) any corrective action the Secretary intends to require to bring the airport sponsor into compliance.

“(2) Listing—The Secretary is not required to conduct an audit or make a final determination before including an airport on the list referred to in paragraph (1).”

“(c) Report sunset—Subsection (a) shall cease to be effective after September 30, 2028.”

“44114. Privacy

“(a) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish and continuously improve a process by which, upon request of a private aircraft owner or operator, the Administrator blocks the registration number and other similar identifiable data or information, except for physical markings required by law, of the aircraft of the owner or operator from any public dissemination or display (except in furnished data or information made available to or from a Government agency pursuant to a government contract, subcontract, or agreement) for the noncommercial flights of the owner or operator.

changed “(b) Withholding personally identifiable information on the aircraft registry—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section Act and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Administrator shall establish a procedure by which, upon request of a private aircraft owner or operator, the Administrator shall withhold from public disclosure (except in furnished data or information made available to or from a Government agency pursuant to a government contract, subcontract, or agreement) agreement, including that for traffic management purposes) the personally identifiable information of such individual individual, including on the Civil Aviation Registry website.FAA websites.

changed “(c) ICAO Icao aircraft identification code

“(1) In general—The Administrator shall establish a program for aircraft owners and operators to apply for a new ICAO aircraft identification code.

“(2) Limitations—In carrying out the program described in paragraph (1), the Administrator shall require—

changed “(A) each applicant to substantiate the attest to a safety or security need in applying for a new ICAO aircraft identification code; and

“(B) each approved applicant who obtains a new ICAO aircraft identification code to comply with all applicable aspects of, or related to, part 45 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, including updating an aircraft’s registration number and N–Number to reflect such aircraft’s new ICAO aircraft identification code.

changed “(d) Decoupling Mode S mode s codes—The Administrator shall develop a plan for which the Administrator could allow for a process to disassociate an assigned Mode S code with the number assigned to an aircraft that is registered pursuant to section 44103.

“(e) Definitions—In this section:

changed “(1) ADS–B—The Ads–b—The term ADS–B “ADS–B” means automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast.

changed “(2) ICAO—The Icao—The term ICAO “ICAO” means the International Civil Aviation Organization.

changed “(3) Personally identifiable information—The term personally “personally identifiable information information” means—

“(A) the mailing address or registration address of an individual;

changed “(B) an electronic address (including an e-mail email address) of an individual; or

changed “(C) the telephone number of an individual.”individual.

added “(D) the names of the aircraft owner or operator.”

Section 44737 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

“(d) Exemption—A helicopter issued an experimental certificate under section 21.191 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations), or operating under a Special Flight Permit issued under section 21.197 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations (or any successor regulations), is exempt from the requirements of this section.”

“(3) a program to provide grants for eligible projects to support the education and recruitment of aviation manufacturing workers and the development of the aviation manufacturing workforce.”

“(3) Education projects—The Secretary shall ensure that not less than 20 percent of the amounts authorized to be expended under this subsection shall be used to carry out a grant program which shall be referred to as the “Willa Brown Aviation Education Program” (in this paragraph referred to as the “Program”) under which the Secretary shall provide grants for eligible projects described in subsection (d) that are carried out in communities in counties containing at least 1 qualified opportunity zone (as such term is defined in section 1400Z–1(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986).”

“(1) Application for aircraft pilot program—An application for a grant under the program established under subsection (a)(1) may be submitted, in such form as the Secretary may specify, by—

“(A) an air carrier, as defined in section 40102 of title 49, United States Code;

“(B) an entity that holds management specifications under subpart K of title 91 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(C) an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), a postsecondary vocational institution (as defined in section 102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), or a high school or secondary school (as such terms are defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));

“(D) a flight school that provides flight training, as defined in part 61 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or that holds a pilot school certificate under part 141 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(E) a labor organization representing professional pilots;

“(F) an aviation-related nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code; or

“(G) a State, local, territorial, or Tribal governmental entity.

“(2) Application for aviation maintenance program—An application for a grant under the program established under subsection (a)(2) may be submitted, in such form as the Secretary may specify, by—

“(A) a holder of a certificate issued under part 21, 121, 135, 145, or 147 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(B) a labor organization representing aviation maintenance workers;

“(C) an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), a postsecondary vocational institution (as defined in section 102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), or a high school or secondary school (as such terms are defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));

“(D) an aviation-related nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code; or

“(E) a State, local, territorial, or Tribal governmental entity.

“(3) Application for aviation manufacturing program—An application for a grant under the program established under subsection (a)(3) may be submitted, in such form as the Secretary may specify, by—

“(A) an entity that—

“(i) actively designs or manufactures any aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance, or a component, part, or system thereof, covered under a type or production certificate issued under section 44704; and

“(ii) has significant operations in the United States and a majority of the employees of such entity that are engaged in aviation manufacturing or development activities and services are based in the United States;

“(B) an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), a postsecondary vocational institution (as defined in section 102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), or a high school or secondary school (as such terms are defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));

“(C) an aviation-related nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code; or

“(D) a State, local, territorial, or Tribal governmental entity.”

“(1) Aircraft pilot program—For purposes of the program established under subsection (a)(1), an eligible project is a project—

“(A) to create and deliver curriculum that provides high school or secondary school students with meaningful aviation education to become aircraft pilots, aerospace engineers, or unmanned aircraft systems operators, including purchasing and operating a computer-based simulator associated with such curriculum;

“(B) to support the professional development of teachers using the curriculum described in subparagraph (A);

changed “(C) to create and deliver curriculum that provides certified flight instructors with the necessary instructional, leadership, and communication skills to better educate student pilots;establish or improve apprenticeship, internship, or scholarship programs for individuals pursuing employment as an aviation pilot;

changed “(D) to support transition to professional pilot careers, including for members of create and deliver curriculum that provides certified flight instructors with the Armed Forces; ornecessary instructional, leadership, and communication skills to better educate student pilots;

changed “(E) to support robust outreach about careers in the commercial aviation as a transition to professional pilot, pilot careers, including outreach to primary, secondary, and post-secondary school students.for members of the Armed Forces; or

added “(F) to support robust outreach about careers in the commercial aviation as a professional pilot, including outreach to primary, secondary, and post-secondary school students.

“(2) Aviation maintenance program—For purposes of the program established under subsection (a)(2), an eligible project is a project—

“(A) to create and deliver curriculum that provides high school and secondary school students with meaningful aviation maintenance education to become an aviation mechanic or aviation maintenance technician, including purchasing and operating equipment associated with such curriculum;

“(B) to support the professional development of teachers using the curriculum described in subparagraph (A);

“(C) to establish or improve apprenticeship, internship, or scholarship programs for individuals pursuing employment in the aviation maintenance industry;

“(D) to support transition to aviation maintenance careers, including for members of the Armed Forces; or

“(E) to support robust outreach about careers in the aviation maintenance industry, including outreach to primary, secondary, and post-secondary school students.

“(3) Aviation manufacturing program—For purposes of the program established under subsection (a)(3), and eligible project is a project—

“(A) to create and deliver curriculum that provides high school and secondary school students with meaningful aviation manufacturing education, including teaching the technical skills used in the production of components, parts, or systems thereof for inclusion in an aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance;

“(B) to support the professional development of teachers using the curriculum described in subparagraph (A);

“(C) to establish apprenticeship, internship, or scholarship programs for individuals pursuing employment in the aviation manufacturing industry;

“(D) to support transition to aviation manufacturing careers, including for members of the Armed Forces; or

“(E) to support robust outreach about careers in the aviation manufacturing industry, including outreach to primary, secondary, and post-secondary school students.”

“(f) Reporting and monitoring requirements—The Secretary shall establish reasonable reporting and monitoring requirements for grant recipients under this section to measure relevant outcomes for the grant programs established under paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of subsection (a).

“(g) Notice of grants

“(1) Timely public notice—The Secretary shall provide public notice of any grant awarded under this section in a timely fashion after the Secretary awards such grant.

“(2) Notice to Congress—The Secretary shall provide to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate advance notice of a grant to be made under this section.

“(h) Termination—The authority of the Secretary to issue grants under this section shall terminate on September 30, 2026.”

“40131. Cooperative Aviation Recruitment, Enrichment, and Employment Readiness Program

changed “(a) Establishment—Not later than September 30, 2026, the Secretary of Transportation, through the National Center for the Advancement of Aerospace (in this section referred to as the “Center”), shall establish an aviation workforce cooperative development program to be known as the Cooperative Aviation Recruitment, Enrichment, and Employment Readiness Program (in this section referred to as the “CAREER Program”) to support the education, recruitment, training, and retention of future aviation professionals professionals, including veterans of the Armed Forces, and the development of a robust United States aviation workforce by—

“(1) using relevant workforce forecasts to predict and identify aviation-related workforce challenges; and

“(2) funding projects that address such challenges and help to sustain the long-term growth of civil aviation.

“(b) Implementation

“(1) Partnership with NCAA—In implementing the CAREER Program established under subsection (a), the Secretary shall partner with the CAREER Council established in subsection (j) of section 120.

“(2) Nondelegation—Except as provided in paragraph (3), the Secretary may not delegate any of the authorities or responsibilities under this section to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.

“(3) Support—To support the administration of the CAREER Program, the Secretary may assign employees of the Department of Transportation, including employees of the Federal Aviation Administration, on detail to the Center.

