[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1256 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1256
To amend title 49, United States Code, to require certain air carriers
to provide reports with respect to maintenance, preventive maintenance,
or alterations, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 25, 2023
Mrs. Capito (for herself and Ms. Baldwin) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend title 49, United States Code, to require certain air carriers
to provide reports with respect to maintenance, preventive maintenance,
or alterations, 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 ``Global Aircraft Maintenance Safety
Improvement Act''.
SEC. 2. FAA OVERSIGHT OF REPAIR STATIONS LOCATED OUTSIDE THE UNITED
STATES.
(a) In General.--Section 44733 of title 49, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in the section heading by striking ``Inspection'' and
inserting ``Oversight'';
(2) in subsection (e)--
(A) in the first sentence--
(i) by inserting ``, without prior notice
to such repair stations,'' after ``annually'';
and
(ii) by inserting ``and the applicable laws
of the country in which a repair station is
located'' after ``international agreements'';
and
(B) by striking the second sentence and inserting
``The Administrator may carry out announced or
unannounced inspections in addition to the annual
unannounced inspection required under this subsection
based on identified risks and in a manner consistent
with United States obligations under international
agreements and with the applicable laws of the country
in which a repair station is located.'';
(3) by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (i); and
(4) by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
``(g) Data Analysis.--
``(1) In general.--An air carrier conducting operations
under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, shall,
if applicable, provide to the appropriate office of the
Administration, not less than once every year, a report
containing the information described in paragraph (2) with
respect to heavy maintenance work on aircraft (including on-
wing aircraft engines) performed in the preceding year.
``(2) Information required.--A report under paragraph (1)
shall contain the following information:
``(A) The location where any heavy maintenance work
on aircraft (including on-wing aircraft engines) was
performed outside the United States.
``(B) A description of the work performed at each
such location.
``(C) The date of completion of the work performed
at each such location.
``(D) A list of all failures, malfunctions, or
defects affecting the safe operation of such aircraft
identified by the air carrier within 30 days after the
date on which an aircraft is returned to service,
organized by reference to aircraft registration number,
that--
``(i) requires corrective action after the
aircraft is approved for return to service; and
``(ii) results from the work performed on
such aircraft.
``(E) The certificate number of the person
approving such aircraft or on-wing aircraft engine, for
return to service following completion of the work
performed at each such location.
``(3) Analysis.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation
Administration shall--
``(A) analyze information made available under
paragraph (1) of this subsection and sections 121.703,
121.705, 121.707, and 145.221 of title 14, Code of
Federal Regulations, or any successor provisions, to
detect safety issues associated with heavy maintenance
work on aircraft (including on-wing aircraft engines)
performed outside the United States; and
``(B) require appropriate actions in response.
``(4) Confidentiality.--Information made available under
paragraph (1) shall be subject to the same protections given to
voluntarily provided safety or security related information
under section 40123.
``(h) Minimum Qualifications for Mechanics and Others Working on
U.S. Registered Aircraft.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this subsection, the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration shall require that, at each covered
repair station--
``(A) all supervisory personnel are appropriately
certificated as a mechanic or repairman under part 65
of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, or under an
equivalent certification or licensing regime, as
determined by the Administrator; and
``(B) all personnel authorized to approve an
article for return to service are appropriately
certificated as a mechanic or repairman under part 65
of such title, or under an equivalent certification or
licensing regime, as determined by the Administrator.
``(2) Available for consultation.--Not later than 1 year
after the date of enactment of this subsection, the
Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall
require any individual who is responsible for approving an
article for return to service or who is directly in charge of
aircraft (including on-wing aircraft engine) maintenance
performed on aircraft operated under part 121 of title 14, Code
of Federal Regulations, be available for consultation while
work is being performed at a covered repair station.''.
(b) Definition of Covered Repair Station.--
(1) In general.--Section 44733(i) of title 49, United
States Code (as redesignated by subsection (a)(3)), is
amended--
(A) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (3) as
paragraphs (2) through (4), respectively; and
(B) by inserting before paragraph (2), as so
redesignated, the following:
``(1) Covered repair station.--The term `covered repair
station' means a facility that--
``(A) is located outside the United States;
``(B) is certificated under part 145 of title 14,
Code of Federal Regulations; and
``(C) performs heavy maintenance work on aircraft
(including on-wing aircraft engines) operated under
part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.''.
(2) Technical amendment.--Section 44733(a)(3) of title 49,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``covered part 145
repair stations'' and inserting ``part 145 repair stations''.
(c) Conforming Amendments.--The analysis for chapter 447 of title
49, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to
section 44733 and inserting the following:
``44733. Oversight of repair stations located outside the United
States.''.
SEC. 3. ALCOHOL AND DRUG TESTING AND BACKGROUND CHECKS.
(a) In General.--Beginning on the date that is 2 years after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration (in this Act referred to as
the``Administrator'') may not approve or authorize international travel
for any employee of the Federal Aviation Administration until a final
rule carrying out the requirements of subsection (b) of section 2112 of
the FAA Extension, Safety, and Security Act of 2016 (49 U.S.C. 44733
note) has been published in the Federal Register.
(b) Rulemaking on Assessment Requirement.--With respect to any
employee not covered under the requirements of section 1554.101 of
title 49, Code of Federal Regulations, the Administrator shall initiate
a rulemaking that requires a covered repair station to confirm that any
such employee has successfully completed an assessment commensurate
with a security threat assessment described in subpart C of part 1540
of such title.
(c) Exceptions.--The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply
to international travel that is determined by the Administrator on an
individual by individual basis to be--
(1) exclusively for the purpose of conducting a safety
inspection;
(2) directly related to aviation safety standards,
certification, and oversight; or
(3) vital to the national interests of the United States.
(d) Non-Delegation and Reporting.--For any determination to make an
exception based on the criteria in paragraph (2) or (3) of subsection
(c), the Administrator--
(1) may not delegate the authority to make such a
determination to any other individual; and
(2) shall report to the Committee on Transportation and
Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the
Senate not later than 3 days after making each determination
under subsection (c)--
(A) the name of the individual approved or
authorized to travel internationally;
(B) the location to which the individual is
traveling;
(C) a detailed explanation of why the Administrator
has determined the travel is--
(i) directly related to aviation safety
standards, certification, and oversight; or
(ii) vital to the national interests of the
United States; and
(D) a detailed description of the status of the
rulemakings described in subsection (a).
(e) Definition of Covered Repair Station.--For purposes of this
section, the term ``covered repair station'' means a facility that--
(1) is located outside the United States;
(2) is certificated under part 145 of title 14, Code of
Federal Regulations; and
(3) performs heavy maintenance work on aircraft (including
on-wing aircraft engines), operated under part 121 of title 14,
Code of Federal Regulations.
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