[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 64 (Monday, April 4, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 19571-19572]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-06968]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

[Docket No. FAA-2022-0345]


Airport Improvement Program (AIP) Grant Assurances

AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Department of 
Transportation.

ACTION: Notice of proposed modification of Airport Improvement Program 
grant assurances; opportunity to comment.

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SUMMARY: The FAA proposes to modify the AIP grant assurances to reflect 
recently issued executive orders, clarify recodification and addition 
of certain public laws, update civil rights requirements, and make 
technical corrections.

DATES: The FAA will accept public comments concerning these proposed 
modified grant assurances for 14 days. Comments must be submitted on or 
before April 12, 2022. In response to comments received, the FAA will 
consider appropriate revisions to these grant assurance modifications 
and publish a subsequent notice in the Federal Register to finalize the 
grant assurances.

ADDRESSES: You may send comments [identified by Docket Number FAA- 
2022-0345] using any of the following methods:
     Government-wide Rulemaking Website: Go to http://www.regulations.gov and follow the instructions for sending your 
comments electronically.
     Mail: Docket Operations, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12- 140, Routing 
Symbol M-30, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590.
     Fax: 1-202-493-2251.
     Hand Delivery: To Docket Operations, Room W12-140 on the 
ground floor of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, 
Washington, DC 20590, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
except Federal holidays.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dave Cushing, Manager, Airports 
Financial Assistance Division, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 
Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591, telephone (202) 267-8827; 
fax: (202) 267-5302.

Authority for Grant Assurance Modifications

    This notice is published under the authority described in subtitle 
VII, part B, chapter 471, sections 47107 and 47122 of title 49 United 
States Code (U.S.C.). In addition, the statutory authorities delegated 
to the Federal Aviation Administration are enumerated in title 49 Code 
of Federal Regulations (CFR) 1.83 (``Delegations to the Federal 
Aviation Administration'').

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: A sponsor (applicant) seeking financial 
assistance in the form of an AIP grant for airport planning, airport 
development, noise compatibility planning, or noise mitigation under 49 
U.S.C., as amended, must agree to comply with certain assurances. These 
grant assurances are incorporated in, and become part of a sponsor's 
grant agreement for Federal assistance. As need dictates, the FAA 
modifies these assurances to reflect new Federal requirements. Notice 
of such modifications is published in the Federal Register, and an 
opportunity for public comment is provided. The assurances that apply 
to a sponsor depend on the type of sponsor.
    There are four types of AIP grant assurances:
     Airport Sponsor (applicable for airport development);
     Non-Airport Sponsors Undertaking Noise Compatibility 
Program Projects;
     Planning Agency Sponsors; and
     Aviation State Block Grant Program.
    The current assurances were published on February 28, 2020, at 85 
FR 12048. Prior to the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-
254), the assurances were published on:
     September 6, 1984, at 49 FR 35282;
     February 3, 1988, at 53 FR 3104 and amended on September 
6, 1988, at 53 FR 34361;
     August 29, 1989, at 54 FR 35748;
     June 10, 1994, at 59 FR 30076;
     January 4, 1995, at 60 FR 521;
     June 2, 1997, at 62 FR 29761;
     August 18, 1999, at 64 FR 45008;
     August 24, 2004, at 69 FR 52057 and amended on March 29, 
2005, at 70 FR 15980;
     March 18, 2011, at 76 FR 15028;
     April 13, 2012, at 77 FR 22376; and
     April 3, 2014, at 79 FR 18755.
    A complete list of the draft grant assurances may be viewed at: 
https://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/grant_assurances/drafts_2022/.