“(c) Solicitation, review, and evaluation process—In carrying out the CAREER Program, the Secretary shall establish a solicitation, review, and evaluation process that ensures funds made available to carry out this section are awarded to eligible entities with proposals that have adequate merit and relevancy to the mission of the program.

“(d) Eligible entities—An eligible entity under this section is—

“(1) an air carrier;

“(2) an entity that holds management specifications under subpart K of title 91 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(3) a holder of a certificate issued under parts 139, 145, or 147 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(4) an institution of higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)), a postsecondary vocational institution (as defined in section 102(c) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), or a high school or secondary school (as such terms are defined in section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801));

“(5) a flight school that provides flight training, as defined in part 61 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or that holds a pilot school certificate under part 141 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations;

“(6) an aviation labor organization;

“(7) a State, local, territorial, or Tribal government, including a political subdivision thereof;

changed “(8) an aviation-related nonprofit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code; orCode;

“(9) an entity that—

“(A) actively designs or manufactures any aircraft, aircraft engine, propeller, or appliance, or a component, part, or system thereof, covered under a type or production certificate issued under section 44704; and

changed “(B) has significant operations in the United States and a majority of the employees of such entity that are engaged in aviation manufacturing or development activities and services are based in the United States.States; or

added “(10) a non-profit organization described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that is exempt from taxation under 501(a) of such Code that assists veterans of the Armed Forces seeking to transition to careers in civil aviation.

“(e) Reporting and monitoring requirements—The Secretary shall establish reasonable reporting and monitoring requirements for grant recipients under this section to measure relevant outcomes of the program maintained pursuant to subsection (a).

“(f) Report—Not later than September 30, 2027, and annually through fiscal year 2028, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the program that includes—

“(1) a summary of projects awarded grants under this section and the progress of each recipient towards fulfilling program expectations;

removed “(2) an evaluation of how such projects cumulatively impact the future supply of individuals in the U.S. aviation workforce, including best practices or programs to incentivize, recruit, and retain individuals in aviation professions; and

changed “(3) recommendations for better coordinating actions by governmental entities, educational institutions, and businesses, “(2) an evaluation of how such projects cumulatively impact the future supply of individuals in the U.S. aviation labor organizations, workforce, including best practices or other stakeholders programs to support incentivize, recruit, and retain individuals in aviation workforce growth.professions;

added “(3) recommendations for better coordinating actions by governmental entities, educational institutions, and businesses, aviation labor organizations, or other stakeholders to support aviation workforce growth; and

added “(4) a review of how many recipients engaged veteran populations and how many veterans were recruited and retrained as part of the aviation workforce.

“(g) Notice of grants

“(1) Timely public notice—The Secretary shall provide public notice of any grant awarded under the CAREER Program in a timely fashion after the Secretary awards such grant.

“(2) Notice to Congress—The Secretary shall provide advance notice of a grant to be made under the CAREER Program to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

“(h) Authorization of appropriations—Of the amounts made available under section 48105, $50,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2027 and 2028 is authorized to be expended to provide grants under the program established under subsection (a).”

“(1) “air carrier” has the meaning given the term in section 40102.”

“(iii) a secondary runway at a nonhub airport that is equivalent in size and type to the primary runway of such airport.”

“(S) construction or renovation of childcare facilities for the exclusive use of airport employees or other individuals who work on airport property, including for air carriers and airport concessionaires.

“(T) advanced digital construction management systems and related technology used in the planning, design and engineering, construction, operations, and maintenance of airport facilities.

changed “(U) an improvement of any runway, taxiway, improvements, or apron planning for improvements, that would be necessary to sustain commercial service flight operations or permit the resumption of flight operations under visual flight rules following a natural disaster (defined as an earthquake, flooding, high water, wildfires, hurricane, storm surge, tidal wave, tornado, tsunami, wind driven water, sea level rise, tropical storm, cyclone, land instability, or winter storm) at—

“(i) a primary airport; or

changed “(ii) a general aviation airport that is designated as a Federal staging area or Incident support base by the Administrator of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

changed “(V) any other activity that the Secretary concludes will reasonably improve or contribute a project to the maintenance of comply with rulemakings and recommendations on cybersecurity standards from the safety, efficiency, or capacity rulemaking committee convened under section 574 of the airport.”Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act.

added “(W) any other activity that the Secretary concludes will reasonably improve or contribute to the maintenance of the safety, efficiency, or capacity of the airport.”

added “(D) assessing current and future electrical power demand for airport airside and landside activities.”

removed “(D) assessing current and future electrical power demand.”

“(9) “heliport”—

“(A) means an area of land, water, or structure used or intended to be used for the landing or takeoff of aircraft capable of vertical takeoff and landing profiles; and

“(B) includes a vertiport.”

“(30) “vertiport” means an area of land, water, or structure used or intended to be used for the landing or takeoff of powered-lift aircraft capable of vertical takeoff and landing profiles.”

Section 47107(v) of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

“(v) Community use of airport land

changed “(1) In general—Notwithstanding subsections (a)(13), (b), and (c), and section 47133, and subject to paragraph (2), the sponsor of a public-use airport shall not be considered to be in violation of this subtitle, or to be found in violation of a grant assurance made under this section, or under any other provision of law, as a condition for the receipt of Federal financial assistance for airport development, solely because the sponsor has—

“(A) entered into an agreement, including a revised agreement, with a local government providing for the use of airport property for an interim compatible recreational purpose at below fair market value; or

“(B) permanently restricted the use of airport property to compatible recreational and public park use without paying or otherwise obtaining payment of fair market value for the property.

“(2) Restrictions

“(A) Interim compatible recreational purpose—Paragraph (1) shall apply, with respect to a sponsor that has taken the action described in subparagraph (A) of such paragraph, only—

“(i) to an agreement regarding airport property that was initially entered into before the publication of the Federal Aviation Administration’s Policy and Procedures Concerning the Use of Airport Revenue, dated February 16, 1999;

“(ii) if the agreement between the sponsor and the local government is subordinate to any existing or future agreements between the sponsor and the Secretary, including agreements related to a grant assurance under this section;

“(iii) to airport property that was acquired under a Federal airport development grant program;

“(iv) if the airport sponsor has provided a written statement to the Administrator that the property made available for a recreational purpose will not be needed for any aeronautical purpose during the next 10 years;

“(v) if the agreement includes a term of not more than 2 years to prepare the airport property for the interim compatible recreational purpose and not more than 10 years of use for that purpose;

“(vi) if the recreational purpose will not impact the aeronautical use of the airport;

“(vii) if the airport sponsor provides a certification that the sponsor is not responsible for preparation, startup, operations, maintenance, or any other costs associated with the recreational purpose; and

“(viii) if the recreational purpose is consistent with Federal land use compatibility criteria under section 47502.

“(B) Permanent recreational use—Paragraph (1) shall apply, with respect to a sponsor that has taken the action described in subparagraph (B) of such paragraph, only—

changed “(i) to airport property that was purchased using funds from a Federal grant for acquiring land issued prior to December 30, 1987;January 1, 1989;

changed “(ii) to airport property that has been continuously used as leased or licensed through a written agreement with a governmental entity or non-profit entity for recreational and or public park uses since January July 1, 1995;2003;

changed “(iii) if the airport sponsor has provided a written statement to the Administrator that the recreational and public use does not impact the aeronautical use of the airport and that the property to be permanently restricted for recreational and public park use is not needed for any aeronautical use at the time the written statement is provided and is not expected to be needed for any aeronautical use at any time after such statement is provided;

changed “(iv) if the airport sponsor provides a certification to the Administrator that the sponsor is not responsible for operations, maintenance, or any other costs associated with the recreational and public park use does not impact the aeronautical use of the airport;use;

changed “(v) if the airport sponsor provides a certification that the sponsor recreational purpose is not responsible for operations, maintenance, or any other costs associated consistent with the recreational and public park use;Federal land use compatibility criteria under section 47502; and

changed “(vi) if the recreational purpose is consistent with Federal land use compatibility criteria under section 47502;airport sponsor will—

changed “(vii) if, in the event the airport sponsor leases the property, the “(I) lease will be the property to a local government entity or nonprofit non-profit entity to operate and maintain the property at no cost to the airport sponsor; andor

changed “(viii) if, in the event the airport sponsor sells the property, “(II) sell the sale will be property to a local government entity and or non-profit entity subject to a permanent deed restriction ensuring compatible airport use under regulations issued pursuant to section 47502.

changed “(3) Revenue from certain sales of airport property—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, an airport sponsor leasing or selling a portion of airport property as described in paragraph (2)(B)(viii)(II) (2)(B)(vi) may—

changed “(A) lease or sell such portion of airport property for less than fair market value; and

changed “(B) subject to the requirements of subsection (b), retain the revenue from the lease or sale of such portion of airport property.

changed “(4) Statutory construction—Nothing in this subsection may be construed as permitting a diversion of airport revenue for the capital or operating costs associated with the community use of airport land.”land.

added “(5) Aeronautical use; aeronautical purpose defined—In this subsection, the terms “aeronautical use” and “aeronautical purpose”—

added “(A) mean all activities that involve or are directly related to the operation of aircraft, including activities that make the operation of aircraft possible and safe;

added “(B) include services located on an airport that are directly and substantially related to the movement of passengers, baggage, mail, and cargo; and

added “(C) do not include any uses of an airport that are not described in subparagraph (A) or (B), including any aviation-related uses that do not need to be located on an airport, such as flight kitchens and airline reservation centers.

added “(6) Administrator review and approval

added “(A) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of law and subject to the sponsor providing any written statements or certifications to the Administrator required under this subsection, no actions of or requirements on the sponsor under this subsection shall require the review or approval of the Secretary of Transportation or Administrator.

added “(B) Burden of demonstration—The Secretary shall have the burden of demonstrating that a sponsor does not meet the requirements or restrictions of this subsection.”

