94-28075. Rules of Practice in Civil Penalty Proceedings  

  • [Federal Register Volume 59, Number 219 (Tuesday, November 15, 1994)]
    [Unknown Section]
    [Page 0]
    From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
    [FR Doc No: 94-28075]
    
    
    [[Page Unknown]]
    
    [Federal Register: November 15, 1994]
    
    
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    NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD
    
    49 CFR Parts 821 and 826
    
     
    
    Rules of Practice in Civil Penalty Proceedings
    
    AGENCY: National Transportation Safety Board.
    
    ACTION: Final rules.
    
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    SUMMARY: The NTSB is adopting final rules to implement the FAA Civil 
    Penalty Administrative Assessment Act of 1992, signed into law on 
    August 26, 1992. This law transferred adjudication of appeals of civil 
    penalties assessed by the Federal Aviation Administrator against 
    pilots, flight engineers, mechanics, and repairmen from the FAA to the 
    NTSB. The Board is adopting, with only minor changes, rules it has 
    already adopted as an interim measure (58 FR 11379 (February 25, 
    1993)).
    
    EFFECTIVE DATE: The final rules are effective on December 15, 1994.
    
    FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Daniel D. Campbell, General Counsel, 
    (202) 382-6540.
    
    SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public Law No. 102-345 (here, the CP Act) 
    has expanded the Board's jurisdiction to review actions of the 
    Administrator. Section 901(a)(3) of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 
    (49 U.S.C. App. 1471(a)(3))1 has been amended to provide that any 
    person acting in the capacity of a pilot, flight engineer, mechanic, or 
    repairman against whom an order assessing a civil penalty is issued by 
    the Administrator under this paragraph may appeal the order to the 
    National Transportation Safety Board, and the Board shall, after notice 
    and a hearing on the record in accordance with section 554 of title 5, 
    United States Code, affirm, modify, or reverse the order of the 
    Administrator. Thus, in addition to a docket of appeals involving 
    suspension, revocation, and medical qualification matters, we now also 
    hear appeals from the Administrator's orders imposing civil penalties 
    against individuals in the listed categories.
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        \1\Newly recodified at 49 U.S.C. 46301(d)(5).
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        We stated in our notice our belief that current rules of practice 
    in Parts 821 and 826 required few changes to accommodate this new 
    authority, and the changes we proposed simply reflected its scope. 
    Thus, we then proposed and now adopt the rules of practice in Parts 821 
    and 826 for usage in all civil penalty proceedings. Although we did not 
    offer specific rule changes relating to (1) the codification of new 
    rules of deference and (2) the provisions of Pub.L. No. 102-345 that 
    pertain to the modification of proposed sanctions, we invited comment 
    or proposals about them. We suggested that the changes regarding 
    deference seemed to require little departure from current practice. We 
    noted that the new provision regarding the modification of sanction 
    resulted in some tension with existing practice,2 but that it 
    might be difficult to anticipate by rule the types of questions that 
    could arise under these provisions. We also invited comment on 
    extending application of our stale complaint rule, 49 CFR 821.33, to 
    the civil penalty docket.
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        \2\See discussion, infra.
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        In response to our notice, comments were filed by the Aircraft 
    Owners and Pilots Association, the Air Line Pilots Association, the 
    Experimental Aircraft Association, the National Transportation Safety 
    Board Bar Association, the Regional Airline Association, as well as the 
    Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and five individuals. Two replies 
    were filed in opposition to portions of the FAA comment. For the 
    reasons that follow, we adopt the proposed rule, with one editorial 
    correction. We first address applicability of the stale complaint rule.
    
