[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2761 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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114th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2761

 To direct the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to 
  improve the process for establishing and revising flight paths and 
                  procedures, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 7, 2016

  Ms. Warren introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
   referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To direct the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration to 
  improve the process for establishing and revising flight paths and 
                  procedures, 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 ``FAA Community Accountability Act of 
2016''.

SEC. 2. FLIGHT PATHS AND PROCEDURES.

    Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in considering new or 
revised flight paths or procedures as part of the implementation of the 
Next Generation Air Transportation System, the Administrator of the 
Federal Aviation Administration--
            (1) shall take actions to limit negative impacts on the 
        human environment in the vicinity of an affected airport; and
            (2) may give preference to overlays of existing flight 
        paths or procedures to ensure compatibility with land use in 
        the vicinity of an affected airport.

SEC. 3. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION COMMUNITY OMBUDSMAN.

    (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 
Administration shall appoint a Federal Aviation Administration 
Community Ombudsman for each region of the Federal Aviation 
Administration.
    (b) Duties.--The Ombudsmen appointed in accordance with subsection 
(a) shall--
            (1) act as a liaison between affected communities and the 
        Administrator with respect to problems related to the impact of 
        commercial aviation on the human environment, including 
        concerns regarding aircraft noise, pollution, and safety;
            (2) monitor the impact of the implementation of the Next 
        Generation Air Transportation System on communities in the 
        vicinity of affected airports;
            (3) make recommendations to the Administrator--
                    (A) to address concerns raised by communities; and
                    (B) to improve the use of community comments in 
                Administration decisionmaking processes; and
            (4) report to Congress periodically on issues related to 
        the impact of commercial aviation on the human environment and 
        on Administration responsiveness to concerns raised by affected 
        communities.

SEC. 4. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, in 
implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System, the 
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may not treat the 
establishment or revision of a flight path or procedure as covered by a 
categorical exclusion (as defined in section 1508.4 of title 40, Code 
of Federal Regulations) if a Federal Aviation Administration Community 
Ombudsman or the operator of an airport affected by such establishment 
or revision submits written notification to the Administrator that--
            (1) extraordinary circumstances exist; or
            (2) the establishment or revision will have a significant 
        adverse impact on the human environment in the vicinity of such 
        airport.
    (b) Notifications.--At least 30 days before treating the 
establishment or revision of a flight path or procedure as covered by a 
categorical exclusion, the Administrator shall provide notice and an 
opportunity for comment to persons affected by such establishment or 
revision, including the operator of any affected airport.

SEC. 5. RECONSIDERATION OF CERTAIN FLIGHT PATHS AND PROCEDURES.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall reconsider a 
flight path or procedure established or revised after February 14, 
2012, as part of the implementation of the Next Generation Air 
Transportation System if a Federal Aviation Administration Community 
Ombudsman or the operator of an airport affected by such establishment 
or revision submits written notification to the Administrator that the 
establishment or revision is resulting in a significant adverse impact 
on the human environment in the vicinity of such airport.
    (b) Process.--In reconsidering a flight path or procedure under 
subsection (a), the Administrator shall--
            (1) provide notice of the reconsideration and an 
        opportunity for public comment;
            (2) assess the impacts on the human environment of such 
        flight path or procedure; and
            (3) not later than 180 days after the date on which the 
        relevant notification was received, submit to Congress and make 
        available to the public a report that--
                    (A) addresses comments received pursuant to 
                paragraph (1);
                    (B) describes the results of the assessment carried 
                out under paragraph (2); and
                    (C) describes any changes to be made to such flight 
                path or procedure or the justification for not making 
                any change.
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