110 HR 3676 IH: Family Friendly Flights Act of U.S. House of Representatives 2007-09-26 text/xml EN Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
I 110th CONGRESS 1st Session H. R. 3676 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES September 26, 2007 Mr. Shuler (for himself, Mr. Jones of North Carolina, Mr. Donnelly, Mr. Price of North Carolina, Mr. Hill, Mr. Cardoza, Mr. Wamp, Mr. Souder, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Duncan, Mr. McIntyre, Mr. Barrow, and Mr. Lincoln Davis of Tennessee) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure A BILL To amend title 49, United States Code, to provide for a child safe viewing area within which covered air carriers shall not display violent in-flight programming.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the Family Friendly Flights Act of 2007.
2.
Findings
Congress finds the following: (1)Children are a captive audience for publicly viewable in-flight entertainment on commercial aviation flights. (2)Children under the age of 13 are often exposed to non-cartoon images of murder, torture, general violence and other images terrifying to most children while traveling on domestic flights in the United States.
3.
Child Safe Viewing Area
(a)
In general
Subchapter I of chapter 417 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
41724.
Child Safe Viewing Area
(a)
Establishment of Child Safe Viewing Area
If a covered air carrier provides publicly viewable entertainment screens on which violent in-flight programming is displayed, such carrier shall provide a child safe viewing area for all passengers who are children under the age of 13 and for at least 1 adult travel companion per child. (b)
Allocation of seating
(1)
Priority of seating for unaccompanied minors
All unaccompanied children under the age of 13 shall be seated in the child safe viewing area. (2)
Opportunity to request seating in child safe viewing area
A covered air carrier, a ticket agent, or an individual employed by a covered air carrier or ticket agent, when issuing a ticket to an adult traveling with a child under the age of 13, shall offer the opportunity to request seating in the child safe viewing area. (c)
Definitions
For the purposes of this section, the following definitions apply: (1)
Child Safe Viewing Area
The term child safe viewing area means an area on an aircraft operated by a covered air carrier in which there are no publicly viewable entertainment screens displaying violent in-flight programming located within 10 rows of seating of such area. (2)
Covered air carrier
The term covered air carrier means an air carrier that provides scheduled passenger interstate air transportation or scheduled passenger intrastate air transportation. (3)
Publicly viewable entertainment screen
(A)
In general
The term publicly viewable entertainment screen means a video screen prominently located in the passenger compartment of an aircraft and viewable by more than 3 passengers, including all screens located in the aisles and on bulkhead walls. (B)
Exception
The term publicly viewable entertainment screen does not include a personal video screen located on the back of a seat or a stowable screen intended for single-passenger use. (4)
Violent in-flight programming
The term violent in-flight programming means— (A)motion pictures that were either not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) or were rated PG–13, R, or NC–17 by the MPAA; or (B)video programming that, when originally distributed for transmission through broadcast, a cable system, or satellite carrier, was not rated or was rated TV–PG–V, TV–13–V, TV–14–V, TV–MA–V, or otherwise rated as a program that parents may find unsuitable for younger children on the basis of violence.
. (b)
Conforming amendment
The analysis for chapter 417 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end of the items relating to subchapter I the following: 41724. Child safe viewing area. .
4.
Effective Date
The amendments made by section 3 shall take effect on January 1, 2008.