[Congressional Bills 111th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4714 Introduced in House (IH)]

111th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4714

To amend title 49, United States Code, to authorize appropriations for 
the National Transportation Safety Board for fiscal years 2011 through 
                     2014, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 2, 2010

   Mr. Oberstar (for himself, Mr. Mica, Mr. Costello, Mr. Petri, Mr. 
 DeFazio, Ms. Norton, and Mr. Cummings) introduced the following bill; 
       which was referred to the Committee on Transportation and 
                             Infrastructure

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend title 49, United States Code, to authorize appropriations for 
the National Transportation Safety Board for fiscal years 2011 through 
                     2014, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``National 
Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2010''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code.
Sec. 3. Definitions.
Sec. 4. General organization.
Sec. 5. Administrative.
Sec. 6. Recordings, transcripts, and investigations.
Sec. 7. Training.
Sec. 8. Reports and studies.
Sec. 9. Authorization of appropriations.
Sec. 10. Accident investigation authority.
Sec. 11. Maritime casualty investigations.
Sec. 12. Inspections and autopsies.
Sec. 13. Discovery and use of cockpit and surface vehicle recordings 
                            and transcripts.
Sec. 14. Family assistance.
Sec. 15. Coast Guard notification.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE.

    Except as otherwise specifically provided, whenever in this Act an 
amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal 
of, a section or other provision of law, the reference shall be 
considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, 
United States Code.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    Section 1101 is amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 1101. Definitions
    ``(a) Accident Defined.--In this chapter, the term `accident'--
            ``(1) means an event associated with the operation of a 
        vehicle, aircraft, or pipeline, which results in damage to or 
        destruction of the vehicle, aircraft or pipeline, or which 
        results in the death of or serious injury to any person, 
        regardless of whether the initiating event is accidental or 
        otherwise; and
            ``(2) may include an incident that does not involve 
        destruction or damage of a vehicle, aircraft, or pipeline, but 
        affects transportation safety, as the Board prescribes by 
        regulation.
    ``(b) Applicability of Definitions in Other Laws.--The definitions 
contained in section 2101(17a) of title 46 and section 40102(a) of this 
title apply to this chapter.''.

SEC. 4. GENERAL ORGANIZATION.

    The last sentence of section 1111(d) is amended by striking 
``absent'' and inserting ``unavailable''.

SEC. 5. ADMINISTRATIVE.

    (a) Additional Powers.--
            (1) Authority of board to enter into contracts and other 
        agreements with nonprofit entities.--Section 1113(b)(1)(H) is 
        amended by inserting ``and other agreements'' after 
        ``contracts''.
            (2) Authority of board to enter into and perform contracts, 
        agreements, leases, or other transactions.--Section 1113(b)(1) 
        is amended--
                    (A) by striking paragraph (1)(I) and inserting the 
                following:
            ``(I) negotiate, enter into, and perform contracts, 
        agreements, leases, or other transactions with individuals, 
        private entities, departments, agencies, and instrumentalities 
        of the Government, State and local governments, and governments 
        of foreign countries on such terms and conditions as the 
        Chairman of the Board considers appropriate to carry out the 
        functions of the Board and require that such entities provide 
        appropriate consideration for the reasonable costs of any 
        facilities, goods, services, or training provided by the 
        Board.''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(3) The Authority of the Board to enter into leases shall be 
limited to the provision of special use space related to an accident 
investigation, or for general use space, at an average annual rental 
cost of not more than $300,000 for any individual property.''.
            (3) Authority of other federal agencies.--Section 
        1113(b)(2) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(2) Authority of other federal agencies.--Notwithstanding 
        any other provision of law, the head of a Federal department, 
        agency, or instrumentality may transfer to or receive from the 
        Board, with or without reimbursement, supplies, personnel, 
        services, and equipment (other than administrative supplies and 
        equipment).''.
    (b) Criteria on Public Hearings.--
            (1) In general.--Section 1113 is amended by adding at the 
        end the following:
    ``(i) Public Hearings.--
            ``(1) Development of criteria.--The Board shall establish 
        by regulation criteria to be used by the Board in determining, 
        for each accident investigation and safety study undertaken by 
        the Board, whether or not the Board will hold a public hearing 
        on the investigation or study.
            ``(2) Factors.--In developing the criteria, the Board shall 
        give priority consideration to the following factors:
                    ``(A) Whether the accident has caused significant 
                loss of life.
                    ``(B) Whether the accident has caused significant 
                property damage.
                    ``(C) Whether the accident may involve a national 
                transportation safety issue.
                    ``(D) Whether a public hearing may provide needed 
                information to the Board.
                    ``(E) Whether a public hearing may offer an 
                opportunity to educate the public on a safety issue.
                    ``(F) Whether a public hearing may increase both 
                the transparency of the Board's investigative process 
                and public confidence that such process is 
                comprehensive, accurate, and unbiased.
                    ``(G) Whether a public hearing is likely to 
                significantly delay the conclusion of an investigation 
                and whether the possible adverse effects of the delay 
                on safety outweigh the benefits of a public hearing.''.
            (2) Annual report.--Section 1117 is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
                (5);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph 
                (6) and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(7) an analysis of the Board's implementation of the 
        criteria established pursuant to section 1113(i) during the 
        prior calendar year, including an explanation of any instance 
        in which the Board did not hold a public hearing for an 
        investigation of an accident that has caused significant loss 
        of life or property damage or that may involve a national 
        transportation safety issue.''.