“(2) Effective date of reduction

“(A) New charge collection—A reduction in an apportionment under paragraph (1) shall not take effect until the first fiscal year following the year in which the collection of the charge imposed under section 40117 has begun.

“(B) New categorization—A reduction in an apportionment under paragraph (1) shall only be applied to an airport if such airport has been designated as a medium or large hub airport for 3 consecutive years.”

Section 47117 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

changed “(3) Special rule—Beginning in fiscal year 2025, if the amount made available under paragraph (1)(A) was not equal to or greater than $150,000,000 in the preceding fiscal year, the Secretary shall issue grants for projects eligible under paragraph (1)(A) from apportionments apportionment funds made available under section 47114 that are not required during the fiscal year pursuant to fund a grant for which such apportionments may be used subsection (b)(1) in an amount that is not less than—

“(A) $150,000,000; minus

“(B) the amount made available under paragraph (1)(A) in the preceding fiscal year.”

“(c) Covered project delivery contract defined—In this section, the term covered project delivery contract means—

changed “(1) an agreement that provides for both design and construction of a project by a contractor; contractor through alternative project delivery methods, including construction manager-at-risk and progressive design build; or

“(2) a single contract for the delivery of a whole project that—

“(A) includes, at a minimum, the sponsor, builder, and architect-engineer as parties that are subject to the terms of the contract;

“(B) aligns the interests of all the parties to the contract with respect to the project costs and project outcomes; and

“(C) includes processes to ensure transparency and collaboration among all parties to the contract relating to project costs and project outcomes.”

changed “47140. Meeting current and future electrical energy power demand

“(a) In general—The Secretary of Transportation shall establish a program under which the Secretary shall—

“(1) encourage the sponsor of each public-use airport to—

“(A) conduct airport planning that assesses the airport’s—

changed “(i) current and future electrical energy power requirements, including—

“(I) heating and cooling;

changed “(II) on-road airport vehicles, including vehicles and ground support equipment;

changed “(III) gate electrification; andelectrification;

“(IV) electric aircraft charging; and

changed “(ii) existing electrical infrastructure condition, location and capacity, including base load “(V) vehicles and backup power, equipment used to meet the current transport passengers and future electrical power demand as identified in this subparagraph; andemployees between the airport and—

added “(aa) nearby facilities owned or controlled by the airport or which otherwise directly support the functions or services provided by the airport; or

added “(bb) an intermodal surface transportation facility adjacent to the airport; and

added “(ii) existing energy infrastructure condition, location and capacity, including base load and backup power, to meet the current and future electrical power demand as identified in this subparagraph; and

“(B) conduct airport development to increase energy efficiency or meet future electrical power demands as identified in subparagraph (A); and

“(2) reimburse the airport sponsor for the costs incurred in conducting the assessment under paragraph (1).

added “(b) Grants

added “(1) In general—The Secretary shall make grants from amounts made available under section 48103 to assist airport sponsors that have completed the assessment described in subsection (a)(1)—

added “(A) to acquire or construct equipment that will increase energy efficiency at the airport; and

added “(B) to pursue an airport development project described in subsection (a)(1)(B).

added “(c) Application—To be eligible for a grant under paragraph (1), the sponsor of a public-use airport shall submit an application, including a certification that no safety projects are being deferred by requesting a grant under this section, to the Secretary at such time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary may require.”

removed “(b) Grants—The Secretary may make grants from amounts made available under section 48103 to assist airport sponsors that have completed the assessment described in subsection (a)(1)—

removed “(1) to acquire or construct equipment that will increase energy efficiency at the airport; and

removed “(2) to pursue an airport development project described in subsection (a)(1)(B).”

Section 47171 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

“(b) Aviation projects subject to a streamlined environmental review process

“(1) In general—Any airport capacity enhancement project, terminal development project, or general aviation airport construction or improvement project shall be subject to the coordinated and expedited environmental review process requirements set forth in this section.

“(2) Project designation criteria

“(A) In general—The Administrator may designate an aviation safety project for priority environmental review. A designated project shall be subject to the coordinated and expedited environmental review process requirements set forth in this section.

“(B) Project designation criteria—The Administrator shall establish guidelines for the designation of an aviation safety project or aviation security project for priority environmental review. Such guidelines shall provide for consideration of—

“(i) the importance or urgency of the project;

“(ii) the potential for undertaking the environmental review under existing emergency procedures under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.);

“(iii) the need for cooperation and concurrent reviews by other Federal or State agencies; and

“(iv) the prospect for undue delay if the project is not designated for priority review.”

“(1) In general—For any”

“(2) Deadline—The Administrator shall define the purpose and need of a project not later than 45 days after receipt of a draft purpose and need statement (or revision thereof that materially affects a statement previously prepared or accepted by the Administrator) from an airport sponsor. The Administrator shall provide airport sponsors with appropriate guidance to implement any applicable requirements.”

“(1) consider”

“(2) limit the comments of the agency to—

“(A) subject matter areas within the special expertise of the agency; and

“(B) changes necessary to ensure the agency is carrying out the obligations of that agency under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 and other applicable law.”

“(m) Coordination and schedule

“(1) Coordination plan

“(A) In general—Not later than 90 days after the date of publication of a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement or the initiation of an environmental assessment, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish a plan for coordinating public and agency participation in and comment on the environmental review process for a project described or designated under subsection (b). The coordination plan may be incorporated into a memorandum of understanding.

changed “(B) ScheduleCloud-based, interactive digital platforms—The Administrator is encouraged to utilize cloud-based, interactive digital platforms to meet community engagement and agency coordination requirements under subparagraph (A).

added “(C) Schedule

“(i) In general—The Administration shall establish as part of such coordination plan, after consultation with and the concurrence of each participating agency for the project and with the State in which the project is located (and, if the State is not the project sponsor, with the project sponsor), a schedule for—

“(I) interim milestones and deadlines for agency activities necessary to complete the environmental review; and

“(II) completion of the environmental review process for the project.

“(ii) Factors for consideration—In establishing the schedule under clause (i), the Administration shall consider factors such as—

“(I) the responsibilities of participating agencies under applicable laws;

“(II) resources available to the cooperating agencies;

“(III) overall size and complexity of the project;

“(IV) the overall time required by an agency to conduct an environmental review and make decisions under applicable Federal law relating to a project (including the issuance or denial of a permit or license) and the cost of the project; and

“(V) the sensitivity of the natural and historic resources that could be affected by the project.

“(iii) Maximum project schedule—To the maximum extent practicable and consistent with applicable Federal law, the Administrator shall develop, in concurrence with the project sponsor, a maximum schedule for the project described or designated under subsection (b) that is not more than 2 years for the completion of the environmental review process for such projects, as measured from, as applicable the date of publication of a notice of intent to prepare an environmental impact statement to the record of decision.

“(iv) Dispute resolution

“(I) In general—Any issue or dispute that arises between the Administrator and participating agencies (or amongst participating agencies) during the environmental review process will be addressed expeditiously to avoid delay.

“(II) Responsibilities—The Administrator and participating agencies shall—

“(aa) implement the requirements of this section consistent with any dispute resolution process established in an applicable law, regulation, or legally binding agreement to the maximum extent permitted by law; and

“(bb) seek to resolve issues or disputes at the earliest possible time at the project level through agency employees who have day-to-day involvement in the project.

“(III) Elevation for missed milestone—If a dispute between the Administrator and participating agencies (or amongst participating agencies) causes a milestone to be missed or extended, or the Administrator anticipates that a permitting timetable milestone will be missed or will need to be extended, then the dispute shall be elevated to an official designated by the relevant agency for resolution. Such elevation should take place as soon as practicable after the Administrator becomes aware of the dispute or potential missed milestone.

“(IV) Exception—Disputes that do not impact the ability of an agency to meet a milestone may be elevated as appropriate.

“(V) Further evaluation—Once a dispute has been elevated to the designated official, if no resolution has been reached at the end of 30 days after the relevant milestone date or extension date, then the relevant agencies shall elevate the dispute to senior agency leadership for resolution.

removed “(C) Consistency with other time periods—A schedule under subparagraph (B) shall be consistent with any other relevant time periods established under Federal law.

changed “(D) ModificationConsistency with other time periods—A schedule under subparagraph (B) shall be consistent with any other relevant time periods established under Federal law.

added “(E) Modification

“(i) In general—Except as provided in clause (ii), the Administrator may lengthen or shorten a schedule established under subparagraph (B) for good cause. A decision by a project sponsor to change, modify, expand, or reduce the scope of a project may be considered as good cause for lengthening or shortening of such schedule as appropriate and based on the nature and extent of the proposed project adjustment.

“(ii) Limitations

“(I) Lengthened schedule—The Administrator may lengthen a schedule under clause (i) for a cooperating Federal agency by not more than 1 year after the latest deadline established for the project described or designated under subsection (b) by the Administration.