    Stale Complaints
    
        FAA's comments were principally aimed at the Board's noticed 
    intention to extend its stale complaint rule to the processing of civil 
    penalties. The NTSB and before it the Civil Aeronautics Board have long 
    required that aviation enforcement cases be initiated within 6 months 
    of the alleged violation by notice to the airman of the nature of the 
    charges contemplated.3 This provision is found at Sec. 821.33 of 
    the NTSB rules and includes exceptions where good cause is shown for 
    delay beyond 6 months,4 where notwithstanding delay there are 
    overriding public interest considerations,5 and a further 
    exception for the most serious cases where a complaint indicates that 
    the airman does not possess the qualifications required of licensed 
    pilots confirm.6 But exceptions aside, if an airman is not advised 
    of the reasons for a proposed enforcement action within 6 months of the 
    alleged violation, the FAA's complaint against the airman will be 
    dismissed. One statement of the traditional and still commanding 
    justification for the rule is found in Burdick et al., 34 C.A.B. 856, a 
    1961 case that considered matters strikingly similar to the issues 
    here:
    
        \3\The stale complaint rule for suspension and revocation cases 
    dates back to 1942.
        \4\Thus, for example, an apparently stale proceeding will 
    survive a motion to dismiss where the Administrator did not have 
    contemporaneous knowledge of the alleged violation (see, e.g., 
    Administrator v. Slotten, 2 NTSB 2503 (1976)), so long as the matter 
    was given appropriate priority after finally coming to light (see 
    Administrator v. Zanlunghi, 3 NTSB 3696 (1981)).
        \5\See Administrator v. Elston, NTSB Order No. EA-4151 (1994) 
    for types of cases to which the public interest exception might 
    apply. To date, however, the cases in which the public interest 
    exception has been discussed are quite rare, as it appears in 
    practice that an allegation of lack of qualification is typically 
    available and relied upon where serious misconduct is involved.
        \6\See, e.g., Administrator v. Wingo, 4 NTSB 1304, 1305 (1984) 
    (``In order to avoid dismissal under the stale complaint rule, the 
    allegations in the complaint need only present an issue of lack of 
    qualifications.'' (Emphasis in original.)). As examples, lack of 
    qualification has been presumed for matters of deliberate 
    falsification of record requirements (see, e.g., Administrator v. 
    Walters, NTSB Order No. EA-3835 (1993)); and for proceedings based 
    on drug convictions (see, e.g., Administrator v. Kragness, NTSB 
    Order No. EA-3682 (1992)).
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        We do not believe it is in the public interest to permit an 
    airman who has violated the regulations to continue to enjoy all the 
    rights and privileges of his certificate for an extended period of 
    time without remedial action. On the other hand, we consider it 
    unfair to an airman to have the threat of enforcement action held 
    over his head for a protracted period, or to have to defend himself 
    when, because of the passage of time, it is difficult to assemble 
    witnesses or where recollections of the incident have become hazy. 
    (34 C.A.B. 860.)7
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        \7\See also Administrator v. Dill et al., NTSB Order No. EA-4099 
    (1994) (due diligence is necessary to protect individual airman and 
    to enhance aviation safety).
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        All parties except the Administrator support the extension of the 
    stale complaint rule. The FAA is opposed from an institutional 
    perspective and on what it believes are practical grounds. 
    Institutionally, it argues that the establishment of a standard time 
    limit is a legislative function, pointing to the standard 5-year limit 
    for civil penalty actions established by statute in 28 USC 2462, and 
    also citing a separate provision of the CP Act which imposes a 2-year 
    statute of limitations for those civil penalty proceedings entrusted to 
    FAA for adjudication. FAA believes that the establishment of a 
    limitation period shorter than 5 years is the responsibility of the 
    regulating and prosecuting agency. In offering this argument, FAA 
    appears to make, without any elaboration, a distinction between the 
    quasi-legislative functions of a regulatory agency and the quasi-
    judicial functions of the Safety Board acting as an appeals board in 
    aviation enforcement. On the practical level, FAA argues that its own 
    2-year rule was a balancing of its needs for sufficient time to 
    investigate, review and initiate a case, the interests of respondents 
    in timely notice, and the public interest in regulatory 
    compliance.8 FAA concedes that the NTSB, as adjudicator, has 
    inherent power to dismiss individual proceedings where delay has been 
    shown to prejudice an airman's defense; its objection is lodged to the 
    legislative nature of Sec. 821.33 and the presumption of prejudice it 
    incorporates.
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        \8\While the 2-year limit is now a matter of statute law, FAA 
    refers to its balancing of these several factors in apparent 
    reference to a self-imposed, 2-year limitation that had been adopted 
    by the agency during the temporary civil penalty demonstration 
    program.
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        Among the private sector commentors there is unanimous support for 
    the continuation of the 6-month stale complaint rule. Most commentors 
    argue that the 6-month rule has worked well, in part because it 
    contains several exceptions permitting the processing of those cases 
    that might pose serious threat to public safety or where FAA could not 
    have acted faster. AOPA notes that failure to adopt a 6-month rule will 
    result in an incongruous problem in which the selection of sanction 
    would dictate the allowable time for notice of action--the fear 
    apparently being that when FAA failed to act on a matter normally 
    reserved for suspension or revocation of a certificate, it would 
    instead substitute a money fine so that the case would not be time-
    barred before the NTSB. Another commentor notes a related incongruity: 
    That since the Civil Penalty Assessment Act gave the NTSB the power to 
    conclude that a civil penalty assessment should instead be levied as a 
    certificate suspension or revocation, there might arise a case in which 
    an action brought as a civil penalty would result in a certificate 
    action, although suspension or revocation would have been time-barred 
    if initiated as such.
        We remain persuaded that the Safety Board has the authority to 
    establish the Sec. 821.33 stale complaint rule and that its application 
    to our civil penalty docket is appropriate. As to FAA's arguments 
    regarding the respective institutional relationships of our agencies 
    and the consequent inappropriateness of ``legislation'' (rulemaking) to 
    govern timeliness, we think that these arguments which, if accepted as 
    correct, would apply with near equal force to the remainder of the 
    Board's enforcement docket, are not supported by a fair appraisal of 
    the institutional histories of our agencies. Indeed, very much the same 
    arguments were made and rejected by the Civil Aeronautics Board shortly 
    after the division between the enforcement and adjudication functions 
    that resulted from the enactment of the Federal Aviation Act of 
    1958.9 Thus, in the Burdick case, supra, FAA argued that:
    
