[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 178 (Friday, September 15, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 63518-63519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20074]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Aviation Administration

14 CFR Part 89

[Docket No. FAA-2019-1100; Amdt. No. 89-2]
RIN 2120-AL31


Enforcement Policy Regarding Operator Compliance Deadline for 
Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft

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

ACTION: Notification of enforcement policy.

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SUMMARY: For noncompliance with the remote identification operating 
requirements applicable to unmanned aircraft, which occurs on or before 
March 16, 2024, the FAA will consider all circumstances, in particular, 
unanticipated issues with the available supply and excessive cost of 
remote identification broadcast modules and unanticipated delay in the 
FAA's approval of FAA-recognized identification areas, when exercising 
its discretion in determining whether to take enforcement action.

DATES: This policy is effective September 15, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben Walsh, Flight Technologies and 
Procedures Division, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence 
Ave. SW, Building 10A/8th Floor, Washington, DC 20591; telephone 1-844-
FLY-MY-UA (1-844-359-6981); email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Electronic Access and Filing

    A copy of this document may be viewed online at https://www.regulations.gov using the docket number listed above. A copy of 
this document will be placed in the docket. Electronic retrieval help 
and guidelines are available on the website. It is available 24 hours 
each day, 365 days each year. An electronic copy of this document may 
also be downloaded from the Office of the Federal Register's website at 
https://www.federalregister.gov and the Government Publishing Office's 
website at https://www.govinfo.gov.

Background

    On January 15, 2021, the Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft 
final rule (RIN 2120-AL31) published in the Federal Register.\1\ Unless 
otherwise authorized by the Administrator or as prescribed in 14 CFR 
89.120, no person may operate an unmanned aircraft subject to the 
applicability in Sec.  89.101 after September 16, 2023, outside the 
boundaries of an FAA-recognized identification area (FRIA) unless it is 
a standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or equipped with a 
remote identification broadcast module.\2\ The application and approval 
process for FRIAs is set forth in 14 CFR 89 subpart C. The majority of 
the final rule became effective on April 21, 2021.\3\
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    \1\ Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft final rule, 86 FR 
4390, January 15, 2021, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/15/2020-28948/remote-identification-of-unmanned-aircraft.
    \2\ 14 CFR 89.105.
    \3\ Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft; Delay, 86 FR 
13629, March 10, 2021, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/03/10/2021-04882/remote-identification-of-unmanned-aircraft-delay.
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    In accordance with the final rule, standard remote identification 
unmanned aircraft and remote identification broadcast modules must be 
designed and produced to meet the requirements of Title 14 of the Code 
of Federal Regulations part 89 (14 CFR part 89). A person designing or 
producing a standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or remote 
identification broadcast module for operation in the United States must 
show that the unmanned aircraft or broadcast module meets the 
requirements of an FAA accepted means of compliance. A means of 
compliance describes the methods by which the person complies with the 
performance-based requirements for remote identification.
    On September 12, 2022, the FAA published an Enforcement Policy 
indicating that the FAA would exercise its discretion in determining 
how to handle any apparent noncompliance with the manufacturing 
deadline set forth in the final rule, due to the delay in acceptance of 
the ASTM means of compliance.\4\
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    \4\ Enforcement Policy Regarding Production Requirements for 
Standard Remote Identification Unmanned Aircraft, 87 FR 55685, 
September 12, 2022, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/09/12/2022-19644/enforcement-policy-regarding-production-requirements-for-standard-remote-identification-unmanned.
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    In recent months, the FAA has received significant public feedback 
regarding remote identification requirements, including multiple 
requests for an extension of the September 16, 2023, remote 
identification operational compliance date. Additionally, the FAA has

[[Page 63519]]

received hundreds of inquiries through emails, phone calls, and in-
person questions about the remote identification operational compliance 
date. Flight Standards District Offices alone are receiving over 10 
emails a day related to remote identification requirements. The FAA UAS 
Support Center has received over 380 inquires over the past 60 days. 
Their primary inquiry was about the compliance date and the inability 
to obtain remote identification modules. UAS operators within the 
Commercial Drone Alliance, the Association of Uncrewed Vehicle Systems 
International, multiple public safety agencies such as the Nebraska 
Department of Transportation and the Iowa Department of Transportation, 
as well as FAA Lead Participants in the BEYOND program, have all 
indicated that they are encountering significant difficulty obtaining 
remote identification broadcast modules, which would allow continued 
operation of existing unmanned aircraft instead of purchasing new 
standard remote identification unmanned aircraft. Those difficulties 
are primarily related to availability of broadcast modules, the 
shipping timelines for broadcast modules, and the cost of those 
modules. Data from the FAA Drone Zone as of August 28, 2023, shows that 
there are 261,143 operators flying with a remote pilot certificate 
under 14 CFR part 107 and 328,372 recreational flyers operating under 
the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 44809 who are not remote identification 
equipped. The FAA has also received feedback from operators, including 
numerous public safety agencies, about difficulties in obtaining 
firmware updates to some existing models of unmanned aircraft to 
activate standard remote identification capabilities and make them 
remote identification compliant.
    As a separate matter, as of August 18, 2023, the FAA has approved 
412 applications for FRIAs, with 1,206 yet to be reviewed. The FAA has 
endeavored to review these FRIA applications as quickly as possible but 
expects a large increase in applications as the mandatory compliance 
date approaches. This influx is expected to increase the application 
processing backlog and impair the ability of recreational operators to 
comply with the rule. The FAA anticipates that the supply of remote 
identification broadcast modules, resolution of firmware issues, and 
approval of FAA-recognized identification areas will increase in the 
next six months.

Statement of Policy

    The FAA recognizes that it has yet to evaluate a majority of 
submitted applications for FAA-recognized identification areas. The FAA 
also recognizes the unanticipated issues that operators are facing 
related to the availability of remote identification broadcast modules. 
The FAA has continued to monitor this situation as long as possible 
before making a determination, but with less than a month remaining 
until the operational compliance date, the FAA acknowledges that for 
many operators, compliance with Sec.  89.105 may prove difficult or 
impossible in the timeframe presented. While some operators, such as 
those who are using standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or 
those operating in FRIAs that have already been approved by the FAA, 
will be able to comply with the rule, the cumulative effect of the 
current state of the compliance issues reported to the FAA could 
otherwise cause a cessation of numerous UAS operations, which is not 
consistent with the FAA's intent for this rule or its statutory mandate 
to integrate UAS operations into the National Airspace System.
    Accordingly, the FAA will exercise its discretion in determining 
how to handle any apparent noncompliance, including exercising 
discretion to not take enforcement action, if appropriate, for any 
noncompliance that occurs on or before March 16, 2024--the six-month 
period following the compliance deadline for operators initially 
published in the Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft final rule, 
RIN 2120-AL31. The exercise of enforcement discretion herein creates no 
individual right of action and establishes no precedent for future 
determinations.

    Issued in Washington, DC, on September 12, 2023.
Taneesha Dobyne Marshall,
Assistant Chief Counsel for Aviation Litigation, Federal Aviation 
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2023-20074 Filed 9-13-23; 11:15 am]
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