[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 170 (Friday, November 21, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H12298-H12299]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2003

  Mr. DeLAY. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the 
Speaker's table the Senate bill (S. 579) to reauthorize the National 
Transportation Safety Board, and for other purposes, and ask for its 
immediate consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the Senate bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Texas?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the Senate bill, as follows:

                                 S. 579

       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 ``National Transportation 
     Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2003''.

     SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

       (a) Fiscal Years 2003-2006.--Section 1118(a) of title 49, 
     United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and''; and
       (2) by striking ``such sums to'' and inserting the 
     following: ``$73,325,000 for fiscal year 2003, $78,757,000 
     for fiscal year 2004, $83,011,000 for fiscal year 2005, and 
     $87,539,000 for fiscal year 2006. Such sums shall''.
       (b) Emergency Fund.--Section 1118(b) of such title is 
     amended by striking the second sentence and inserting the 
     following: ``In addition, there are authorized to be 
     appropriated such sums as may be necessary to increase the 
     fund to, and maintain the fund at, a level not to exceed 
     $3,000,000.''.
       (c) NTSB Academy.--Section 1118 of such title is amended by 
     adding at the end the following:
       ``(c) Academy.--
       ``(1) Authorization.--There are authorized to be 
     appropriated to the Board for necessary expenses of the 
     National Transportation Safety Board Academy, not otherwise 
     provided for, $3,347,000 for fiscal year 2003, $4,896,000 for 
     fiscal year 2004, $4,995,000 for fiscal year 2005, and 
     $5,200,000 for fiscal year 2006. Such sums shall remain 
     available until expended.
       ``(2) Fees.--The Board may impose and collect such fees as 
     it determines to be appropriate for services provided by or 
     through the Academy.
       ``(3) Receipts credited as offsetting collections.--
     Notwithstanding section 3302 of title 31, any fee collected 
     under this paragraph--
       ``(A) shall be credited as offsetting collections to the 
     account that finances the activities and services for which 
     the fee is imposed;

[[Page H12299]]

       ``(B) shall be available for expenditure only to pay the 
     costs of activities and services for which the fee is 
     imposed; and
       ``(C) shall remain available until expended.
       ``(4) Refunds.--The Board may refund any fee paid by 
     mistake or any amount paid in excess of that required.''.
       (c) Report on Academy Operations.--The National 
     Transportation Safety Board shall transmit an annual report 
     to the Congress on the activities and operations of the 
     National Transportation Safety Board Academy.

     SEC. 3. ASSISTANCE TO FAMILIES OF PASSENGERS INVOLVED IN 
                   AIRCRAFT ACCIDENTS.

       (a) Relinquishment of Investigative Priority.--Section 1136 
     of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
     end the following:
       ``(j) Relinquishment of Investigative Priority.--
       ``(1) General rule.--This section (other than subsection 
     (g)) shall not apply to an aircraft accident if the Board has 
     relinquished investigative priority under section 
     1131(a)(2)(B) and the Federal agency to which the Board 
     relinquished investigative priority is willing and able to 
     provide assistance to the victims and families of the 
     passengers involved in the accident.
       ``(2) Board assistance.--If this section does not apply to 
     an aircraft accident because the Board has relinquished 
     investigative priority with respect to the accident, the 
     Board shall assist, to the maximum extent possible, the 
     agency to which the Board has relinquished investigative 
     priority in assisting families with respect to the 
     accident.''.
       (b) Revision of MOU.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
     of enactment of this Act, the National Transportation Safety 
     Board and the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall revise 
     their 1977 agreement on the investigation of accidents to 
     take into account the amendments made by this section and 
     shall submit a copy of the revised agreement to the Committee 
     on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
     Transportation of the Senate.

     SEC. 4. RELIEF FROM CONTRACTING REQUIREMENTS FOR 
                   INVESTIGATIONS SERVICES.

       Section 1113(b) of title 49, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``Statutes;'' in paragraph (1)(B) and 
     inserting ``Statutes, and, for investigations conducted under 
     section 1131, enter into such agreements or contracts without 
     regard to any other provision of law requiring competition if 
     necessary to expedite the investigation;''; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(3) The Board, as a component of its annual report under 
     section 1117, shall include an enumeration of each contract 
     for $25,000 or more executed under this section during the 
     preceding calendar year.''.

  Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 579, the 
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Reauthorization Act of 
2003. The bill is substantially the same as the NTSB reauthorization 
passed by the House on May 15, 2003, by voice vote. Passage of the 
Senate bill will enable the bill to go to the President.
  In the last 5 years, NTSB has investigated 8,124 aviation accidents, 
166 highway accidents, 24 marine accidents, 41 pipeline/hazardous 
materials accidents, and 82 railroad accidents. In addition, the NTSB 
has issued a total of 881 safety recommendations: 374 aviation; 188 
highway; 24 intermodal; 112 marine; 51 pipeline; and 132 railroad.
  To maintain its position as the world's preeminent investigative 
agency, it is imperative that the NTSB has the resources necessary to 
handle increasingly complex accident investigations. The NTSB has 
recently broken ground for its new training academy that will teach 
state of the art investigative techniques for transportation accidents. 
The NTSB now needs sufficient funding to sustain budget and personnel 
for both its Headquarters operations as well as the academy. 
Accordingly, S. 579 authorizes increased funding over the next 4 years: 
$73 million in fiscal year 2003; $79 million in fiscal year 2004; $83 
million in fiscal year 2005, and $87.5 million in fiscal year 2006. The 
bill also authorizes approximately $5 million per year for the training 
academy. This funding is critical to ensure that the Agency has the 
necessary resources to hire additional technical experts as well as to 
provide better training for its current workforce.
  In 2000, Congress authorized the transfer of investigative priority 
from the NTSB to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the event 
of an accident caused by an international criminal act. However, there 
was no mechanism for the transfer of family affairs responsibility. 
Since the events of September 11th, the NTSB now believes that once the 
FBI has been transferred investigative responsibility for an aircraft 
accident, the family affairs responsibilities should transfer as well. 
S. 579 provides for the transfer of the family affairs responsibility 
when investigative authority has been relinquished in aviation 
accidents.
  S. 579 also addresses another matter of great import; that is, the 
DOT's notoriously slow response to NTSB's safety recommendations. The 
bill requires an annual report from DOT on the regulatory status of 
safety recommendations on NTSB's ``most wanted list.'' The bill also 
requires DOT to report biennially on NTSB safety recommendations 
concerning 15-passenger van safety, railroad grade crossing safety, and 
medical certifications for a commercial drivers license. These reports 
will enable the Committee to keep tabs on the progress of these very 
important recommendations.
  Having a well funded, well-trained NTSB workforce is of the utmost 
importance for the American traveling public. I urge my colleagues to 
support this critical piece of legislation, and I compliment Chairman 
Young, Chairman Mica, and Ranking member DeFazio for their efforts.
  The Senate bill was ordered to be read a third time, was read the 
third time, and passed, and a motion to reconsider was laid on the 
table.

                          ____________________