        \9\Enforcement and adjudication had been unified in a single 
    agency at times prior to 1958.
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        * * * under the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, the Board has no 
    power to adopt a stale-complaint provision and to require the 
    Administrator to show good cause for delay in initiating enforcement 
    action. [The Administrator] states that the 1958 Act gave him the 
    function of deciding whether, and when, to institute enforcement 
    action and that the authority to commence such actions is no longer 
    delegated to him by the Board. Further he points out that the 1958 
    Act places no time limitation on the institution of a safety action 
    by the Administrator, that the Board has no jurisdiction prior to 
    the issuance of the Administrator's order * * *. Burdick, supra, 
    857-8.
    
        To which the answer was given:
    
        Even if the 1958 Act were viewed as creating a changed 
    relationship, it would not follow that the stale-complaint rule is 
    invalid. As indicated earlier, under section 609 it is the Board 
    which makes the ultimate determination as to the sanction in each 
    case which comes before it. Thus if in the Board's judgement the 
    sanction preliminarily imposed by the Administrator is not required 
    by safety and the public interest, the Board is free to impose such 
    sanction, if any, as it believes to be justified by its own 
    appraisal of the safety and other public interest considerations 
    involved. In this light, the stale complaint provision may be 
    regarded as a general announcement by the Board of its view of the 
    overall public interest to be applied in those cases in which it is 
    called upon to exercise its statutory powers. To this extent the 
    announcement as set forth in the Rules of Practice under the 1938 
    Act has represented a standard for decision by the Board and there 
    is no indication in the 1958 Act or its legislative history that 
    Congress intended to change that standard. Id., 858-9.
    