“(II) Shortened schedule—The Administrator may not shorten a schedule under clause (i) if doing so would impair the ability of a cooperating Federal agency to conduct necessary analyses or otherwise carry out relevant obligations of the Federal agency for the project.

added “(F) Failure to meet deadline—If a cooperating Federal agency fails to meet a deadline established under subparagraph (D)(ii)(I)—

removed “(E) Failure to meet deadline—If a cooperating Federal agency fails to meet a deadline established under subparagraph (D)(ii)(I)—

“(i) the cooperating Federal agency shall, not later than 10 days after meeting the deadline, submit to the Administrator a report that describes the reasons why the deadline was not met; and

“(ii) the Secretary shall—

“(I) submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a copy of the report under clause (i); and

“(II) make the report under clause (i) publicly available on the website of the agency.

added “(G) Dissemination—A copy of a schedule under subparagraph (B), and of any modifications to the schedule, shall be—

removed “(F) Dissemination—A copy of a schedule under subparagraph (B), and of any modifications to the schedule, shall be—

“(i) provided to all participating agencies and to the State transportation department of the State in which the project is located (and, if the State is not the project sponsor, to the project sponsor); and

“(ii) made available to the public.

“(2) Comment deadlines—The Administrator shall establish the following deadlines for comment during the environmental review process for a project:

“(A) For comments by agencies and the public on a draft environmental impact statement, a period of not more than 60 days after publication in the Federal Register of notice of the date of public availability of such statement, unless—

“(i) a different deadline is established by agreement of the lead agency, the project sponsor, and all participating agencies; or

“(ii) the deadline is extended by the lead agency for good cause.

“(B) For all other comment periods established by the lead agency for agency or public comments in the environmental review process, a period of no more than 30 days from availability of the materials on which comment is requested, unless—

“(i) a different deadline is established by agreement of the Administrator, the project sponsor, and all participating agencies; or

“(ii) the deadline is extended by the lead agency for good cause.

“(3) Deadlines for decisions under other laws—In any case in which a decision under any Federal law relating to a project described or designated under subsection (b) (including the issuance or denial of a permit or license) is required to be made by the later of the date that is 180 days after the date on which the Administrator made all final decisions of the lead agency with respect to the project, or 180 days after the date on which an application was submitted for the permit or license, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, and publish on the website of the Administration—

“(A) as soon as practicable after the 180-day period, an initial notice of the failure of the Federal agency to make the decision; and

“(B) every 60 days thereafter until such date as all decisions of the Federal agency relating to the project have been made by the Federal agency, an additional notice that describes the number of decisions of the Federal agency that remain outstanding as of the date of the additional notice.

“(4) Involvement of the public—Nothing in this subsection shall reduce any time period provided for public comment in the environmental review process under existing Federal law, including a regulation.

“(n) Concurrent reviews and single NEPA document

“(1) Concurrent reviews—Each participating agency and cooperating agency under the expedited and coordinated environmental review process established under this section shall—

“(A) carry out the obligations of that agency under other applicable law concurrently, and in conjunction, with the review required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), unless doing so would impair the ability of the Federal agency to conduct needed analysis or otherwise carry out such obligations; and

“(B) formulate and implement administrative, policy, and procedural mechanisms to enable the agency to ensure completion of the environmental review process in a timely, coordinated, and environmentally responsible manner.

“(2) Single NEPA document

“(A) In general—Except as inconsistent with subsection (a), to the maximum extent practicable and consistent with Federal law, all Federal permits and reviews for a project shall rely on a single environment document prepared under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) under the leadership of the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.

“(B) Use of document

“(i) In general—To the maximum extent practicable, the Administrator shall develop an environmental document sufficient to satisfy the requirements for any Federal approval or other Federal action required for the project, including permits issued by other Federal agencies.

“(ii) Cooperation of participating agencies—Other participating agencies shall cooperate with the lead agency and provide timely information to help the lead agency carry out this subparagraph.

“(C) Treatment as participating and cooperating agencies—A Federal agency required to make an approval or take an action for a project, as described in this paragraph, shall work with the Administration for the project to ensure that the agency making the approval or taking the action is treated as being both a participating and cooperating agency for the project.

“(3) Participating agency responsibilities—An agency participating in the expedited and coordinated environmental review process under this section shall—

“(A) provide comments, responses, studies, or methodologies on those areas within the special expertise or jurisdiction of the agency; and

“(B) use the process to address any environmental issues of concern to the agency.

“(o) Environmental impact statement

“(1) In general—In preparing a final environmental impact statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) for a project described or designated under subsection (b), if the Administrator modifies the statement in response to comments that are minor and are confined to factual corrections or explanations of why the comments do not warrant additional agency response, the Administrator may write on errata sheets attached to the statement instead of rewriting the draft statement, subject to the condition that the errata sheets—

“(A) cite the sources, authorities, and reasons that support the position of the agency; and

“(B) if appropriate, indicate the circumstances that would trigger agency reappraisal or further response.

“(2) Single document—To the maximum extent practicable, for a project subject to a coordinated review process under this section, the Administrator shall expeditiously develop a single document that consists of a final environmental impact statement and a record of decision, unless—

“(A) the final environmental impact statement or record of decision makes substantial changes to the project that are relevant to environmental or safety concerns; or

“(B) there is a significant new circumstance or information relevant to environmental concerns that bears on the proposed action or the environmental impacts of the proposed action.

“(3) Length of environmental document

“(A) In general—Except as provided in subparagraph (B), an environmental impact statement shall not exceed 150 pages, not including any citations or appendices.

“(B) Extraordinary complexity—An environmental impact statement for a proposed agency action of extraordinary complexity shall not exceed 300 pages, not including any citations or appendices.

“(p) Integration of planning and environmental review

“(1) In general—Subject to paragraph (5) and to the maximum extent practicable and appropriate, the following agencies may adopt or incorporate by reference, and use a planning product in proceedings relating to, any class of action in the environmental review process of a project described or designated under subsection (b):

“(A) The lead agency for a project, with respect to an environmental impact statement, environmental assessment, categorical exclusion, or other document prepared under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.).

“(B) A cooperating agency with responsibility under Federal law with respect to the process for and completion of any environmental permit, approval, review, or study required for a project under any Federal law other than the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), if consistent with that law.

“(2) Identification—If the relevant agency makes a determination to adopt or incorporate by reference and use a planning product under paragraph (1), such agency shall identify the agencies that participated in the development of the planning products.

“(3) Adoption or incorporation by reference of planning products—The relevant agency may—

“(A) adopt or incorporate by reference an entire planning product under paragraph (1); or

“(B) select portions of a planning project under paragraph (1) for adoption or incorporation by reference.

“(4) Timing—The adoption or incorporation by reference of a planning product under paragraph (1) may—

“(A) be made at the time the relevant agencies decide the appropriate scope of environmental review for the project; or

“(B) occur later in the environmental review process, as appropriate.

“(5) Conditions—The relevant agency in the environmental review process may adopt or incorporate by reference a planning product under this section if the relevant agency determines, with the concurrence of the lead agency and, if the planning product is necessary for a cooperating agency to issue a permit, review, or approval for the project, with the concurrence of the cooperating agency, that the following conditions have been met:

“(A) The planning product was developed through a planning process conducted pursuant to applicable Federal law.

“(B) The planning product was developed in consultation with appropriate Federal and State resource agencies and Indian Tribes.

“(C) The planning process included broad multidisciplinary consideration of systems-level or corridor-wide transportation needs and potential effects, including effects on the human and natural environment.

“(D) The planning process included public notice that the planning products produced in the planning process may be adopted during any subsequent environmental review process in accordance with this section.

“(E) During the environmental review process, the relevant agency has—

“(i) made the planning documents available for public review and comment by members of the general public and Federal, State, local, and Tribal governments that may have an interest in the proposed project;

“(ii) provided notice of the intention of the relevant agency to adopt or incorporate by reference the planning product; and

“(iii) considered any resulting comments.

“(F) There is no significant new information or new circumstance that has a reasonable likelihood of affecting the continued validity or appropriateness of the planning product or portions thereof.

“(G) The planning product has a rational basis and is based on reliable and reasonably current data and reasonable and scientifically acceptable methodologies.

“(H) The planning product is documented in sufficient detail to support the decision or the results of the analysis and to meet requirements for use of the information in the environmental review process.

“(I) The planning product is appropriate for adoption or incorporation by reference and use in the environmental review process for the project and is incorporated in accordance with, and is sufficient to meet the requirements of, the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.) and section 1502.21 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(6) Effect of adoption or incorporation by reference—Any planning product or portions thereof adopted or incorporated by reference by the relevant agency in accordance with this subsection may be—

“(A) incorporated directly into an environmental review process document or other environmental document; and

“(B) relied on and used by other Federal agencies in carrying out reviews of the project.

“(q) Report on NEPA data

“(1) In general—The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall carry out a process to track, and annually submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on projects described in subsection (b)(1) that contains the information described in paragraph (3).

“(2) Time to complete—For purposes of paragraph (3), the NEPA process—

“(A) for an environmental impact statement—

“(i) begins on the date on which a notice of intent is published in the Federal Register; and

“(ii) ends on the date on which the Administrator issues a record of decision, including, if necessary, a revised record of decision; and

“(B) for an environmental assessment—

“(i) begins on the date on which the Administrator makes a determination to prepare an environmental assessment; and

“(ii) ends on the date on which the Administrator issues a finding of no significant impact or determines that preparation of an environmental impact statement is necessary.