SEC. 6. RECORDINGS, TRANSCRIPTS, AND INVESTIGATIONS.

    (a) Vessel Recordings and Transcripts.--Section 1114 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1) by striking ``and (f)'' and 
        inserting ``(e), and (g)'';
            (2) in subsection (d)(1) by striking ``or vessel'';
            (3) by redesignating subsections (e) and (f) as subsections 
        (f) and (g), respectively; and
            (4) by inserting after subsection (d) the following:
    ``(e) Vessel Recordings and Transcripts.--
            ``(1) Confidentiality of recordings and transcripts.--The 
        Board may not disclose publicly any part of a vessel's voice or 
        video recorder recording or transcript of oral communications 
        by or among the crew, pilots, or docking masters of a vessel, 
        vessel traffic services, or other vessels, or between the 
        vessel's crew and company communication centers, related to an 
        accident investigated by the Board. However, the Board shall 
        make public any part of a transcript or any written depiction 
        of visual information that the Board decides is relevant to the 
        accident--
                    ``(A) if the Board holds a public hearing on the 
                accident, at the time of the hearing; or
                    ``(B) if the Board does not hold a public hearing, 
                at the time a majority of the other factual reports on 
                the accident are placed in the public docket.
            ``(2) References to information in making safety 
        recommendations.--This subsection does not prevent the Board 
        from referring at any time to voice or video recorder 
        information in making safety recommendations.''.
    (b) Party Representatives to NTSB Investigations.--
            (1) In general.--Section 1114 is further amended by adding 
        at the end the following:
    ``(h) Party Representatives to NTSB Investigations.--
            ``(1) Prohibition on disclosure of information.--A party 
        representative to an accident investigation of the Board is 
        prohibited from disclosing, orally or in written form, 
        investigative information, as defined by the Board, to anyone 
        who is not an employee of the Board or who is not a party 
        representative to such investigation, except--
                    ``(A) as provided in paragraph (2); or
                    ``(B) at the conclusion of the fact finding stage 
                of an investigation, which the investigator-in-charge 
                shall announce by formal posting of a notice in the 
                publicly available investigation docket.
            ``(2) Exception.--If the investigator-in-charge determines 
        that a disclosure of information related to an accident 
        investigation is necessary to prevent additional accidents, to 
        address a perceived safety deficiency, or to assist in the 
        conduct of the investigation, the investigator-in-charge may at 
        any time authorize in writing a party representative to 
        disclose such information under conditions approved by the 
        investigator-in-charge. Such conditions shall ensure that, 
        until the posting of a formal notice described in paragraph 
        (1)(B), or until the information disclosed pursuant to this 
        paragraph becomes publicly available by any other means, 
        neither the entity represented by the party representative nor 
        any other person may use such information in preparation for 
        the prosecution of any claim or defense in litigation in 
        connection with the accident being investigated or to make or 
        deny any insurance claim in connection with such accident.
            ``(3) Compliance.--The Board shall require any individual 
        who is a party representative to an investigation of the Board 
        to sign a party agreement that includes language informing the 
        individual of the prohibition in paragraph (1).
            ``(4) Representatives of federal agencies.--Paragraph (3) 
        shall not apply to an individual who is a representative of the 
        Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of the department in 
        which the Coast Guard is operating, or any other Federal 
        department, agency, or instrumentality participating in the 
        investigation and deemed by the Board to be performing a law 
        enforcement or similar function.
            ``(5) Party representative defined.--In this subsection, 
        the term `party representative' means an individual 
        representing a party to an investigation pursuant to section 
        831.11 of title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, as in effect 
        on the date of enactment of this subsection.''.
            (2) Civil penalty.--Section 1151 is amended--
                    (A) in the section heading by striking ``Aviation 
                enforcement'' and inserting ``Enforcement''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``1114(h),'' before ``1132,'' in 
                each of subsections (a), (b)(1), and (c).
            (3) Conforming amendment.--The analysis for chapter 11 is 
        amended by striking the item relating to section 1151 and 
        inserting the following:

