[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2837 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2837

     To amend title 51, United States Code, to require a National 
    Aeronautics and Space Administration initiative on reduction of 
  greenhouse gas emissions and noise emissions from aircraft, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 12, 2019

  Mr. Cardin (for himself, Mr. Van Hollen, Ms. Warren, Mr. King, Mr. 
 Merkley, and Mrs. Feinstein) introduced the following bill; which was 
  read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                             Transportation

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend title 51, United States Code, to require a National 
    Aeronautics and Space Administration initiative on reduction of 
  greenhouse gas emissions and noise emissions from aircraft, 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 ``Cleaner, Quieter Airplanes Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Air travel currently contributes approximately 3 
        percent to global carbon emissions, but emissions from this 
        sector are expected to triple by 2050.
            (2) A healthy, thriving aviation sector contributes to the 
        quality of life and economic well-being of the United States. 
        In 2014, aviation accounted for 5.1 percent of the United 
        States gross domestic product and supported 10,600,000 jobs.
            (3) Existing aircraft technologies contribute to noise 
        pollution that has adverse impacts on the quality of life in 
        affected communities. As air traffic volumes increase and the 
        adoption of performance-based navigation technology proceeds, 
        the problem of noise pollution is becoming more severe in some 
        areas.
            (4) The United States has adopted a goal of carbon-neutral 
        growth in aviation from 2020.
            (5) Research on technologies to lessen the environmental 
        and noise impacts of aviation is ongoing, but should 
        accelerate, and should include work on integration of multiple 
        enabling technologies, including novel integrated systems at 
        the aircraft level.

SEC. 3. NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION INITIATIVE ON 
              REDUCTION OF GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND NOISE EMISSIONS 
              FROM AIRCRAFT.

    (a) Initiative Required.--Section 40112 of title 51, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (b) through (e) as 
        subsections (c) through (f), respectively; and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the following new 
        subsection (b):
    ``(b) Technologies for Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Noise Emissions 
Reduction.--
            ``(1) Initiative required.--The Administrator shall 
        establish an initiative to build upon and accelerate previous 
        or ongoing work to develop and demonstrate new technologies, 
        including systems architecture, components, or integration of 
        systems and airframe structures, in electric aircraft concepts 
        that are capable of reducing both greenhouse gas emissions and 
        noise emissions from aircraft by at least 50 percent compared 
        to the highest-performing aircraft technologies in service as 
        of December 31, 2019, with the goal of deploying new 
        technologies developed pursuant to the initiative on regional 
        transport aircraft intended to enter into service by 2030 and 
        on single-aisle aircraft designed to accommodate more than 125 
        passengers intended to enter into service by 2040.
            ``(2) Approach.--In carrying out the initiative, the 
        Administrator shall do the following:
                    ``(A) Continue and expand work of the 
                Administration on research, development, and 
                demonstration of electric aircraft concepts, and the 
                integration of such concepts, with the goal of carrying 
                out test flights by 2025.
                    ``(B) To the extent practicable, work with multiple 
                partner organizations, including small businesses and 
                new entrants, on research and development activities 
                related to both regional transport aircraft and 
                aircraft designed to accommodate more than 125 
                passengers in order to achieve an industry-wide shift 
                towards electric aircraft concepts for reduction of 
                greenhouse gas emissions and noise emissions.
                    ``(C) Provide guidance to the Federal Aviation 
                Administration (FAA) on technologies developed and 
                tested pursuant to the initiative in order to assist 
                the work of the Federal Aviation Administration to 
                identify new requirements for policy, infrastructure, 
                and administrative capacity necessary to enable the 
                safe deployment of such technologies, including 
                learning from the certification and operation of small 
                aircraft using electric propulsion in order to inform 
                subsequent standards for larger aircraft.''.
    (b) Reports.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Administrator of the 
National Aeronautics and Space Administration shall submit to Congress 
a report on the progress of the work under the initiative required by 
subsection (b) of section 40112 of title 51, United States Code (as 
amended by subsection (a) of this section), including a description of 
any perceived obstacles to achieving the goal of a 50 percent reduction 
in both greenhouse gas emissions and noise emissions from aircraft as 
contemplated for the initiative.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration for 
the initiative required by subsection (b) of section 40112 of title 51, 
United States Code (as so amended), amounts as follows:
            (1) For fiscal year 2021, $125,000,000.
            (2) For fiscal year 2022, $225,000,000.
            (3) For each of fiscal years 2023 and 2024, $275,000,000.
            (4) For fiscal year 2025, $225,000,000.
            (5) For fiscal year 2026, $75,000,000.
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