“(3) Information described—The information referred to in paragraph (1) is, with respect to the Federal Aviation Administration—

“(A) the number of proposed actions for which a categorical exclusion was applied by the Administration during the reporting period;

“(B) the number of proposed actions for which a documented categorical exclusion was applied by the Administration during the reporting period;

“(C) the number of proposed actions pending on the date on which the report is submitted for which the issuance of a documented categorical exclusion by the Administration is pending;

“(D) the number of proposed actions for which an environmental assessment was issued by the Administration during the reporting period;

“(E) the length of time the Administration took to complete each environmental assessment described in subparagraph (D);

“(F) the number of proposed actions pending on the date on which the report is submitted for which an environmental assessment is being drafted by the Administration;

“(G) the number of proposed actions for which a final environmental impact statement was completed by the Administration during the reporting period;

“(H) the length of time that the Administration took to complete each environmental impact statement described in subparagraph (G);

“(I) the number of proposed actions pending on the date on which the report is submitted for which an environmental impact statement is being drafted; and

“(J) for the proposed actions reported under subparagraphs (F) and (I), the percentage of those proposed actions for which—

“(i) project funding has been identified; and

“(ii) all other Federal, State, and local activities that are required to allow the proposed action to proceed are completed.

“(4) Definitions—In this section:

“(A) Environmental assessment—The term environmental assessment has the meaning given the term in section 1508.1 of title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (or a successor regulation).

“(B) Environmental impact statement—The term environmental impact statement means a detailed statement required under section 102(2)(C) of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4332(2)(C)).

“(C) NEPA process—The term NEPA process means the entirety of the development and documentation of the analysis required under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), including the assessment and analysis of any impacts, alternatives, and mitigation of a proposed action, and any interagency participation and public involvement required to be carried out before the Administrator undertakes a proposed action.

“(D) Proposed action—The term proposed action means an action (within the meaning of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.)) under this title that the Administrator proposes to carry out.

“(E) Reporting period—The term reporting period means the fiscal year prior to the fiscal year in which a report is issued under subsection (a).”

“(2) International presence—The Administrator shall maintain an international presence to—

“(A) assist foreign civil aviation authorities in—

changed “(i) establishing robust aerospace aviation oversight practices and policies;

“(ii) training staff, to include inspectors and accident investigators;

changed “(iii) harmonizing international aerospace aviation standards for air traffic management, operator certification, aircraft certification, airports, and certificated or credentialed individuals;

“(iv) validating and accepting foreign aircraft design and production approvals;

“(v) maintaining appropriate levels of air navigation services;

changed “(vi) preparing for new aerospace aviation technologies; and

“(vii) appropriately adopting continuing airworthiness information, such as airworthiness directives;

“(B) encourage the adoption of United States standards, regulations, and policies;

“(C) establish, maintain, and update bilateral or multilateral aviation safety agreements and the aviation safety information contained within such agreements;

“(D) engage in bilateral and multilateral discussions and provide technical assistance as described in paragraph (5);

changed “(E) validate foreign aerospace aviation products and ensure reciprocal validation of products for which the United States is the state of design or production;

“(F) support accident and incident investigations, particularly such investigations that involve United States persons and certified products and such investigations where the National Transportation Safety Board is supporting an investigation pursuant to annex 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organization;

changed “(G) support the international activities of the United States aerospace aviation sector;

changed “(H) maintain valuable relationships with entities with aerospace aviation equities, including civil aviation authorities, other governmental bodies, non-governmental organizations, and foreign manufacturers; and

“(I) perform other activities as determined necessary by the Administrator.”

“(3) International offices—In carrying out the responsibilities described in subsection (a), the Administrator shall—

“(A) maintain international offices of the Administration;

“(B) every 3 years, review existing international offices to determine—

“(i) the effectiveness of such offices in fulfilling the mission described in paragraph (2); and

“(ii) the adequacy of resources and staffing to achieve the mission described in paragraph (2);

“(C) establish offices to address gaps identified by the review under subparagraph (B) and in furtherance of the mission described in paragraph (2), putting an emphasis on establishing such offices—

“(i) where international civil aviation authorities are located;

“(ii) where regional intergovernmental organizations are located;

“(iii) in countries that have difficulty maintaining a category 1 classification through the International Aviation Safety Assessment program; and

changed “(iv) in regions that have experienced substantial growth in aerospace aviation operations or manufacturing.”

“(5) Bilateral aviation safety agreements

“(A) In general—The Administrator shall negotiate, enter into, promote, enforce, evaluate the effectiveness of, and seek to update bilateral or multilateral aviation safety agreements, and the parts of such agreements, with international aviation authorities.

“(B) Purpose—The Administrator shall seek to enter into bilateral aviation safety agreements under this section to, at a minimum—

changed “(i) improve global aerospace aviation safety;

changed “(ii) increase harmonization of, and reduce duplicative, requirements, processes, and approvals to advance the aerospace aviation interests of the United States;

“(iii) ensure access to international markets for operators, service providers, and manufacturers from the United States; and

“(iv) put in place procedures for recourse when a party to such agreements fails to meet the obligations of such party under such agreements.

changed “(C) Scope—The scope of a bilateral aviation safety agreement entered into under this section shall, as appropriate, cover existing aerospace aviation users and concepts and establish a process by which bilateral aviation safety agreements can be updated to include new and novel concepts on an ongoing basis.

“(D) Contents—Bilateral aviation safety agreements entered into under this section shall, as appropriate and consistent with United States law and regulation, include topics such as—

“(i) airworthiness, certification, and validation;

“(ii) maintenance;

“(iii) operations and pilot training;

“(iv) airspace access, efficiencies, and navigation services;

“(v) transport category aircraft;

“(vi) fixed-wing aircraft, rotorcraft, and powered-lift aircraft;

“(vii) aerodrome certification;

“(viii) unmanned aircraft and associated elements of such aircraft;

“(ix) flight simulation training devices;

changed “(x) new or emerging aerospace technologies and technology trends; and

“(xi) other topics as determined appropriate by the Administrator.

“(E) Rule of Construction—Bilateral or multilateral aviation safety agreements entered into under this subsection shall not be construed to diminish or alter any authority of the Administrator under any other provision of law.”

“(6) Strategic plan—The Administrator shall maintain a strategic plan for the international engagement of the Administration that includes—

“(A) all elements of the report required in section 243(b)(1) of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (49 U.S.C. 44701 note);

“(B) measures to fulfill the mission described in paragraph (2);

“(C) initiatives to attain greater expertise among employees of the Federal Aviation Administration in issues related to dispute resolution, intellectual property, and expert control laws;

“(D) policy regarding the future direction and strategy of the United States engagement with the International Civil Aviation Organization;

“(E) procedures for acceptance of mandatory airworthiness information, such as airworthiness directives, and other safety-related regulatory documents, including procedures to implement the requirements of section 44701(e)(5);

“(F) all factors, including funding and resourcing, necessary for the Administration to maintain leadership in the global activities related to aviation safety and air transportation; and

“(G) establishment of, and a process to regularly track and update, metrics to measure the effectiveness of, and foreign civil aviation authority compliance with, bilateral aviation safety agreements.”

Section 40104 of title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding at the end the following:

“(f) Travel—The Administrator and the Secretary of Transportation shall, in carrying out the responsibilities described in subsection (a), delegate to the appropriate supervisors of offices of the Administration the ability to authorize the domestic and international travel of relevant personnel who are not in the Federal Aviation Administration Executive System, without any additional approvals required, for the purposes of—

changed “(1) promoting aviation safety, aircraft operations, air traffic, airport, unmanned aircraft systems, commercial space transportation, and other aviation standards and regulations adopted by the United States;

“(2) facilitating the adoption of United States approaches on standards and recommended practices at the International Civil Aviation Organization;

“(3) promoting environmental standards adopted by the United States and standards promulgated under section 44714;

“(4) supporting the acceptance of Administration design and production approvals by other civil aviation authorities;

“(5) training Administration personnel and training provided to other persons;

“(6) engaging with regulated entities, including performing site visits;

“(7) activities associated with subsections (c) through (f) of this section; and

“(8) other activities as determined by the Administrator.”

“(g) Data analysis

“(1) In general—Each fiscal year in which a part 121 air carrier has had heavy maintenance work performed on an aircraft owned or operated by such carrier, such carrier shall provide to the Administrator, not later than the end of the following fiscal year, a report containing the information described in paragraph (2).

“(2) Information required—A report under paragraph (1) shall contain the following:

“(A) The location where any heavy maintenance work on aircraft was performed outside the United States.

“(B) A description of the work performed at each such location.

“(C) The date of completion of the work performed at each such location.

“(D) A list of all failures, malfunctions, or defects affecting the safe operation of such aircraft identified by the air carrier not later than 30 days after the date on which an aircraft is returned to service, organized by reference to aircraft registration number, that—

“(i) requires corrective action after the aircraft is approved for return to service; and

“(ii) results from such work performed on such aircraft.

“(E) The certificate number of the person approving such aircraft or on-wing aircraft engine, for return to service following completion of the work performed at each such location.

“(3) Analysis—The Administrator shall—

“(A) analyze information provided under this subsection and sections 121.703, 121.705, 121.707, and 145.221 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor provisions of such title, to detect safety issues associated with heavy maintenance work on aircraft performed outside the United States; and

“(B) require appropriate actions by an air carrier or repair station in response to any safety issue identified by the analysis conducted under subparagraph (A).

