[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 170 (Friday, August 30, 1996)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 45921-45923]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-22208]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
14 CFR Parts 91, 93, 121, and 135


Public Meeting on Special Flight Rules in the Vicinity of Grand 
Canyon National Park; Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Draft 
Environmental Assessment

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The FAA is issuing this notice to advise the public of two 
public meetings on the notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), Special 
Flight Rules in the Vicinity of Grand Canyon National Park, published 
in the Federal Register on July 31, 1996, and the corresponding draft 
environmental assessment (EA), the availability of which was announced 
on August 19, 1996. The purpose of these meetings is to provide an 
additional opportunity for the public to comment on the proposal and 
the draft assessment.

DATES: The meetings will be held on September 16 and 17, and September 
19 and 20. See Supplementary Information for details.

ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held in Scottsdale, AZ and Las Vegas, 
NV. See Supplementary Information for details. Persons unable to attend 
the

[[Page 45922]]

meetings may mail their comments on the NPRM in triplicate to: Federal 
Aviation Administration, Office of the Chief Counsel, Rules Docket 
(AGC-200), Docket No. 28537, 800 Independence Ave., NW, Washington, DC 
20591. Written comments to the docket will receive the same 
consideration as statements made at the public meetings.
    Comments on the draft EA should also be sent to the Rules Docket in 
triplicate, but to Docket No. 28653.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Requests to present a statement at the public meetings on the Grand 
Canyon NPRM or draft EA and questions regarding the logistics of the 
meetings should be directed to Linda Williams, Federal Aviation 
Administration, Office of Rulemaking (ARM-109), 800 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591, telephone (202) 267-9685; fax (202) 
267-5075.
    Questions concerning the NPRM should be directed to Neil Saunders, 
Airspace and Rules Program, Airspace Management, Federal Aviation 
Administration, 800 Independence Ave., Washington, DC 20591. Telephone: 
(202) 267-9241.
    Questions on the draft EA should be directed to William J. Marx, 
Division Manager, ATA-300, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 
Independence Ave., SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone (202) 267-9367.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Meeting dates, locations, and times are as 
follows:

September 16 and 17--Scottsdale, AZ
    Arizona and Barcelona Rooms, 4th Floor, Embassy Suites, 5001 North 
Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ 85250, telephone: 1-800-528-1456 or 
(602) 949-1414
    Registration: 8:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m.
    Meeting: 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.
September 19 and 20--Las Vegas, NV
    Cashman Field, Meeting Rooms 107 and 108, 850 Las Vegas Blvd. North 
(use parking lot B), Las Vegas, NV 89101
    Registration: 8:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m.
    Meeting 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.; 7:00 p.m.-9:00 p.m.

    Please note: The first day of the meetings (September 16 and 19 
will address the NPRM; the second day of the meetings (September 17 and 
20) will address the draft EA.

Background

    The FAA will conduct two public meetings on the recently published 
Grand Canyon National Park proposed rule and draft environmental 
assessment. Comments from the public at these meetings should be 
directed specifically to the proposed rule on the first day of each 
meeting and to the environmental assessment on the second day of each 
meeting.
    The notice of proposed rulemaking was published in the Federal 
Register on July 31, 1996 [61 FR 40120]. The NPRM proposed to add new 
flight-free areas and corridors and proposed a number of options, 
including flight curfews and a moratorium or cap on flights allowed in 
the park. The NPRM also states that the FAA may adopt any combination 
of the options in a final rule.
    The notice of availability for the draft environmental assessment 
was issued on August 19, 1996, and published in the Federal Register on 
August 21, 1996.
    The closing date for comments on the proposal is September 30, 
1996; the closing date for comments on the draft EA is October 4, 1996. 
In order to give the public an additional opportunity to comment on the 
proposed rule and the draft EA, the FAA is planning these public 
meetings. Because this additional opportunity to comment on the 
proposed rule and draft EA is provided, the FAA does not intend to 
extend the closing date for comments on the NPRM or draft EA.
    Persons interested in obtaining a copy of the Grand Canyon proposed 
rule should contact Linda Williams at the address or telephone number 
provided in FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. For a copy of the draft EA 
contact William Marx at the address or telephone number provided.

Participation at the Public Meetings on the NPRM or Draft EA

    Requests from persons who wish to present oral statements at the 
public meetings on the Grand Canyon National Park proposal or draft 
assessment should be received by the FAA no later than September 10. 
Such requests should be submitted to Linda Williams as listed in the 
section titled FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
    Requests received after September 10 will be scheduled if time is 
available during the meetings; however, the name of those individuals 
may not appear on the written agenda. The FAA will prepare an agenda of 
speakers that will be available at the meetings. To accommodate as many 
speakers as possible, the amount of time allocated to each speaker may 
be less than the amount of time requested. Those persons desiring to 
have available audiovisual equipment should notify the FAA when 
requesting to be placed on the agenda.

Public Meeting Procedures

    The following procedures are established to facilitate the public 
meetings on the NPRM and draft EA:
    1. There will be no admission fee or other charge to attend or to 
participate in the public meetings. The meetings will be open to all 
persons who have requested in advance to present statements or who 
register on the day of the meeting (between 8:30 a.m. and 9:00 a.m.) 
subject to availability of space in the meeting room.
    2. The public meetings may adjourn early if scheduled speakers 
complete their statements in less time than currently is scheduled for 
the meeting.
    3. The FAA will try to accommodate all speakers; therefore, it may 
be necessary to limit the time available for an individual or group.
    4. Participants should address their comments to the panel. No 
individual will be subject to cross-examination by any other 
participant.
    5. Sign and oral interpretation can be made available at the 
meetings, as well as an assistive listening device, if requested 10 
calendar days before the meetings.
    6. Representatives of the FAA will conduct the public meetings. A 
panel of FAA and National Park Service (NPS) personnel involved in this 
issue will be present.
    7. The meetings will be recorded by a court reporter. A transcript 
of the meetings and any material accepted by the panel during the 
meetings will be included in the public docket (Docket No. 28537 for 
the NPRM and 28653 for the draft EA). Any person who is interested in 
purchasing a copy of the transcript should contact the court reporter 
directly. This information will be available at the meetings.
    8. The FAA will review and consider all material presented by 
participants at the public meetings. Position papers or material 
presenting views or information related to the proposed NPRM or the 
draft EA may be accepted at the discretion of the presiding officer and 
subsequently placed in the public docket. The FAA requests that persons 
participating in the meetings provide 10 copies of all materials to be 
presented for distribution to the panel members; other copies may be 
provided to the audience at the discretion of the participant.
    9. Statements made by members of the public meetings panel are 
intended to facilitate discussion of the issues or to clarify issues. 
Because the meetings concerning the Grand Canyon NPRM and draft EA are 
being held during the comment period, final decisions

[[Page 45923]]

concerning issues that the public may raise cannot be made at the 
meetings. FAA and NPS officials may, however, ask questions to clarify 
statements made by the public and to ensure a complete and accurate 
record. Comments made at these public meetings will be considered by 
the FAA and NPS when deliberations begin concerning whether to adopt 
any or all of the proposed rules.
    10. The meetings are designed to solicit public views and more 
complete information on the proposed rule. Therefore, the meetings will 
be conducted in an informal and non-adversarial manner.

    Issued in Washington, DC on August 27, 1996.
Chris A. Christie,
Director of Rulemaking.
[FR Doc. 96-22208 Filed 8-27-96; 12:13 pm]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-M