[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 77 (Tuesday, April 22, 2003)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 19730-19733]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-9886]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 77

[Docket No. FAA-2003-14973; Special Federal Aviation Regulation No. 98]
RIN 2120-AH83


Construction or Alteration in the Vicinity of the Private 
Residence of the President of the United States

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.

ACTION: Interim final rule; request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This action requires that notice be filed with the FAA for the 
construction or alteration of any object that exceeds 50 feet above 
ground level (AGL) and is within the existing prohibited airspace 
surrounding the private residence of the President of the United States 
(P-49). Due to national security interests and the unique operating 
requirements of the United States Marine Corps (USMC) and the Secret 
Service Presidential Protective Division (SSPPD), this rule provides 
that any object within the designated area that exceeds the obstruction 
standard will be deemed a hazard to air navigation unless the FAA 
concludes, based upon submitted information and in consultation with 
the USMC and the SSPPD, that the construction or alteration will not 
adversely affect safety and would not result in a hazard to air 
navigation. This rule is adopted for purposes of national defense and 
will assist in protecting the President of the United States. This rule 
does not apply to prior construction or alteration of objects and will 
terminate at the end of the President's term in office.

DATES: This final rule is effective April 22, 2003. Comments must be 
submitted on or before June 23, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Address your comments to the Docket Management System, U.S. 
Department of Transportation, Room Plaza 401, 400 Seventh Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20590-0001. You must identify the docket number FAA-
2003-14973 at the beginning of your comments, and you should submit two 
copies of your comments.
    You may also submit comments through the Internet to http://dms.dot.gov. You may review the public docket containing comments to 
these proposed regulations in person in the Dockets Office between 9 
a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays. The 
Dockets Office is on the plaza level of the NASSIF Building at the 
Department of Transportation at the above address. Also, you may review 
public dockets on the Internet at http://dms.dot.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sheri Edgett-Baron, Airspace and Rules 
Division, ATA-400, Office of Air Traffic Airspace Management, Federal 
Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20591; telephone (202) 267-8783.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments Invited

    The FAA is adopting this final rule without prior notice and prior 
public comment. The Regulatory Policies and Procedures of the 
Department of Transportation (DOT) (44 FR 1134; February 26, 1979), 
however, provide that, to the maximum extent possible, operating 
administrations for the DOT should provide an opportunity for public 
comment on regulations issued without prior notice. Accordingly, we 
invite interested persons to participate in this rulemaking by 
submitting such written data, views, or arguments, as they may desire. 
We also invite comments relating to environmental, energy, federalism, 
or international trade impacts that might result from this amendment. 
Please include the regulatory docket or amendment number and send two 
copies to the address above. We will file all comments received, as 
well as a report summarizing each substantive public contact with FAA 
personnel on this rulemaking, in the public docket. The docket is 
available for public inspection before and after the comment closing 
date.
    Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all comments 
received into any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if submitted on behalf 
of an association, business, labor union, etc.). You may review DOT's 
complete Privacy Act statement in the Federal Register published on 
April 11, 2000 (Volume 65, Number 70; Pages 19477-78) or you may visit 
http://dms.dot.gov.
    The FAA will consider all comments received on or before the 
closing date for comments. We will consider late comments to the extent 
practicable. We may amend this final rule in light of the comments 
received.
    Commenters who want the FAA to acknowledge receipt of their 
comments submitted in response to this final rule must include a 
preaddressed, stamped postcard with those comments on which the 
following statement is made: ``Comments to Docket No. FAA-2003-14973.'' 
The postcard will be date-stamped by the FAA and mailed to the 
commenter.

Availability of Final Rule

    You can get an electronic copy using the Internet by:
    (1) Searching the Department of Transportation's electronic Docket 
Management System (DMS) Web page (http://dms.dot.gov/search)
    (2) Visiting the Office of Rulemaking's Web page at http://www.faa.gov/avr/arm/index.cfm; or
    (3) Accessing the Government Printing Office's Web page at http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/aces140.html.
    You can also get a copy by submitting a request to the Federal 
Aviation Administration, Office of Rulemaking, ARM-1, 800 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591, or by calling (202) 267-9680. Make 
sure to identify the docket number, notice number, or amendment number 
of this rulemaking.

Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act

    The Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) of 
1996 requires FAA to comply with small entity requests for information 
or advice about compliance with statutes and regulations within its 
jurisdiction.

[[Page 19731]]

Therefore, any small entity that has a question regarding this document 
may contact their local FAA official, or the person listed under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT. You can find out more about SBRFA on the 
Internet at our site, http://www.gov/avr/arm/sbrefa.htm. For more 
information on SBREFA, e-mail us [email protected].
    Administration, 800 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20591; 
telephone (202) 267-8783.

Background

    On March 26, 2001, the FAA published a final rule in the Federal 
Register establishing prohibited airspace (P-49) over the private 
residence of the President in Crawford, Texas (66 FR 16391). [The FAA 
subsequently modified P-49 by relocating the center of the prohibited 
area approximately one-half mile east, southeast (68 FR 7917; February 
19, 2003.)] This airspace designation is necessary to enhance security 
in the immediate vicinity of the presidential residence and assist the 
SSPPD in accomplishing its mission of providing security for the 
President of the United States. While that rule prohibits unauthorized 
aircraft from flying within the designated airspace, it does not 
address certain flight safety and national security issues concerning 
the transport of the President.
    The USMC and the SSPPD provide transportation for the President and 
presidential personnel. The USMC and SSPPD devise various operational 
plans to accommodate the unique circumstances involved in transporting 
the President. The special operating procedures used by the USMC and 
the SSPPD include the concurrent operation of multiple aircraft, a 
variety of non-standard flight techniques for security purposes, and 
other special security provisions to ensure the secure transport of the 
President and his party during various weather and threat conditions. 
Flexibility in choosing altitude and direction of flight is essential 
for optimal use of these special procedures by the USMC and SSPPD, 
especially in the event of an unanticipated threat to the security of 
the President.

The Rule

    The President's private residence in Crawford, Texas, has several 
landing areas for presidential aircraft. Each landing area must be 
accessible by flying several different approaches, depending upon the 
weather, threat conditions, the aircraft being used, and departure 
location. Also, the special operating procedures used by the USMC and 
the SSPPD, including the use of multiple aircraft, non-standard flight 
techniques and other special security provisions, require the airspace 
surrounding the landing areas to be clear of obstructions that could 
affect these operating procedures and the safety of the President. 
Obstructions above 50 feet above ground level (AGL) in certain 
locations within the designated area could inhibit the flexibility of 
these special operating procedures and could compromise the safe 
transportation and the security of the President, particularly in 
emergency situations.
    In order to provide for the safe operations of the presidential 
helicopters and to accommodate the inherent national security interests 
involved in transporting the President, the FAA is requiring that any 
person constructing or altering any object that would exceed 50 feet 
AGL within a three nautical mile (NM) radius of the President's private 
residence must file notice with the FAA. This geographic area covers 
the same surface area that is designated as P-49. The FAA will consider 
objects that exceed 50 feet AGL within the designated area as 
obstructions to air navigation. Objects that exceed the above standard 
could become obstacles for the USMC and the SSPPD during certain 
operations and result in the inability to follow specified operating 
procedures and hinder the safety of the entire operations. It is 
critical for the USMC and SSPPD to have maximum flexibility in devising 
procedures that uniquely accommodate safely transporting the President. 
Limiting the construction of new obstructions or alteration of existing 
structures within the P-49 area will allow optimum operating procedures 
that are necessary to the safety of the entire operation.
    Due to the unique operating requirements of the USMC and the SSPPD 
previously discussed, the aircraft conducting these operations must 
have the ability to take off, land or perform various flight maneuvers 
in virtually every direction of the landing areas within the designated 
area. Consequently, it is critical that this area is clear of objects 
that may adversely affect the operations. Therefore, any new 
construction or alteration of an object that exceeds the obstruction 
standard within the designate area is presumed a hazard to air 
navigation and to compromise the safety of the operations conducted 
herein.
    Certain new construction or alteration to existing structures that 
would exceed 50 feet AGL may be compatible with the safe and secure 
transport of the President. The proponent of the construction/
alteration must submit detailed information regarding the proposed 
construction/alteration. Only where the FAA, in consultation with the 
USMC and the SSPPD, determines that it would not adversely affect 
safety and not result in a hazard to air navigation, would the FAA 
issue a Determination of No Hazard. Because the decision of the 
Administrator may be based upon classified or otherwise sensitive 
information regarding the security of the President, the Administrator 
need not provide or disclose the basis for such determination
    New construction or alterations to existing structures above 50 
feet AGL, outside of the P-49 area, may still pose a danger to the safe 
transportation and protection of the President. Nothing in this rule, 
however, precludes the FAA or another federal agency from determining 
that a new construction or alteration to an existing object outside the 
designated area is a danger to the safe transportation and protection 
of the President. Such objects outside the designated area, however, 
will be addressed by other legal authorities.