“(4) Confidentiality—Information provided under this subsection shall be subject to the same protections given to voluntarily provided safety or security related information under section 40123.

“(h) Applications and prohibition

“(1) In general—The Administrator may not approve any new application under part 145 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, from a person located or headquartered in a country that the Administration, through the International Aviation Safety Assessment program, has classified as Category 2.

“(2) Exception—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to an application for the renewal of a certificate issued under part 145 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(3) Maintenance implementation procedures agreement—The Administrator may elect not to enter into a new maintenance implementation procedures agreement with a country classified as Category 2, for as long as the country remains classified as Category 2.

changed “(3) “(4) Prohibition on continued heavy maintenance work—No part 121 air carrier may enter into a new contract for heavy maintenance work with a person located or headquartered in a country that the Administrator, through the International Aviation Safety Assessment program, has classified as Category 2, for as long as such country remains classified as Category 2.

“(i) Minimum qualifications for mechanics and others working on U.S. registered aircraft

“(1) In general—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Administrator shall require that, at each covered repair station—

“(A) all supervisory personnel of such station are appropriately certificated as a mechanic or repairman under part 65 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or under an equivalent certification or licensing regime, as determined by the Administrator; and

“(B) all personnel of such station authorized to approve an article for return to service are appropriately certificated as a mechanic or repairman under part 65 of such title, or under an equivalent certification or licensing regime, as determined by the Administrator.

“(2) Available for consultation—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Administrator shall require any individual who is responsible for approving an article for return to service or who is directly in charge of heavy maintenance work performed on aircraft operated by a part 121 air carrier be available for consultation while work is being performed at a covered repair station.”

“(1) Covered repair station—The term covered repair station means a facility that—

“(A) is located outside the United States;

“(B) is a part 145 repair station; and

“(C) performs heavy maintenance work on aircraft operated by a part 121 air carrier.”

“(g) Ethics training requirement for ODA holders

“(1) In general—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall review and ensure each ODA holder approved under section 44741 has in effect a recurrent training program for all ODA unit members that covers—

“(A) unit member professional obligations and responsibilities;

“(B) the ODA holder’s code of ethics as required to be established under section 102(f) of the Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act (49 U.S.C. 44701 note);

“(C) procedures for reporting safety concerns, as described in the respective approved procedures manual for the delegation;

“(D) the prohibition against and reporting procedures for interference from a supervisor or other ODA member described in section 44742; and

“(E) any additional information the Administrator considers relevant to maintaining ethical and professional standards across all ODA holders and unit members.

“(2) FAA review

“(A) Review of training program—The Organization Designation Authorization Office of the Administration shall review each ODA holders’ recurrent training program to ensure such program includes all elements described in paragraph (1).

“(B) Changes to program—Such Office may require changes to the training program considered necessary to maintain ethical and professional standards across all ODA holders and unit members.

“(3) Training—As part of the recurrent training required under paragraph (1), not later than 60 business days after being designated as an ODA unit member, and annually thereafter, each ODA unit member shall complete the ethics training required by the ODA holder of the respective ODA unit member in order to exercise the functions delegated under the ODA.

“(4) Accountability—The Administrator shall establish such processes or requirements as are necessary to ensure compliance with paragraph (3).”

changed “44745. Don Young Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative.Initiative

“(a) In general—The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall redesignate the FAA Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative of the Administration as the Don Young Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative (in this section referred to as the “Initiative”), under which the Administrator shall carry out the provisions of this section and take such other actions as the Administrator determines appropriate to improve aviation safety in covered locations.

“(b) Objective—The objective of the Initiative shall be to work cooperatively with aviation stakeholders and other stakeholders towards the goal of—

“(1) reducing the rate of fatal aircraft accidents in covered locations by 90 percent from 2019 to 2033; and

“(2) by January 1, 2033, eliminating fatal accidents of aircraft operated by an air carrier that operates under part 135 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(c) Leadership

“(1) In general—The Administrator shall designate the Regional Administrator for the Alaskan Region of the Administration to serve as the Director of the Initiative.

“(2) Reporting chain—In all matters relating to the Initiative, the Director of the Initiative shall report directly to the Administrator.

“(3) Coordination—The Director of the Initiative shall coordinate with the heads of other offices and lines of business of the Administration, including the other regional administrators, to carry out the Initiative.

“(d) Automated weather systems

“(1) Requirement—The Administrator shall ensure, to the greatest extent practicable, that a covered automated weather system is installed and operated at each covered airport not later than December 31, 2030.

“(2) Waiver—In complying with the requirement under paragraph (1), the Administrator may waive any positive benefit-cost ratio requirement for the installation and operation of a covered automated weather system.

“(3) Prioritization—In developing the installation timeline of a covered automated weather system at a covered airport pursuant to this subsection, the Administrator shall—

“(A) coordinate and consult with the governments with jurisdiction over covered locations, covered airports, air carriers operating in covered locations, private pilots based in covered locations, and such other members of the aviation community in covered locations; and

“(B) prioritize early installation at covered airports that would enable the greatest number of instrument flight rule operations by air carriers operating under part 121 or 135 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(4) Reliability

“(A) In general—Pertaining to both Federal and non-Federal systems, the Administrator shall be responsible for ensuring—

“(i) the reliability of covered automated weather systems; and

“(ii) the availability of weather information from such systems.

“(B) Specifications—The Administrator shall establish data availability and equipment reliability specifications for covered automated weather systems.

“(C) System reliability and restoration plan—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall establish an automated weather system reliability and restoration plan. Such plan shall document the Administrator’s strategy for ensuring covered automated weather system reliability, including the availability of weather information from such system, and for restoring service in as little time as possible.

“(D) Telecommunications or other failures—If a covered automated weather system is unable to broadly disseminate weather information due to a telecommunications failure or a failure other than an equipment failure, the Administrator shall take such actions as may be necessary to restore the full functionality and connectivity of the covered automated weather system. The Administrator shall take actions under this subparagraph with the same urgency as the Administrator would take an action to repair a covered automated weather system equipment failure or data fidelity issue.

“(E) Reliability data—In tabulating data relating to the operational status of covered automated weather systems (including individually or collectively), the Administrator may not consider a covered automated weather system that is functioning nominally but is unable to broadly disseminate weather information telecommunications failure or a failure other than an equipment failure as functioning reliably.

“(5) Inventory—The Administrator shall consider storing excess inventory necessary for air traffic control equipment, including commonly required replacement parts, in covered locations to reduce the amount of time necessary to acquire such equipment or such parts necessary to replace or repair air traffic control system components.

“(6) Visual weather observation system—Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator shall take such actions as may be necessary to—

“(A) deploy visual weather observation systems; and

“(B) ensure that such systems are capable of meeting the definition of covered automated weather systems.

“(e) Weather cameras

“(1) In general—The Director shall continuously assess the state of the weather camera systems in covered locations to ensure the operational sufficiency and reliability of such systems.

“(2) Applications—The Director shall—

“(A) accept applications from persons to install weather cameras; and

“(B) consult with the governments with jurisdiction over covered locations, covered airports, air carriers operating in covered locations, private pilots based in covered locations, and such other members of the aviation community in covered locations as the Administrator determines appropriate to solicit additional locations at which to install and operate weather cameras.

“(3) Presumption—Unless the Director has clear and compelling evidence to the contrary, the Director shall presume that the installation of a weather camera at a covered airport, or that is recommended by a government with jurisdiction over a covered location, is cost beneficial and will improve aviation safety.

“(f) Cooperation with other agencies—In carrying out this section, the Administrator shall cooperate with the heads of other Federal or State agencies with responsibilities affecting aviation safety in covered locations, including the collection and dissemination of weather data.

“(g) Surveillance and communication

“(1) In general—The Director shall take such actions as may be necessary to—

“(A) encourage and incentivize the equipage of aircrafts that operate under part 135 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, with automatic dependent surveillance and broadcast out equipment; and

“(B) improve aviation surveillance and communications in covered locations.

“(2) Requirement—Not later than December 31, 2030, the Administrator shall ensure that automatic dependent surveillance and broadcast coverage is available at 5,000 feet above ground level throughout each covered location.

“(3) Waiver—In complying with the requirement under paragraph (2), the Administrator shall waive any positive benefit-cost ratio requirement for the installation and operation of equipment and facilities necessary to implement such requirement.

“(4) Service areas—The Director shall continuously identify additional automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast service areas in which the deployment of automatic dependent surveillance–broadcast receivers and equipment would improve aviation safety.

“(h) Other projects—The Director shall continue to build upon other initiatives recommended in the reports of the FAA Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative of the Administration published before the date of enactment of this section.

“(i) Annual report

“(1) In general—The Director shall submit an annual report on the status and progress of the Initiative to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

“(2) Objectives and requirements—The report under paragraph (1) shall include a detailed description of the Director’s progress in and plans for meeting the objectives of the Initiative under subsection (b) and the other requirements of this section.

“(3) Stakeholder comments—The Director shall append stakeholder comments, organized by topic, to each report submitted under paragraph (1) in the same manner as appendix 3 of the report titled “FAA Alaska Aviation Safety Initiative FY21 Final Report”, dated September 30, 2021.