``1151. Enforcement.''.
    (c) GAO Study of Party Process.--
            (1) In general.--The Comptroller General shall conduct a 
        study on the use of party representatives in investigations 
        conducted by the National Transportation Safety Board.
            (2) Contents.--In conducting the study, the Comptroller 
        General shall examine, at a minimum--
                    (A) whether the composition of the party 
                representatives should be broadened to include on-going 
                representatives from other entities that could provide 
                independent, technically qualified representatives to a 
                Board investigation;
                    (B) whether the participation of party 
                representatives in a Board investigation results in any 
                unfair advantages for the entities represented by the 
                party representatives while the Board is conducting the 
                investigation;
                    (C) whether the use of party representatives leads 
                to bias in the outcome of a Board investigation; and
                    (D) whether Board investigations would be 
                compromised in any way absent the participation and 
                expertise of party representatives.
            (3) Report to congress.--Not later than 18 months after the 
        date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 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 
        results of the study conducted under this subsection, including 
        any recommendations for improvements in the Board's use of the 
        party representative process.

SEC. 7. TRAINING.

    Section 1115(d) is amended--
            (1) by inserting ``theory and techniques and on 
        transportation safety methods to advance Board safety 
        recommendations'' before the period at the end of the first 
        sentence;
            (2) by inserting ``or who influence the course of 
        transportation safety through support or adoption of Board 
        safety recommendations'' before the period at the end of the 
        second sentence; and
            (3) by inserting ``under section 1118(c)(2)'' before the 
        period at the end of the third sentence.

SEC. 8. REPORTS AND STUDIES.

    (a) Studies and Investigations.--Section 1116(b) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1) by striking ``carry out'' and 
        inserting ``conduct''; and
            (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following:
            ``(3) prescribe requirements for persons reporting 
        accidents, as defined in section 1101(a), that may be 
        investigated by the Board under this chapter;''.
    (b) Evaluation and Audit.--Section 1138(a) is amended by striking 
``conducted at least annually, but may be''.

SEC. 9. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1118(a) is amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) In General.--There is authorized to be appropriated for the 
purposes of this chapter--
            ``(1) $117,368,000 for fiscal year 2011;
            ``(2) $120,258,000 for fiscal year 2012;
            ``(3) $122,187,000 for fiscal year 2013; and
            ``(4) $124,158,000 for fiscal year 2014.
Such sums shall remain available until expended.''.
    (b) Fees, Refunds, Reimbursements, and Advances.--Section 1118(c) 
is amended--
            (1) by striking the subsection heading and inserting the 
        following: ``Fees, Refunds, Reimbursements, and Advances'';
            (2) in paragraph (1)--
                    (A) by striking ``and reimbursements'' and 
                inserting ``reimbursements, and advances''; and
                    (B) by striking ``services'' and inserting 
                ``activities, services, and facilities'';
            (3) in paragraph (2)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by 
                striking ``or reimbursement'' and inserting 
                ``reimbursement, or advance''; and
                    (B) in each of subparagraphs (A) and (B) by 
                striking ``activities'' and all that follows before the 
                semicolon and inserting ``activities, services, or 
                facilities for which the fee, refund, reimbursement, or 
                advance is associated'';
            (4) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4);
            (5) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
            ``(3) Annual record of collections.--The Board shall 
        maintain an annual record of collections received under 
        paragraph (2).''; and
            (6) in paragraph (4) (as redesignated by paragraph (4) of 
        this subsection) by inserting ``or advance'' after ``fee''.

SEC. 10. ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION AUTHORITY.

