[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4464 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4464

  To ensure that Federal research and development in support of civil 
aviation remains at the forefront of addressing challenges confronting 
    the Nation's air transportation system, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            February 4, 2016

  Ms. Eddie Bernice Johnson of Texas (for herself, Mr. Lipinski, Ms. 
  Edwards, Mr. Grayson, and Ms. Esty) introduced the following bill; 
 which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To ensure that Federal research and development in support of civil 
aviation remains at the forefront of addressing challenges confronting 
    the Nation's air transportation system, 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 ``Federal Aviation Research and 
Development Reauthorization Act of 2016''.

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

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

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Administrator.--The term ``Administrator'' means the 
        Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration.
            (2) FAA.--The term ``FAA'' means the Federal Aviation 
        Administration.
            (3) NASA.--The term ``NASA'' means the National Aeronautics 
        and Space Administration.
            (4) Nextgen.--The term ``NextGen'' means the Next 
        Generation Air Transportation System.
            (5) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary 
        of Transportation.

                TITLE I--AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS

SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    Section 48102(a) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (8);
            (2) by striking paragraph (9); and
            (3) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(9) $428,050,000 for fiscal year 2016, of which--
                    ``(A) $166,000,000 shall be for Research, 
                Engineering, and Development;
                    ``(B) $216,050,000 shall be for Facilities and 
                Equipment; and
                    ``(C) $46,000,000 shall be for Grants-in-Aid for 
                Airports;
            ``(10) $490,200,000 for fiscal year 2017, of which--
                    ``(A) $169,000,000 shall be for Research, 
                Engineering, and Development;
                    ``(B) $275,200,000 shall be for Facilities and 
                Equipment; and
                    ``(C) $46,000,000 shall be for Grants-in-Aid for 
                Airports; and
            ``(11) $536,270,400 for fiscal year 2018, of which--
                    ``(A) $173,346,000 shall be for Research, 
                Engineering, and Development;
                    ``(B) $316,832,400 shall be for Facilities and 
                Equipment; and
                    ``(C) $46,092,000 shall be for Grants-in-Aid for 
                Airports.''.

             TITLE II--STRATEGIC DIRECTION FOR FAA RESEARCH

SEC. 21. DECADAL SURVEY ON FAA'S CIVIL AVIATION RESEARCH.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall enter into an arrangement with 
the National Academies for a comprehensive research survey and strategy 
for FAA's civil aviation activities, including NextGen, over the next 
decade. The survey shall encompass research activities in FAA's 
Research, Engineering, and Development, Facilities and Equipment, and 
Grants-in-Aid for Airports accounts, as well as any other research or 
emerging research areas that will enhance FAA's civil aviation 
activities. The survey shall--
            (1) prioritize FAA civil aviation research needs and align 
        such research needs with the mission of FAA;
            (2) examine the status of research methods and tools, 
        including modeling and simulation, data analysis, and 
        technology demonstration capabilities, that can contribute to 
        FAA civil aviation research;
            (3) examine the status of FAA-owned research facilities and 
        equipment, the extent to which their availability and 
        accessibility is coordinated across FAA's research programs, 
        and their ability to support FAA civil aviation research over 
        the next decade;
            (4) identify workforce skills, workforce development, and 
        training needed to support research priorities over the next 
        decade;
            (5) examine the process and issues related to translating 
        research advances into operational use, including the process 
        required for the certification, operational approval, and 
        implementation of new technologies and resulting operations 
        into the National Airspace System, and identify the best 
        practices used by other United States or non-United States 
        organizations in transitioning such research into operations;
            (6) examine issues related to the dissemination of relevant 
        research to the broader aviation community;
            (7) consider the research contributions of FAA Centers of 
        Excellence, NASA, and other United States Government or 
        nongovernment entities to civil aviation; and
            (8) make prioritized recommendations on the areas described 
        in paragraphs (1) through (7).
    (b) Transmittal.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit the results of the 
National Academies decadal survey to the Committee on Science, Space, 
and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 22. 5-YEAR STRATEGIC AND INTEGRATED RESEARCH PLAN.

