[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1765 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 1765

To require the Federal Aviation Administration to establish evacuation 
              standards for transport category airplanes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                 May 31 (legislative day, May 30), 2023

 Ms. Duckworth (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 require the Federal Aviation Administration to establish evacuation 
              standards for transport category airplanes.

    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 ``Emergency Vacating of Aircraft Cabin 
Act''.

SEC. 2. EVACUATION STANDARDS FOR TRANSPORT CATEGORY AIRPLANES.

    (a) Rulemaking.--Not later than 18 months after the date of 
enactment of this section, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation 
Administration shall issue a final rule establishing evacuation 
standards for transport category airplanes, as described in part 25 of 
title 14, Code of Federal Regulations.
    (b) Considerations.--
            (1) In general.--In issuing the final rule under subsection 
        (a), the Administrator shall consider factors that include--
                    (A) the ability of passengers of different ages 
                (including infants, children, and senior citizens) to 
                safely and efficiently evacuate a transport category 
                airplane;
                    (B) the ability of passengers of different heights 
                and weights to safely and efficiently evacuate a 
                transport category airplane;
                    (C) the ability of passengers with disabilities to 
                safely and efficiently evacuate a transport category 
                airplane;
                    (D) the ability of passengers who cannot speak, 
                have difficulty speaking, use synthetic speech, or are 
                non-vocal or non-verbal to safely and efficiently 
                evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (E) the ability of passengers who do not speak 
                English to safely and efficiently evacuate a transport 
                category airplane;
                    (F) the impact of the presence of carry-on luggage 
                or personal items (such as a purse, briefcase, laptop, 
                or backpack) on the ability of passengers to safely and 
                efficiently evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (G) the impact of seat size, seat pitch, and aisle 
                width on the ability of passengers to safely and 
                efficiently evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (H) the impact of seats and other obstacles in the 
                pathway to the exit opening from the nearest aisle on 
                the ability of passengers to safely and efficiently 
                evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (I) with respect to aircraft with parallel 
                longitudinal aisles, the impact of seat pods or other 
                seating configurations that block access between such 
                aisles within a cabin on the ability of passengers to 
                safely and efficiently evacuate a transport category 
                airplane;
                    (J) the impact of passenger load (the number of 
                passengers relative to the number of seats on board) on 
                the ability of passengers to safely and efficiently 
                evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (K) the impact of service animals (as defined in 
                sections 35.104 and 36.104 of title 28, Code of Federal 
                Regulations) on the ability of passengers (including 
                such service animals and their handlers) to safely and 
                efficiently evacuate a transport category airplane;
                    (L) the impact of smoke, darkness, or other factors 
                that diminish visibility in the aircraft cabin on the 
                ability of passengers to safely and efficiently 
                evacuate a transport category airplane; and
                    (M) any other factor determined appropriate by the 
                Administrator.
            (2) Passengers with disabilities defined.--For purposes of 
        this subsection, the term ``passengers with disabilities''--
                    (A) means any qualified individual with a 
                disability, as defined in section 382.3 of title 14, 
                Code of Federal Regulations; and
                    (B) includes any passengers--
                            (i) with a physical impairment, such as 
                        passengers who are blind, deaf, nonambulatory, 
                        have limited mobility, or require a wheelchair, 
                        walker, cane, brace, prosthetic, or other 
                        mobility aid;
                            (ii) whose physical impairment requires the 
                        use of a medical device to assist with 
                        mobility, such as a portable oxygen 
                        concentrator; or
                            (iii) with an intellectual, developmental 
                        or mental impairment.
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