“(j) Funding

“(1) In general—Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in fiscal years 2024 through 2028—

“(A) the Administrator may, upon application from the government with jurisdiction over a covered location, use amounts apportioned to a covered location under subsection (d)(2)(B) or subsection (e)(5) of section 47114 to carry out the Initiative; or

“(B) the sponsor of an airport in a covered location that receives an apportionment under subsection (d)(2)(B) or subsection (e) of section 47114 may use such apportionment for any purpose contained in this section.

“(2) Supplemental funding—Out of amounts made available under section 106(k) and section 48101, not more than a total of $25,000,000 for each of fiscal year 2024 through 2028 is authorized to be expended to carry out the Initiative.

“(k) Definitions—In this section:

“(1) Covered airport—The term covered airport means an airport in a covered location that is included in the national plan of integrated airport systems required under section 47103 and that has a status other than unclassified in such plan.

“(2) Covered automated weather system—The term covered automated weather system means an automated or visual weather reporting facility that enables a pilot to begin an instrument procedure approach to an airport under section 91.1039 or 135.225 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

changed “(3) Covered location—The term covered location means Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the United States Virgin Islands.”Islands.

added “(l) Conformity—The Administrator shall conduct all activities required under this section in conformity with section 44720.”

“(7) Remote positions

“(A) In general—If the Administrator determines that a covered position has not been filled after multiple vacancy announcements and that there are unique circumstances affecting the ability of the Administrator to fill such position, the Administrator may consider, in consultation with the appropriate labor union, applicants for the covered position who apply under a vacancy announcement recruiting from the State or territory in which the position is based.

“(B) Covered position defined—In this paragraph, the term covered position means a safety-critical position based in Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, and the Virgin Islands.”

“44746. Cockpit recording device

“(a) In general—Not later than 18 months after the date of enactment of this section, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall complete a rulemaking proceeding to—

“(1) require that, not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this section, all applicable aircraft are fitted with a cockpit voice recorder and a flight data recorder that are each capable of recording the most recent 25 hours of data;

changed “(2) prohibit any person from deliberately erasing or tampering with any recording on such a cockpit voice recorder or flight data recorder following a National Transportation Safety Board reportable event under part 830 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, or where crew would reasonably believe an aircraft lined up on an incorrect runway or incorrect taxiway, the aircraft landing at the wrong airport, the aircraft significantly overpassed the destination airport, or the crew have been alerted of a possible pilot deviation and provide for civil and criminal penalties for such deliberate erasing or tampering, which may be assessed in accordance with section 1155 and section 32 of title 18;

“(3) require that such a cockpit voice recorder has the capability for an operator to use an erasure feature, such as an installed bulk erase function, consistent with applicable law and regulations;

“(4) require that, in the case of such a cockpit voice recorder or flight data recorder that uses a solid state recording medium in which activation of a bulk erase function assigns a random discrete code to the deleted recording, only the manufacturer of the recorder and National Transportation Safety Board have access to the software necessary to determine the code in order to extract the deleted recorded data; and

“(5) ensure that data on such a cockpit voice recorder or a flight data recorder, through technical means other than encryption (such as overwriting or the substitution of a blank recording medium before the recorder is returned to the owner) is not disclosed for use other than for accident or incident investigation purposes.

“(b) Prohibited use—A cockpit voice recorder recording shall not be used by the Administrator or any employer for any certificate action, civil penalty, or disciplinary proceedings against flight crewmembers.

“(c) Applicable aircraft defined—In this section, the term “applicable aircraft” means an aircraft that is—

“(1) operated under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; and

changed “(2) required by regulation to have a cockpit voice recorder or a flight data recorder.”recorder.

added “(d) Rule of construction—Nothing in this section shall be construed to affect—

added “(1) the confidentiality of recordings and transcripts under section 1114(c);

added “(2) the ban on recordings for civil penalty or certificate action under section 121.359(h) of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; or

added “(3) the prohibition against use of data from flight operational quality assurance programs for enforcement purposes under section 13.401 of 14, Code of Federal Regulations.”

added Section 44704 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

added “(h) Incremental safety improvement

added “(1) In general—The Administrator may consider and approve a proposed incremental design change request from a type certificate holder, if such holder is required by the Administrator to make a safety-related design change to bring a product into compliance, even if the proposed incremental design change does not eliminate all noncompliant conditions.

added “(2) Proposed incremental design change—A proposed incremental design change under paragraph (1) shall—

added “(A) be related to the required safety-related design change described in this subsection;

added “(B) improve the overall safety of the aircraft;

added “(C) not decrease the level of safety of other components or systems on the aircraft;

added “(D) be in the public interest;

added “(E) not include any substantial changes;

added “(F) be recorded on a type certificate data sheet or other public instrument that notifies the public of such design changes; and

added “(G) be considered through a process that applies appropriate requirements as determined by the Administrator.

added “(3) Full compliance—An approval issued under this subsection shall not be construed to relieve a type certificate holder from addressing all noncompliant conditions under paragraph (1).

added “(4) Deadline—In issuing an approval under this subsection, the Administrator shall impose a deadline by which all non-compliant conditions related to the design change shall be addressed.

added “(5) Safety-related design change defined—In this subsection, the term “safety-related design change” means a design change that has any effect on the safety of the aircraft.”

removed Section 44704 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

removed “(h) Incremental safety improvement

removed “(1) In general—The Administrator may consider and approve a proposed incremental design change request from a type certificate holder, if such holder is required by the Administrator to make a safety-related design change to bring a product into compliance, even if the proposed incremental design change does not eliminate all noncompliant conditions.

removed “(2) Proposed incremental design change—A proposed incremental design change under paragraph (1) shall—

removed “(A) be related to the required safety-related change described in this subsection; and

removed “(B) improve safety.

removed “(3) Full compliance—An approval issued under this subsection shall not be construed to relieve a type certificate holder from addressing all noncompliant conditions under paragraph (1).”

“40132. National airspace system cyber threat management process

“(a) Establishment—The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, in consultation with other agencies as the Administrator determines necessary, shall establish a national airspace system cyber threat management process to protect the national airspace system cyber environment, including the safety, security, and efficiency of the air navigation services provided by the Administration.

“(b) Issues To be addressed—In establishing the national airspace system cyber threat management process under subsection (a), the Administrator shall, at a minimum—

“(1) monitor the national airspace system for cybersecurity incidents;

“(2) in consultation with appropriate Federal agencies, evaluate the cyber threat landscape for the national airspace system, including updating such evaluation on both annual and threat-based timelines;

“(3) conduct national airspace system cyber incident analyses;

“(4) create a cyber common operating picture for the national airspace system cyber environment;

“(5) coordinate national airspace system cyber incident responses with other appropriate Federal agencies;

“(6) track cyber incident detection, response, mitigation implementation, recovery, and closure;

changed “(7) establish a process, or utilize existing processes, to collect relevant interagency and stakeholder national airspace system cyber incident data, including data from other Federal agencies and private persons; andpersons;

changed “(8) consider any other matter conduct a review of potential vulnerabilities in inflight Wi-Fi service that may put the Administrator determines appropriate.data of passengers at risk; and

added “(9) consider any other matter the Administrator determines appropriate.

“(c) Definitions—In this section:

“(1) Cyber common operating picture—The term cyber common operating picture means the correlation of a detected cyber incident or cyber threat in the national airspace system and other operational anomalies to provide a holistic view of potential cause and impact.

“(2) Cyber environment—The term cyber environment means the information environment consisting of the interdependent networks of information technology infrastructures and resident data, including the internet, telecommunications networks, computer systems, and embedded processors and controllers.

“(3) Cyber incident—The term cyber incident means an action that creates noticeable degradation, disruption, or destruction to the cyber environment and causes a safety or other negative impact on operations of—

“(A) the national airspace system;

“(B) civil aircraft; or

“(C) aeronautical products and articles.

“(4) Cyber threat—The term cyber threat means the threat of an action that, if carried out, would constitute a cyber incident or an electronic attack.

“(5) Electronic attack—The term electronic attack means the use of electromagnetic spectrum energy to impede operations in the cyber environment, including through techniques such as jamming or spoofing.”

“(6) Except for circumstances when the Administrator establishes alternative altitude ceilings or as otherwise authorized in section (c), in Class G airspace, the aircraft is flown from the surface to not more than 400 feet above ground level and complies with all airspace and flight restrictions and prohibitions established under this subtitle, such as special use airspace designations and temporary flight restrictions.”

“(c) Operations at fixed sites

“(1) In general—The Administrator shall establish a process to approve, and publicly disseminate the location of, fixed sites at which a person may carry out recreational unmanned aircraft system operations.

“(2) Operating procedures

“(A) Controlled airspace—Persons operating unmanned aircraft under paragraph (1) from a fixed site within Class B, Class C, or Class D airspace or within the lateral boundaries of the surface area of Class E airspace designated for an airport, or a community-based organization sponsoring operations within such airspace, shall make the location of the fixed site known to the Administrator and shall establish a mutually agreed upon operating procedure with the air traffic control facility.

“(B) Altitude—The Administrator, in coordination with community-based organizations sponsoring operations at fixed sites, shall develop a process to approve requests for recreational unmanned aircraft systems operations at fixed sites that exceed the maximum altitude contained in a UAS Facility Map.