    (a) Plan.--Not later than 9 months after the date of transmittal of 
the decadal survey under section 21(b), the Secretary shall transmit to 
the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate a Strategic and Integrated Research Plan 
that establishes a program of research and development activities that 
reflects the results of such decadal survey. The plan shall--
            (1) describe how FAA's research and development activities 
        and associated projects, including those related to--
                    (A) NextGen-associated research;
                    (B) research, engineering, and development and 
                facilities and equipment;
                    (C) grants-in-aid for airports research; and
                    (D) other research areas recommended in the decadal 
                survey,
        will be interlinked to address common themes and contribute to 
        making progress on the priorities identified in the decadal 
        survey transmitted under section 21(b);
            (2) provide integrated research objectives, milestones, and 
        timelines for achieving those priorities over the next 5 years; 
        and
            (3) describe research activities that will lead to 
        procedures for the certification and operational approval of 
        new technologies for their timely and cost-effective 
        introduction into the National Airspace System.
    (b) Review.--Not later than 3 years after the transmittal of the 
Strategic and Integrated Research Plan under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall enter into an arrangement with the National Academies 
to review FAA's progress on implementing the Strategic and Integrated 
Research Plan.
    (c) Transmittal of Review.--Not later than 12 months after the 
Secretary enters into the arrangement required under subsection (b), 
the Secretary shall transmit the results of the National Academies' 
review to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 23. CYBERSECURITY RESEARCH ACTION INITIATIVE.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall ensure that FAA's research and 
development on cybersecurity and its application across FAA is dynamic 
and constantly updated to reflect the evolving nature of cyber risks 
and threats, and that cybersecurity research and development is 
approached in an integrated fashion consistent with the findings and 
analyses of both the Government Accountability Office and the National 
Academies report, ``A Review of the Next Generation Air Transportation 
System: Implications and Importance of a System Architecture'', which 
states that ``Cybersecurity requires a system-wide approach that is 
managed architecturally and cannot be addressed piecemeal by each 
contractor (or program) separately. Nor can security be added to the 
system later. Safety properties themselves are dependent on a 
resilient, trustworthy, secure system, so careful integration of 
cybersecurity models and processes into safety analyses will become 
increasingly important. Finally, cybersecurity itself is an ongoing 
challenge in many domains and the subject of ongoing research; it will 
be important to track and integrate relevant results as the field 
continues to evolve.''. Development of an agencywide threat model will 
facilitate FAA in taking an integrated approach to cybersecurity.
    (b) Threat Model Development.--The Secretary shall develop an 
agencywide threat model to strengthen cybersecurity defense across FAA. 
The threat model shall--
            (1) be continuously updated;
            (2) be capable of describing the landscape of security 
        risks to FAA's operational systems, including those potentially 
        caused by manned and unmanned aircraft operation in the 
        National Airspace System; and
            (3) enable FAA to--
                    (A) identify known threats, including insider 
                threats;
                    (B) align cybersecurity efforts and responses 
                commensurate with the identified threats; and
                    (C) implement any additional actions needed to 
                respond to threats and security weaknesses that have 
                not been addressed.
    (c) Transmittal.--Not later than 6 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a classified threat 
model and an unclassified executive summary to the Committee on 
Science, Space, and Technology of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation of the Senate.

  TITLE III--MAINTAINING SAFETY AND ENVIRONMENTAL RESPONSIBILITY IN A 
                     CHANGING AVIATION ENVIRONMENT

SEC. 31. REVIEW OF RESEARCH SYNERGY OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS TEST 
              SITES AND CENTER OF EXCELLENCE.

    (a) Review.--Not later than 3 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Comptroller General shall initiate a review of the 
effectiveness of the 6 FAA unmanned aircraft system test sites and the 
opportunities for coordinating and integrating the research conducted 
at the test sites with that conducted by the Center of Excellence on 
Unmanned Aircraft Systems. The review shall include input from 
stakeholders and users of the test sites and participants of the Center 
of Excellence.
    (b) Issues.--The review shall address--
            (1) FAA's plans for the utilization of research carried out 
        at the test sites and the Center of Excellence on Unmanned 
        Aircraft Systems and any relationship of such research to the 
        plan required under section 22(a);
            (2) the coordination of the research carried out at the 
        test sites and the Center of Excellence; and
            (3) the mechanism by which FAA will exchange information 
        and communications with both the test sites and the Center of 
        Excellence on potential opportunities for them to address FAA's 
        research and development needs and on potential opportunities 
        for FAA to facilitate potential partnerships within and among 
        the test sites, the Center of Excellence, and other relevant 
        entities to help address FAA's research and development needs.
    (c) Transmittal.--The Comptroller General shall transmit the review 
under this section to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate not later than 12 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 32. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY IN SUPPORT OF THE SAFE 
              INTEGRATION OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS INTO THE 
              NATIONAL AIRSPACE SYSTEM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary shall develop a research and 
development strategy to provide the research basis for informing any 
potential regulatory action regarding the safe integration of evolving 
unmanned aircraft systems into the National Airspace System.
    (b) Strategy.--Not later than 9 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a research and development 
strategy for the integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the 
National Airspace System.
    (c) Issues.--The strategy shall address the research needed to 
ensure--
            (1) the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems of 
        all sizes and categories, operating altitudes, and degree of 
        autonomy of operation; and
            (2) the utilization of other relevant Federal and federally 
        sponsored research and development activities on the safe 
        integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the National 
        Airspace System.

SEC. 33. GENERAL AVIATION SAFETY.

