Obfuscated DOT/FAA Significant Rulemaking Report???

JDA Aviation Technology Solutions

Secretary Buttigieg’s staff recently published a statutorily required report of the DOT/FAA AVIATION SAFETY REGULATORY AGENDA. These “scoreboards” have been issued for years and their “tables” provided important indicators of the real agenda of the President/Secretary/ Administrator—what projects have been ignored, which proposals are being accelerated, etc. through dates, specific status statements, when/what started the rule process. The JANUARY 2022 SIGNIFICANT RULEMAKING REPORT’s content is LEAN ON SUCH TELLING INFORMATION. A defender might assert that brevity is the reason for these omissions, but that raises the question of the purposes of editor’s choices. Such selective actions by the current DOT were the subject of a recent House hearing.

For those who track regulatory performance of the FAA, and other agencies, the Significant Rulemaking Report (SRR) is an important barometer of progress in issuing and completing NPRM projects. The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) establishes criteria for rules considered “significant” and requires additional reviews and assessments by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and other agencies. Congress sought reports that identify rules that the agencies expect to consider in the next 12 months that may have a significant economic impact. 

SRMs have frequently been the subjects of this Journal; for example:

25 Hour Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) requirement, New Aircraft Production

Ten FAA projects that should be watched on the DOT 2022 Significant Rulemaking Reports

Some observations on the Fall 2023 SRM: 

• 1.There are 28 items on the list-

• 2. 11 of them show 00/00/00 as the expected completion date

• Translation: though the project has been on the SRM before the time needed to finish is UNKNOWN? 
• 3.The below 00/00/00 dates are projects that would seem to be more urgent

• Applying the Flight, Duty, and Rest requirements to Ferry Flights that Follow Domestic, Flag, or Supplemental All-Cargo Operations (Reauthorization) 
• Applying the Flight, Duty, and Rest Requirements to Ferry Flights that Follow Commuter or On-Demand Operations (FAA Reauthorization) 
• Pilot Biometric Certificates (FAA Reauthorization)¹ 
• Aircraft Registration and Airmen Certification Fees 
• Unmanned Aircraft Systems Expanded Operations¹ 
• Revision of ADS-B Out Requirements¹ 
• Safe and Secure Operations of Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems—curious, why not part of the 2024 UAS package (see below) 
• Domestic Noise Certification of Supersonic Aircraft 

• 4.Careful parsing of the SRM text shows that project dates are as old as 2000, 2012 (5), 2018
• 5.The 2023 year is listed as completion date for 10 projects like:

• Drug and Alcohol Testing of Certain Maintenance Provider Employees Located Outside of the United States¹—a favorite of the IAM which faces significant international impediments 
• Orbital Debris Mitigation Methods for Launch Vehicle Upper Stages¹ⁱ 
• Prohibition Against Certain Flights in the Territory and Airspace of Venezuela 
• Prohibition Against Certain Flights in the Kabul Flight Information Region (FIR) (OAKX) 
• Extension of the Prohibition Against Certain Flights in the Tripoli Flight Information Region (FIR) (HLLL) 

• All 3 are, should have been no brainers!!! 

• Modernization of Special Airworthiness Certification¹ 
• Installation and Operation of Flightdeck Installed Physical Secondary Barriers on Transport Category Airplanes in Part 121 Service- a favorite of ALPA, held up due to cost/benefit test deficiencies. 
• Integration of Powered-Lift: Pilot Certification and Operations; Miscellaneous Amendments Related to Rotorcraft and Airplanes¹ 

• 6. The DOT/FAA commit to issuing 6 NPRMs in 2024, including an interesting a cluster of UAS rules:

• External Marking Requirement for Small Unmanned Aircraft 
• Designation – Restrict the Operation of an Unmanned Aircraft in Close Proximity to a Fixed Site Facility 
• Unmanned Aircraft Systems Operations using Special Airworthiness 
• Transport Airplane Certification Streamlining¹ 
• Safety Management System (SMS) for Parts 21, 91, 135 and 145¹ 
• 25 Hour Cockpit Voice Recorder (CVR) requirement, New Aircraft Production¹ , a proposal not favored by ALPA. 

The Hill, that requested that SRMs be produced periodically, has not cited this barometer of FAA aviation safety progress. REASONS? 

• The incomprehensible SRM organization (not by year, by subject matter or by importance) 
• The brevity/obfuscation of each individual NPRM description—what matters and why not clear.
• The inclusion of seemingly meaningless project, i.e., notice of international airspace closure.
• ????

As Congress puts together its Reauthorization, an exercise that usually includes NEW PROJECTS WITH MANDATED COMPLETION DATE, any such imposition should designate which of the SRMs it should replace in this list of PRIORTITES!!!

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2023 Report on DOT Significant Rulemakings 

Overview 

The Significant Rulemakings Report provides a summary and the status for all significant rulemakings that DOT currently has pending or has issued during the current year; instead of monthly. We will work to update this report in each winter and summer season; following the publication of the Unified Agenda of Regulatory and Deregulatory Actions, which occurs each Spring and Fall of each year.  

The information in the Report is not intended to commit DOT to specific conclusions or actions.  For example, after further analysis, DOT may decide the effects of the rule would be different or it may decide to terminate the rulemaking. 

Access to the Report  

• September 2023 Significant Rulemaking Report 
• View All Significant Rulemaking Reports² 

Purpose of the Report 

The DOT is providing this report to INFORM THE PUBLIC REGARDING ITS REGULATORY ACTIVITIES.  This information can be used in conjunction with other tools available to the public.  For instance, by using the Docket Number when it is provided in the Report, you can locate the public docket for a particular rulemaking.  By using the Federal Register citation, you can also locate the document in the Federal Register. 

The DOT’s dockets can be found in the Federal Docket Management System (FDMS).  Those dockets electronically store all DOT-issued documents, supporting documents, and public comments regarding a particular rulemaking.  In addition, once in the docket, you can sign up for an email notification when particular documents are placed in the docket. 

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