“(C) Class G airspace—Subject to compliance with all airspace and flight restrictions and prohibitions established under this subtitle, such as special use airspace designations and temporary flight restrictions, persons operating drones under paragraph (1) from a fixed site at which the operations are sponsored by a community-based organization may operate within Class G airspace—

“(i) up to 400 feet above ground level, without prior authorization from the Administrator; and

“(ii) above 400 feet above ground level, with prior authorization from the Administrator.

“(3) Unmanned aircraft weighing 55 pounds or greater—A person may operate an unmanned aircraft weighing 55 pounds or greater, including the weight of anything attached to or carried by the aircraft, under paragraph (1) if—

“(A) the unmanned aircraft complies with standards and limitations developed by a community-based organization and approved by the Administrator; and

“(B) the aircraft is operated from a fixed site as described in paragraph (1).

“(4) FAA-recognized identification areas—In implementing subpart C of part 89 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, the Administrator shall prioritize the review and adjudication of requests to establish FAA Recognized Identification Areas at fixed sites established under this section.”

“(1) In general—The Administrator, in consultation with manufacturers of unmanned aircraft systems, community-based organizations, and other industry stakeholders, shall develop, maintain, and update, as necessary, an aeronautical knowledge and safety test. Such test shall be administered electronically by the Administrator or a person designated by the Administrator.”

“(1) is recognized by the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration;”

“(2) operated by an elementary school or secondary school for educational or research purposes;”

“(3) Elementary school—The term elementary school has the meaning given to that term by section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(19)).

“(4) Secondary school—The term secondary school has the meaning given to that term by section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(45)).”

removed Section 2209 of the FAA Extension, Safety, and Security Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–190) is further amended—

removed “(v) Eligible outdoor gatherings.”

removed “(f) Eligible outdoor gathering defined—In this section, the term eligible outdoor gathering means an event that—

removed “(1) is primarily outdoors;

removed “(2) has an estimated daily attendance of 20,000 or greater in at least 1 of the preceding 3 years;

removed “(3) has defined and static geographical boundaries; and

removed “(4) is advertised in the public domain.

“(f) Deadlines

“(1) Not later than March 1, 2024, the Administrator shall publish a notice of proposed rulemaking to carry out the requirements of this section.

“(2) Not later than 16 months after publishing the notice of proposed rulemaking under paragraph (1), the Administrator shall issue a final rule.”

Section 2 of the Advanced Air Mobility Coordination and Leadership Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 note) is amended—

“(D) operators of airports, heliports, and vertiports, and fixed-base operators;”

“(9) processes and programs that can be leveraged to improve the efficiency of Federal reviews required for infrastructure development, including for electrical capacity projects.”

removed “(A) the timely entry into service of AAM after aircraft and operator certification; and

removed “(B) the evolution of early”

“(2) summarizing any dissenting views and opinions of a participant of the working group described in subsection (c)(3); and”

“(5) Powered-lift aircraft—The term powered-lift aircraft has the meaning given the term powered-lift in section 1.1 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.

“(6) Regional air mobility—The term regional air mobility means the movement of people or property by air between 2 points using an airworthy aircraft that—

“(A) has advanced technologies, such as distributed propulsion, vertical take-off and landing, powered-lift, non-traditional power systems, or autonomous technologies;

“(B) has a maximum takeoff weight of greater than 1,320 pounds; and

“(C) is not urban air mobility.”

“(8) Urban air mobility—The term urban air mobility means the movement of people or property by air between 2 intracity or intercity points using an airworthy aircraft that—

“(A) advanced technologies, such as distributed propulsion, vertical take-off and landing, powered-lift, nontraditional power systems, or autonomous technologies; and

“(B) a maximum takeoff weight of greater than 1,320 pounds.”

“(10) Vertiport—The term vertiport has the meaning given such term in section 47102 of title 49, United States Code.”

“(i) Considerations for termination of working group—In deciding whether to terminate the working group under subsection (h), the Secretary and the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall consider other interagency coordination activities associated with AAM, or other new or novel users of the national airspace system, that could benefit from continued wider interagency coordination.”

Section 101 of division Q of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (49 U.S.C. 40101 note) is amended—

“(iii) a description of—

“(I) initial community engagement efforts and responses from the public on the planning and development efforts of eligible entities related to urban air mobility and regional air mobility operations;

“(II) how eligible entities are planning for and encouraging early adoption of urban air mobility and regional air mobility operations;

“(III) what role each level of government plays in the process; and

“(IV) whether such entities recommend specific regulatory or guidance actions be taken by the Secretary of Transportation or other Federal agencies in order to support such early adoption.”

“(1) Advanced air mobility; AAM; regional air mobility; urban air mobility; vertiport—The terms advanced air mobility, AAM, regional air mobility, urban air mobility, and vertiport have the meaning given such terms in section 2(j) of the Advanced Air Mobility Coordination and Leadership Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 note).”

Section 329(b) of title 49, United States Code, is amended—

changed “(2) collect and disseminate information on commercial space transportation launch and reentry operations (other than that collected and disseminated by the National Transportation Safety Board under chapter 11) including, at a minimum, information on the number of launches or reentries licensed by the Secretary, the number of space flight participants, the number of payloads, and the mass of payloads, organized by class of orbit;”

changed Not later than 120 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate a report on the infrastructure needs at Federal Aviation Administration-licensed horizontal and vertical launch sites located in rural communities.

changed Section 45303(g) 45303(g)(2)(A) of title 49, United States Code, is amended—amended by striking “8 years” and inserting “14 years”.

removed “(xvi) Operators of commercial space transportation launch and reentry vehicles.”

“(C) had an average subsidy per passenger—

“(i) of less than $1,000 during the most recent fiscal year beginning before October 1, 2026, as determined in subparagraph (D) by the Secretary; or

“(ii) of $500 or less during the most recent fiscal year beginning on or after October 1, 2026; and”

“(G) the total compensation proposed by the air carrier for providing scheduled air service under this section.”

“(F) require that, for a contract to provide air service that is entered into or renewed under this subchapter after September 30, 2026, the Government’s share of the compensation is 95 percent.”

“40119. Sensitive security information

“(a) In general—Notwithstanding section 552 of title 5, the Secretary of Transportation shall issue regulations prohibiting the disclosure of information obtained or developed in the process of ensuring security under this title if the Secretary determines that disclosing the information would—

“(1) be an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy;

“(2) reveal a trade secret or privileged or confidential commercial or financial information; or

“(3) be detrimental to transportation safety.

changed “(b) Withheld information—In carrying out subsection (a), the Secretary shall ensure that the prohibitions described in such subsection do not apply to any information provided to a committee of Congress authorized to have such information, including the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

“(c) Rule of construction—Nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed to authorize the designation of information as sensitive security information (as defined in section 15.5 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations) to—

“(1) conceal—

“(A) a violation of law;

“(B) inefficiency; or

“(C) an administrative error;

“(2) prevent embarrassment to a person, organization, or governmental agency;

“(3) restrain competition; or

“(4) prevent or delay the release of information that does not require protection in the interest of transportation security, including basic scientific research information not clearly related to transportation security.

“(d) Nondisclosure—Section 552a of title 5 shall not apply to disclosures that the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may make from the systems of records of the Administration to any Federal law enforcement, intelligence, protective service, immigration, or national security official in order to assist the official receiving the information in the performance of official duties.”

Section 40110(d) of title 49, United States Code, is further amended—

“(4) Commercial products and services—In implementing and updating the acquisition management system pursuant to paragraph (1), the Administrator shall, whenever possible—

“(A) describe the requirements with respect to a solicitation for the procurement of supplies or services in terms of—

“(i) functions to be performed;

“(ii) performance required; or

“(iii) essential physical and system characteristics;

“(B) ensure that commercial services or commercial products may be procured to fulfill such solicitation, or to the extent that commercial products suitable to meet the needs of the Administration are not available, ensure that nondevelopmental items other than commercial products may be procured to fulfill such solicitation;

“(C) provide offerors of commercial services, commercial products, and nondevelopmental items other than commercial products an opportunity to compete in any solicitation for the procurement of supplies or services;

changed “(D) revise the procurement policies, practices, and procedures of the Administration to reduce any impediments to the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services; andservices;

changed “(E) ensure that any procurement officials—of new equipment takes into account the life cycle, reliability, performance, service support, and costs to guarantee the acquisition of equipment that is of high quality and reliability resulting in greater performance and cost-related benefits for airports; and

added “(F) ensure that procurement officials—

“(i) acquire commercial services, commercial products, or nondevelopmental items other than commercial products to meet the needs of the Administration;

“(ii) in a solicitation for the procurement of supplies or services, state the specifications for such supplies or services in terms that enable and encourage bidders and offerors to supply commercial services or commercial products, or to the extent that commercial products suitable to meet the needs of the Administration are not available, to supply nondevelopmental items other than commercial products;

“(iii) require that prime contractors and subcontractors at all levels under contracts with the Administration incorporate commercial services, commercial products, or nondevelopmental items other than commercial products as components of items supplied to the Administration;

“(iv) modify procurement requirements in appropriate circumstances to ensure that such requirements can be met by commercial services or commercial products, or to the extent that commercial products suitable to meet the needs of the Administration are not available, nondevelopmental items other than commercial products; and

“(v) require training of appropriate personnel in the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services.”

changed Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives, the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate, and the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives Representatives, and make publicly available on a website of the Administration, a detailed report on any direct and indirect costs and inefficiencies associated with COVID-era telework policies at the Federal Aviation Administration.