Prior Construction and Alterations

    The provisions of this rule do not apply to any construction or 
alteration that occurred before the effective date of this rule.

Duration of the Rule

    This rule shall be in effect only for the duration of President 
George W. Bush's term of office. The FAA recognizes that all 
Presidents' private residences raise safety and national security 
concerns regarding the safe ingress and egress of the President and his 
party. However, the protections necessary to ensure the safe ingress 
and egress may vary substantially depending upon the nature and 
location of each President's residence. Therefore, the FAA anticipates 
that similar rules, tailored to the security concerns of the 
Presidential residence, may be needed at other locations to protect the 
transportation of future Presidents.

Justification for Immediate Adoption

    We find that the important national security interests of 
protecting the President and his party during flight operations renders 
notice and public procedure under 5 U.S.C. 553(b) impracticable and 
contrary to the public interest. Furthermore, good cause exists under 5 
U.S.C. 553(d) to make this rule effective immediately upon publication 
in the Federal Register so as to prevent the commencement of any 
construction

[[Page 19732]]

or alteration in the affected area between the issuance of the rule and 
the effective date of the rule that could affect the safe transport of 
the President and his party.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    Information collection requirements in the amendment to 14 CFR part 
77 previously have been approved by the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 
U.S.C. 3507(d)), and have been assigned OMB Control Number 2120-0001.
    An agency may not collect or sponsor the collection of information, 
nor may it impose an information collection requirement unless it 
displays a currently valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) 
control number.

International Compatibility

    In keeping with U.S. obligations under the Convention on 
International Civil Aviation, it is FAA policy to comply with 
International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) Standards and 
Recommended Practices to the maximum extent practicable. The FAA has 
reviewed the corresponding ICAO Standards and Recommended Practices and 
has identified no differences with these regulations.

Executive Order 12866 and DOT Regulatory Policies and Procedures

    This rulemaking action is taken under an emergency situation within 
the meaning of section 6(a)(3)(D) of Executive Order 12866, Regulatory 
Planning and Review. It also is considered an emergency regulation 
under Paragraph 11g of the Department of Transportation (DOT) 
Regulatory Policies and Procedures. In addition, it is a significant 
rule within the meaning of the Executive Order and DOT's policies and 
procedures. No regulatory analysis or evaluation accompanies this rule. 
Because this final rule is being issued with no prior notice, the FAA 
is not required to assess whether this rule will have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities as defined in 
the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980, as amended, and we have not 
performed such an assessment.

International Trade Impact Analysis

    The Trade Agreement Act of 1979 prohibits Federal agencies from 
engaging in any standards or related activities that create unnecessary 
obstacles to the foreign commerce of the United States. Legitimate 
domestic objectives, such as safety, aren't considered unnecessary 
obstacles. The statute also requires consideration of international 
standards and where appropriate, that they be the basis for U.S. 
standards. The FAA accordingly has assessed the potential effect of 
this rule to be minimal and therefore has determined that this rule 
will not result in an impact on international trade.

