[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5788 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5788

   To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish prohibitions 
 against voice communications using a mobile communications device on 
          commercial airline flights, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 15, 2008

  Mr. DeFazio (for himself, Mr. Costello, Mr. Petri, Mr. Duncan, Mr. 
    Oberstar, Mr. Lipinski, Mr. Filner, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Boozman, Mr. 
Capuano, and Mr. George Miller of California) introduced the following 
    bill; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
                             Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend title 49, United States Code, to establish prohibitions 
 against voice communications using a mobile communications device on 
          commercial airline flights, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Halting Airplane Noise to Give Us 
Peace Act of 2008''.

SEC. 2. PROHIBITIONS AGAINST VOICE COMMUNICATIONS USING MOBILE 
              COMMUNICATIONS DEVICES ON SCHEDULED FLIGHTS.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter I of chapter 417 of title 49, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 41724. Prohibitions against voice communications using mobile 
              communications devices on scheduled flights
    ``(a) Interstate and Intrastate Air Transportation.--
            ``(1) In general.--An individual may not engage in voice 
        communications using a mobile communications device in an 
        aircraft during a flight in scheduled passenger interstate air 
        transportation or scheduled passenger intrastate air 
        transportation.
            ``(2) Flight crew and flight attendants.--The prohibition 
        described in paragraph (1) shall not apply to a member of the 
        flight crew or flight attendants on an aircraft.
    ``(b) Foreign Air Transportation.--
            ``(1) In general.--The Secretary of Transportation shall 
        require all air carriers and foreign air carriers to adopt the 
        prohibition described in subsection (a) with respect to the 
        operation of an aircraft in scheduled passenger foreign air 
        transportation.
            ``(2) Alternate prohibition.--If a foreign government 
        objects to the application of paragraph (1) on the basis that 
        paragraph (1) provides for an extraterritorial application of 
        the laws of the United States, the Secretary shall waive the 
        application of paragraph (1) to a foreign air carrier licensed 
        by that foreign government at such time as an alternative 
        prohibition on voice communications using a mobile 
        communications device during flight is negotiated by the 
        Secretary with such foreign government through bilateral 
        negotiations.
    ``(c) Definitions.--In this section, the following definitions 
apply:
            ``(1) Flight.--The term `flight' means the period beginning 
        when an aircraft takes off and ending when an aircraft lands.
            ``(2) Voice communications using a mobile communications 
        device.--
                    ``(A) Inclusions.--The term `voice communications 
                using a mobile communications device' includes voice 
                communications using--
                            ``(i) a commercial mobile radio service or 
                        other wireless communications device;
                            ``(ii) a broadband wireless device or other 
                        wireless device that transmits data packets 
                        using the Internet Protocol or comparable 
                        technical standard; or
                            ``(iii) a device having voice override 
                        capability.
                    ``(B) Exclusion.--Such term does not include voice 
                communications using a phone installed on an aircraft.
    ``(d) Safety Regulations.--This section shall not be construed to 
affect the authority of the Secretary to impose limitations on voice 
communications using a mobile communications device for safety reasons.
    ``(e) Regulations.--The Secretary shall prescribe such regulations 
as are necessary to carry out this section.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for such subchapter is 
amended by adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 41724. Prohibitions against voice communications using mobile 
                            communications devices on scheduled 
                            flights.''.
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