    (a) In General.--Section 1131(a)(1) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A) by striking 
        ``cause or probable cause'' and inserting ``causes or probable 
        causes'';
            (2) in subparagraph (C) by striking ``a fatality or 
        substantial property damage'' and inserting ``a fatality (other 
        than a fatality involving a trespasser) or substantial property 
        damage'';
            (3) in subparagraph (E) by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (4) in subparagraph (F) by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting a semicolon; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(G) an accident in response to an international request 
        and delegation under appropriate international conventions, 
        coordinated through the Department of State and accepted by the 
        Board; and
            ``(H) each accident involving a commercial space launch 
        vehicle.''.
    (b) Authorities of Other Agencies.--The second sentence of section 
1131(a)(3) is amended by inserting ``or relevant to'' after ``developed 
about''.
    (c) Accidents Not Involving Government Misfeasance or 
Nonfeasance.--Section 1131(c) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
            ``(3) Authority of board representative.--In the case of a 
        delegation of authority under paragraph (1), the Secretary, or 
        a person designated by the Secretary, shall have the authority 
        of the Board, on display of appropriate credentials and written 
        notice of inspection authority, to enter property where the 
        aircraft accident has occurred or wreckage from the accident is 
        located and to gather evidence in support of a Board 
        investigation, in accordance with rules the Board may 
        prescribe.''.
    (d) Incident Investigations.--Section 1131 is amended by adding at 
the end the following:
    ``(f) Incident Investigations.--
            ``(1) Memorandum of understanding.--Not later than 90 days 
        after the issuance of final regulations under section 
        1101(a)(2), the Chairman of the Board shall seek to enter into 
        a memorandum of understanding with the Secretary of 
        Transportation and the head of each modal administration of the 
        Department of Transportation that sets forth--
                    ``(A) an understanding of the conditions under 
                which the Board will conduct an incident investigation 
                that involves the applicable mode of transportation; 
                and
                    ``(B) the roles and responsibilities of the parties 
                to the memorandum when the Board is conducting an 
                incident investigation.
            ``(2) Updates and renewals.--Each memorandum of 
        understanding required under paragraph (1) shall be updated and 
        renewed not less than once every 5 years, unless parties to the 
        memorandum agree that updating the memorandum is unnecessary.
            ``(3) Board authority.--Nothing in this paragraph negates 
        the authority of the Board to investigate an incident.
            ``(4) Incident defined.--In this subsection, the term 
        `incident' means an incident described in regulations issued 
        under section 1101(a)(2).''.

SEC. 11. MARITIME CASUALTY INVESTIGATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 11 is amended by inserting after section 
1132 the following:
``Sec. 1132a. Maritime casualty investigations
    ``(a) Delegation of Authority to Coast Guard.--
            ``(1) In general.--In an investigation of a major marine 
        casualty under section 1131(a)(1)(E), the Board, with the 
        consent of the Secretary of the department in which the Coast 
        Guard is operating, may delegate to the Commandant of the Coast 
        Guard full authority to obtain the facts of the casualty. In 
        the case of such a delegation, the Commandant, acting through 
        the Commandant's on-scene representative, shall have the full 
        authority of the Board.
            ``(2) Required training, experience, and qualifications.--
        The Board may not make a delegation under paragraph (1) unless 
        the Board determines that the Commandant's on-scene 
        representatives have sufficient training, experience, and 
        qualifications in investigation, marine casualty 
        reconstruction, evidence collection and preservation, human 
        factors, and documentation to act in accordance with the best 
        investigation practices of Federal and non-Federal entities.
    ``(b) Notification and Reporting.--The Board and the Secretary 
shall jointly prescribe regulations governing the notification and 
reporting of marine casualties to the Board.
    ``(c) Participation of Commandant in Marine Investigations.--The 
Board shall provide for the participation of the Commandant of the 
Coast Guard in an investigation by the Board of a major marine casualty 
under section 1131(a)(1)(E) if such participation is necessary to carry 
out the duties and powers of the Commandant, except that the Commandant 
may not participate in establishing the probable cause of the marine 
casualty (other than as provided section 1131(b)).''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 11 is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 1132 the following:

``Sec. 1132a. Maritime casualty investigations.''.

SEC. 12. INSPECTIONS AND AUTOPSIES.

    Section 1134(a) is amended in the matter preceding paragraph (1)--
            (1) by striking ``officer or employee'' and inserting 
        ``officer, employee, or Federal designee''; and
            (2) by inserting ``in the conduct of any accident 
        investigation or study'' after ``National Transportation Safety 
        Board''.

SEC. 13. DISCOVERY AND USE OF COCKPIT AND SURFACE VEHICLE RECORDINGS 
              AND TRANSCRIPTS.

    Section 1154(a)(1)(A) is amended by striking ``; and'' and 
inserting ``; or''.

SEC. 14. FAMILY ASSISTANCE.

    (a) Family Assistance in Commercial Aviation Accidents.--Section 
41113(b)(7) is amended by inserting before the period at the end the 
following: ``, and that at least 60 days before the planned destruction 
of any unclaimed possession of a passenger a reasonable attempt will be 
made to notify the family of the passenger''.
    (b) Family Assistance in Commercial Aviation Accidents Involving 
Foreign Carriers.--Section 41313(c)(7) is amended by inserting before 
the period at the end the following: ``, and that at least 60 days 
before the planned destruction of any unclaimed possession of a 
passenger a reasonable attempt will be made to notify the family of the 
passenger''.

SEC. 15. COAST GUARD NOTIFICATION.

    Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, 
the National Transportation Safety Board and the Secretary of the 
department in which the Coast Guard is operating shall issue 
regulations to provide the Board prompt notification through the Coast 
Guard of all marine accidents of potential investigative interest to 
the Board.
                                 <all>