        NTSB, as the successor agency to C.A.B. for enforcement cases, 
    finds itself in precisely the same institutional relationship with FAA 
    as did the 1961 Civil Aeronautics Board that decided Burdick, and we 
    think that their reasoning is persuasive. We do not believe the 
    enactment of the Civil Penalty Act effectuated any significant change 
    in the relationship between FAA and NTSB, and such changes that were 
    accomplished were done so explicitly. FAA had argued for a right of 
    appeal of NTSB cases, and one was enacted. Likewise, an explicit 
    statement of deference to FAA interpretations was adopted. We think 
    that such careful attention to detail by Congress undermines any 
    suggestion that sub silentio Congress also intended a limitation of the 
    Board's authority as exercised in Rule 821.33.
        We note that on August 5, 1994, FAA published a notice of proposed 
    rulemaking detailing its own proposed rules for the processing of those 
    civil penalty proceedings which were retained for in-house adjudication 
    under the CP Act. (59 FR 40196.) In this notice, FAA makes the argument 
    that, because Congress specified a 2-year limitation for FAA 
    adjudications but refrained from any similar new legislative directive 
    for NTSB-adjudicated penalties, NTSB proceedings are governed by the 5-
    year limitation of 28 USC 2462. Given the context in which the CP Act 
    arose, we think the suggestion that Congress intended to reinvigorate a 
    5-year limitation at the NTSB is quite implausible. For our part, we 
    view the statute of limitation provision in the Civil Penalty 
    Assessment Act as best understood as part of the basic compromise that 
    is at the heart of the 1992 legislation. As AOPA points out, Congress 
    was well aware of NTSB's stale complaint rule, in part because of the 
    complaints over the adoption of a longer, 2-year limitation by FAA for 
    its in-house civil penalty adjudication under the temporary 
    demonstration program. Due to widespread opposition to the FAA's 
    administration of this program, the 1992 enactment split the 
    adjudication of civil penalties between the NTSB and FAA. FAA was given 
    legislative authority to retain a 2-year limitation for the cases it 
    would handle--an implicit limitation against the agency's right to move 
    outward toward the 5-year limit of 28 USC 2462. And the transfer of 
    cases involving individual airmen and others to the NTSB is arguably an 
    equally clear, if still implicit, statement that these airmen were to 
    receive the perceived advantages of NTSB adjudication, including the 
    stale complaint rule.
        As to the practical implications of the stale complaint rule, FAA 
    has offered no evidence or demonstration of harm having resulted from 
    the long-standing application of Rule 821.33 to certificate cases. 
    Given the availability of exceptions for good cause etc., perhaps this 
    is not surprising. We would also note that the nature of the caseload 
    reserved for civil penalties, if the FAA Sanction Guidelines Table is 
    thought to be instructive, will be, if anything, less complicated and 
    less critical than those certificate cases already subject to 
    Sec. 821.33 and for which no harm has been shown. Consequently, in the 
    absence of any factual showing of impracticability, we believe that the 
    stale complaint rule will function well for the civil penalty docket 
    and we will continue its use. Doing so avoids the need to address the 
    potential, pointed to by AOPA, for the selection of sanction type to 
    become a device for the avoidance of the stale complaint rule in 
    certificate action cases.
    