    (a) Workshops.--The Secretary shall hold at least one workshop to 
discuss the status of research and development focused on enhancing 
general aviation safety. The workshop or workshops shall--
            (1) identify research and development that has had a 
        measurable impact on enhancing general aviation safety, and the 
        extent to which those research results are disseminated to the 
        general aviation community;
            (2) identify what further research is needed to address 
        factors affecting general aviation safety; and
            (3) include a broad range of experts from the Federal 
        Government, the National Transportation Safety Board, not-for-
        profit organizations, industry, academia, and the general 
        aviation user community.
    (b) Plan.--Using the results of the workshop or workshops held 
under subsection (a), the Secretary shall develop a plan that includes 
future research goals and objectives and a roadmap for achieving them.
    (c) Transmittal.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit the plan required 
under subsection (b) to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 34. REVIEW OF AIRCRAFT NOISE RESEARCH AND ITS USE IN SUPPORTING 
              STANDARDS.

    (a) In General.--The Comptroller General shall carry out a review 
of Federal Government research programs on aircraft noise levels and 
the use of such research to inform the Department of Transportation's 
noise evaluation processes, adjustments to noise metrics, and 
development of noise abatement procedures. The review shall include the 
research and development activities of other Federal agencies and 
international bodies and shall identify any barriers to the application 
of the research to updating noise evaluation processes and metrics.
    (b) Transmittal.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall transmit the review required 
under subsection (a) to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 35. RESEARCH TO ENHANCE AIRPORT SAFETY-RELATED DESIGN STANDARDS.

    (a) Plan and Process.--The Secretary shall develop a plan for 
research on safety risk assessment methods related to the development 
of airport design standards. The plan shall also establish a process 
for applying risk assessment methods to the development of standards.
    (b) Review.--The Secretary shall enter into an arrangement with the 
Transportation Research Board of the National Academies to carry out a 
review of the plan.
    (c) Transmittal.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of the Act, the Secretary shall transmit the results of the 
National Academies' review to the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 36. RESEARCH COORDINATION TO INFORM POTENTIAL AVIATION REGULATIONS 
              ON GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS.

    (a) Research Coordination.--The Director of the Office of Science 
and Technology Policy, in cooperation with the Secretary and other 
relevant Federal agencies, shall coordinate research that can inform 
the development of potential regulations on limiting greenhouse gas 
emissions from aircraft.
    (b) Research To Inform Potential Regulations.--The Director shall 
ensure that the research coordinated under subsection (a) is provided 
to the relevant Federal agencies and international bodies to help 
inform the development of international standards and potential United 
States regulations that would seek to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 
from aircraft.

SEC. 37. RESEARCH TO INFORM THE ESTABLISHMENT OF CONTAMINANT STANDARDS 
              FOR AIRCRAFT CABIN AIR CONTAMINANTS.

    (a) In General.--Taking into consideration the recommendations from 
the report to Congress submitted under section 917 of the FAA 
Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (42 U.S.C. 44504 note), the 
Secretary shall, in collaboration with relevant stakeholders--
            (1) develop a plan, and timeline for any necessary research 
        and development leading to the implementation of contaminant 
        standards for aircraft cabin air contaminants; and
            (2) facilitate commercial development and implementation of 
        advanced contaminant detection and cleaning technologies.
    (b) Plan.--Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall transmit a copy of the plan and timeline 
developed under subsection (a)(1) to the Committee on Science, Space, 
and Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 38. REVIEW OF THE RESEARCH, ENGINEERING, AND DEVELOPMENT ADVISORY 
              COMMITTEE.

    (a) Review.--The Comptroller General shall carry out a review of--
            (1) the role of FAA's Research, Engineering, and 
        Development Advisory Committee in advising FAA on the 
        effectiveness of the organization, management, and budgetary 
        structure of research and development programs across FAA and 
        on both near-term budget planning and long-term strategic 
        planning for the comprehensive FAA research and development 
        portfolio, including research included in the Research, 
        Engineering, and Development; Facilities and Equipment; and 
        Grants-in-Aid for Airports budget accounts; and
            (2) FAA's implementation of the advice and recommendations 
        provided by the Research, Engineering, and Development Advisory 
        Committee.
    (b) Best Practices.--The review shall consider best practices of 
Federal agency research and development advisory committees and make 
any recommendations that would strengthen the Research, Engineering, 
and Development Advisory Committee in its advisory role to FAA.
    (c) Transmittal.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall transmit the review, 
including recommendations, to the Committee on Science, Space, and 
Technology of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate.

SEC. 39. RESEARCH ON NONGOVERNMENT AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL OPERATIONS.

    (a) Independent Study.--The Secretary shall enter into an 
arrangement for an independent external study to identify the 
implications that a potential nongovernment United States air traffic 
control system could have on FAA's research and development activities 
as well as what organizational changes would be required under a 
nongovernmental air traffic control system for overseeing such research 
and development activities.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 12 months after the date of enactment 
of this Act, the Secretary shall transmit the results of the study to 
the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate.
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