Discussion of AIP Grant Assurance Modifications

    The FAA proposes making several changes to the AIP grant 
assurances. If adopted, these changes will be in effect for grants 
issued on or after a subsequent notice in the Federal Register 
finalizing the grant assurances. The proposed changes to the AIP grant 
assurances are listed below. The grant assurance numbers referenced 
relate to the Airport Sponsor assurance:

Technical Corrections and Updates

    Because the technical corrections have no change on the substance 
of the assurances, these proposed changes, including minor edits to 
grant assurances 5, 11, 19, 29, 31, 34, and 37, have not been 
specifically called out. For example, the FAA proposes to change the 
title of grant assurance 11 from ``Pavement Preventive Maintenance'' to 
``Pavement Preventive Maintenance-Management'' and proposes to correct 
the citation for the Fraud Civil Remedies Act in grant assurance 37. 
The FAA proposes to update the list of the applicable Advisory 
Circulars referenced in grant assurance 34 that is publicly available 
here: https://www.faa.gov/airports/aip/media/aip-pfc-checklist.pdf.
    The FAA also proposes a number of corrections to reflect 
recodification of certain public laws and to add United State Code 
(U.S.C.) section information in grant assurance 1 to clarify applicable 
legislation. Additionally, the FAA proposes to add the Civil Rights 
Restoration Act of 1987, Public Law 100-209 to the list of applicable 
Federal Legislation.

[[Page 19572]]

Additions to List of Executive Orders

    The FAA proposes to add the following Executive Orders:
     Executive Order 13166 (``Improving Access to Services for 
Persons with Limited English Proficiency''),
     Executive Order 13985 (``Executive Order on Advancing 
Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the 
Federal Government''),
     Executive Order 13988 (``Preventing and Combating 
Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual 
Orientation''),
     Executive Order 14005 (``Ensuring the Future is Made in 
all of America by All of America's Workers''), and
     Executive Order 14008 (``Tackling the Climate Crisis at 
Home and Abroad'') to the list of executive orders applicable in grant 
assurance 1.

Addition of Assurances 23 and 37 to the List of Assurances That Apply 
to Airport Planning Undertaken by a Sponsor

    For a planning project, not all of the airport sponsor grant 
assurances apply, some project-specific assurances apply while the 
planning project is going on, and others continue to apply after the 
planning project is over. The FAA proposes to add grant assurance 23, 
Exclusive Rights, and grant assurance 37, Disadvantaged Business 
Enterprises, to the list of applicable assurances.
    Per 49 U.S.C. 47107, a person providing, or intending to provide, 
aeronautical services to the public must not be given an exclusive 
right to the airport except if certain specific conditions apply. Since 
Sponsors who are receiving funds for planning projects must be, at 
minimum, intending to provide airport services, grant assurance 23 
applies when an airport sponsor takes a grant for airport planning.
    Per 49 CFR part 26, each Sponsor undertaking any project where it 
is receiving grant funds via an agreement with FAA is required to have 
a Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program, regardless of the type of 
project the Sponsor undertakes. Therefore, grant assurance 37 is also 
applicable to Sponsors undertaking planning projects.
    Section B Duration and Applicability, (3) Airport Planning 
Undertaken by a Sponsor, is now proposed to read:

    Unless otherwise specified in this Grant Agreement, only 
Assurances 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 13, 18, 23, 25, 30, 32, 33, 34, and 37 in 
Section C apply to planning projects. The terms, conditions, and 
assurances of this Grant Agreement shall remain in full force and 
effect during the life of the project; there shall be no limit on 
the duration of the assurances regarding Exclusive Rights and 
Airport Revenue so long as the airport is used as an airport.

Updates to Grant Assurance 28, Land for Federal Facilities

    The FAA proposes to remove the language ``rights in buildings of 
the sponsor'' from grant assurance 28 because sponsors are not 
obligated to furnish rent-free space in a facility owned by the airport 
sponsor unless otherwise provided for in section 147 of the FAA 
Reauthorization Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-254).

Updates to Grant Assurance 30, Civil Rights Requirements

    The FAA proposes to update the civil rights protected bases to 
align with, and explicitly list, the applicable legal authorities. 
Also, previously, the grant assurance indicated that the civil rights 
requirements are applicable to ``any activity conducted with, or 
benefiting from, funds received from [the] Grant.'' The FAA proposes to 
add the word ``program'' to better align requirements with the 
Americans with Disability Act and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 
1964.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on March 29, 2022.
Robert John Craven,
Director, Office of Airport Planning and Programming.
[FR Doc. 2022-06968 Filed 4-1-22; 8:45 am]
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