    Deference and Sanction Modification
    
        The CP Act provides that the Board, while not bound by any findings 
    of fact made by the Administrator, is bound by all ``validly adopted 
    interpretations of laws and regulations administered by the Federal 
    Aviation Administration (including written agency policy guidance 
    available to the public relating to sanctions to be imposed under this 
    subsection) unless the Board finds that any such interpretation is 
    arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not in accordance with law.'' Pub. 
    L. No. 102-345, Sec. 2(a), amending 49 U.S.C. 1471(a)(3), newly 
    recodified at 49 U.S.C. 46301(d)(5). The new law also provides that the 
    Board may, consistent with the foregoing, modify the type of sanctions 
    to be imposed by the Administrator. Thus, the Board may, in an 
    appropriate case, change a civil penalty to a suspension or change a 
    suspension or revocation to a civil penalty. For the purposes of this 
    rulemaking, these new provisions have been referred to as the deference 
    and sanction modification provisions. We noted in the NPR that comment 
    on these provisions was desirable, even though the possibility of the 
    adoption of specific rules was not great. For a number of reasons, we 
    continue to believe that rules are not feasible at this point. However, 
    the experience with these provisions through adjudication has already 
    addressed some of the issues raised in this docket.10
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        \1\0As we are in accord with the view expressed in the comments 
    that, if law in this area is developed through adjudication rather 
    than rulemaking, the interests of the aviation community as a whole 
    might not always be fully represented, we have broadened our policy 
    regarding amicus participation (see, e.g., Administrator v. Oklahoma 
    Executive Jet Charter, Inc. & Curtis, NTSB Order EA-3928 (1993)), 
    and have proposed a general change in our rules of practice to 
    authorize amicus briefs in appropriate situations.
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        Certain commentors argue that, to be a validly adopted 
    interpretation to which we must defer, an FAA position must have been 
    adopted through notice and comment rulemaking. Such a view requires the 
    belief that Congress intended a dramatic change in the administrative 
    process as normally understood, and we decline to infer any such 
    intention without the support of clear evidence. Traditional 
    administrative practice has permitted the development of agency policy 
    through a range of devices that fall short of formal rulemaking, and 
    the Board is given no specific authority to limit the Administrator's 
    discretion in this regard. On the other hand, the Board may, in the 
    exercise of its own statutory discretion, sculpt its decisions to 
    reflect the basic due process requirements of the public interest 
    standard under which our decisions are rendered.11
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        \1\1See, e.g., Administrator v. Miller, NTSB Order EA-3581 
    (1992), holding that a ``validly adopted'' interpretation may be 
    announced by adjudication as well as rulemaking, but that sanction 
    may be denied due to insufficient notice to airmen. ALPA suggests 
    that we incorporate by rule Miller's declination of sanction. We 
    think this would be too mechanical, but we believe the approach 
    taken in Miller was correct and reaffirm it in principle.
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        Perhaps the biggest concern that commentors expressed with less 
    formal means of interpretive development of enforcement policy is that, 
    under an expansive construction of the new language (``validly adopted 
    interpretations of laws and regulations administered by the Federal 
    Aviation Administration''), the Board would lose the very impartiality, 
    objectivity and independence the CP Act was enacted to provide to the 
    airmen covered by it. We think these fears overstate the nature of the 
    change, if any, imposed on the Board by the deference provisions. As we 
    noted to Congress during the considerations of these amendments, we do 
    not believe the amended language brings about any significant change in 
    the relationship between FAA and NTSB or to the kind and quality of 
    deference to the Administrator's interpretations that has been 
    traditionally accorded. The Board has long paid close heed to the FAA's 
    valid interpretations of its regulatory language,12 just as we 
    continue to reserve the right to discount those interpretations which 
    are arbitrary, unsupported, or which are the novel inventions of trial 
    counsel.13 We believe that this is, generally speaking, the role 
    intended for us by Congress, and our decisions continue to reflect this 
    approach.
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        \1\2See Administrator v. Miller, supra.
        \1\3In Administrator v. Krachun, NTSB Order No. EA-4002 (1993), 
    the Safety Board concluded that it was not bound to defer to a 
    hastily developed interpretation sustained only by argument of 
    counsel, particularly where the interpretation advanced was 
    unsupported by citation of practice, precedent, or documentation, 
    and where it entailed consequences for the aviation community 