Trade Impact Assessment

    The Trade Agreement Act of 1979 prohibits Federal agencies from 
engaging in any standards or related activities that create unnecessary 
obstacles to the foreign commerce of the United States. Legitimate 
domestic objectives, such as safety, are not considered unnecessary 
obstacles. The statute also requires consideration of international 
standards and where appropriate, that they be the basis for U.S. 
standards. The FAA has assessed the potential effect of this rulemaking 
and has determined that it will impose the same costs on domestic and 
international entities and thus has a neutral trade impact.

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    Title II of the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (the Act) 
requires each Federal agency, to the extent permitted by law, to 
prepare a written assessment of the effects of any Federal mandate in a 
proposed or final agency rule that may result in the expenditure by 
State, local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the 
private sector, of $100 million or more (adjusted annually for 
inflation) in any one year. The Act requires the Federal agency to 
develop an effective process to permit timely input by elected officers 
(or their designees) of State, local and tribal governments on a 
proposed ``significant intergovernmental mandate.'' Under the Act, a 
``significant intergovernmental mandate'' is any provision in a Federal 
agency regulation that would impose an enforceable duty upon State, 
local, and tribal governments, in the aggregate, of $100 million 
(adjusted annually for inflation) in any one year. Section 203 of the 
Act, 2 U.S.C. 1533, which supplements section 204(a), provides that 
before establishing any regulatory requirements that might 
significantly or uniquely affect small governments, the agency shall 
have developed a plan that, among other things, provides for notice to 
potentially affected small governments, if any, and for a meaningful 
and timely opportunity to provide input in the development of 
regulatory proposals.
    This rule does not contain such a mandate. The requirements of 
Title II of the Act, therefore, do not apply.

Executive Order 13132, Federalism

    The FAA has analyzed this rule under the principles and criteria of 
Executive Order 13132, Federalism. We determined that this rule would 
not have a substantial direct effect on the States, or the relationship 
between the national Government and the States, or on the distribution 
of power and responsibilities among the various levels of government. 
We determined that this rule, therefore, would not have federalism 
implications.

Energy Impact

    We assessed the energy impact of this rule in accordance with the 
Energy Policy and Conservation Act (EPCA) and Public Law 94-163, as 
amended (42 U.S.C. 6362). We have determined that this rule is not a 
major regulatory action under the provisions of the EPCA.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 77

    Administrative practice and procedure, Airports, Airspace, Aviation 
safety, Navigation (air), Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

The Amendment

0
For the reasons set forth above, the Federal Aviation Administration 
amends part 77 of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations as 
follows:

PART 77--OBJECTS AFFECTING NAVIGABLE AIRSPACE

0
1. The authority citation for part 77 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40103, 40113-40114, 44502, 44701, 
44718, 46101-46102, 46104.


0
2. Add Special Federal Aviation Regulation (SFAR) No. 98 to read as 
follows:

SFAR No. 98--Construction or Alteration in the Vicinity of the Private 
Residence of the President of the United States

    Section 1. Construction or alteration near the private residence of 
the President. This section applies to:
    (a) Any object of natural growth, terrain, or permanent or 
temporary construction or alteration, including appurtenances and 
equipment or materials used therein.
    (b) Any apparatus of a permanent or temporary character.
    Section 2. Notice of Construction/Alteration. Proponents proposing 
construction or alteration of any object described in Section 1 that 
would exceed 50 feet AGL and is within 3 NM radius of lat. 31[deg]43'45 
N, long. 97[deg]32'00 W shall notify the Administrator in the form and 
manner prescribed in 14 CFR 77.17.

[[Page 19733]]

    Section 3. Obstruction Standard.
    (a) Any object described in Section 1 that would exceed 50 feet AGL 
and is within 3 NM radius of lat. 31[deg]43'45N, long. 97[deg]32'00W is 
an obstruction and is presumed to adversely affect aviation safety and 
therefore is a hazard to air navigation.
    (b) A Determination of No Hazard will be issued only when the FAA 
determines, based upon submitted information and in consultation with 
the USMC and the SSPPD, that the construction or alteration will not 
adversely affect safety and would not result in a hazard to air 
navigation.
    Section 4. Termination. This rule will terminate at the end of 
President George W. Bush's term in office.

    Issued in Washington, DC on April 16, 2003.
Marion C. Blakely,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 03-9886 Filed 4-21-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-13-P