    generally. See also Administrator v. Smith and Wright, NTSB Order 
    No. EA-4169 (1994); Administrator v. Nyren, NTSB Order No. EA-3930 
    (1993). These decisions, which decline to give deference to thinly 
    developed regulatory interpretations announced at trial, are 
    consistent with Congressional understanding of the deference 
    standard being imposed. See H.R. Rep. No. 671, 102d Cong. 2d Sess. 
    10 (1992) (NTSB is not simply to defer to litigation positions of 
    the FAA prosecutor).
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        AOPA suggests that only interpretations made at the highest levels 
    within the FAA should be entitled to deference. While we cannot agree 
    with so broad a statement, we think the quality of the process through 
    which an interpretation is reached and the manner of its announcement 
    are considerations that will affect both the public interest and 
    aviation safety dimensions of our review. We did, consequently, invite 
    amicus comment in one case as to whether an interpretation that is 
    based only on expert testimony offered by the Administrator during the 
    hearing on his order of suspension is ``validly adopted'' in the sense 
    that it compels deference to the Administrator's view.14 We have 
    also noted that there are interpretive conclusions that approach the 
    sometimes illusive borderline between ``fact'' and ``law,'' and that we 
    are not bound by the former.15 Still, there are many methods for 
    the development of administrative policy that have not yet surfaced in 
    litigation, and it would be premature to speculate on the Board's 
    reaction to each, other than to reiterate that the Board is bound by 
    those interpretations reached through valid process, unless arbitrary, 
    capricious, or unsupported by law.
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        \1\4Administrator v. Nyren, NTSB Order EA-3930 (1993). After we 
    sought additional briefing and suggested the possibility of oral 
    argument on the deference issue, the Administrator withdrew the 
    underlying order of suspension and hence no further argument was 
    heard.
        \1\5See, e.g., Administrator v. Kapton, NTSB Order No. EA-4046 
    (1993), at note 9, p.7, stating that the Board is not bound by 
    conclusions of the Administrator that given behavior is careless 
    within the meaning of the provision prohibiting careless operation.
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        As to deference specifically regarding choice of sanction, we 
    stated in the notice that the CP Act suggested some tension between the 
    Board's traditionally conservative approach and the new invitation to 
    modify sanction as appropriate, within such FAA guidelines as are shown 
    applicable. We noted that Administrator v. Muzquiz, 2 NTSB 1474 (1975), 
    which has long required clear and compelling evidence to amend the 
    Administrator's proposed sanction if all violations are affirmed, might 
    well be outdated. Such comment as was received on this issue offered no 
    usable suggestion for the adoption of a rule at this point, and we will 
    attempt none. Experience to date through adjudication has confirmed 
    that the aforementioned Muzquiz doctrine is of diminished importance, 
    and that NTSB administrative law judges (and the Board itself) may in 
    proper circumstances modify sanctions,16 and that in doing so 
    reliance on precedent will be typical,17 but not always possible 
    or required.18 The Board will continue its development of these 
    issues through adjudication, and consider the publication of formal 
    guidance at such time as firm and suitable principles emerge.
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        \1\6Administrator v. Glassburn, NTSB Order No. EA-4211 (1994) 
    (where FAA Sanction Table permits a range of sanctions, ALJ may 
    rationally choose among them based on observation of the case).
        \1\7See, e.g., Administrator v. Franck, NTSB Order No. EA-4166 
    (1994); Administrator v. Tweto, NTSB Order No. EA-4164 (1994).
        \1\8Administrator v. Oklahoma Executive Jet Charter, Inc. & 
    Curtis, NTSB Order No. EA-3928 (1993). This is the first case in 
    which a certificate action (revocation) was modified to the 
    imposition of a civil penalty.
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    Supplementary Matters
    
        We have made only three changes in the interim rules. First, we 
    have removed the improper reference to section 602 of the Federal 
    Aviation Act in interim Sec. 826.3. Second, we have revised Sec. 821.2 
    to enlarge coverage, consistent with the FAA's proposal (see 59 FR 
    40196), by including a reference to persons acting in the capacity of 
    flight engineers, pilots, mechanics, or repairmen.19 Third, the 
    authority section updates statutory citations to reflect the recent 
    recodification in Pub. L. 103-272, as already modified in Aviation 
    Rules of Practice--General Revision.
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        \1\9We note that the FAA's CP rulemaking proposals contain other 
    matters that could affect our jurisdiction. Should we need to 
    address them we will do so via adjudication or rulemaking, as most 
    appropriate.
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        Two errors that the parties cited were errors of Federal Register 
    publication only. The word ``are'' was left out of the second sentence 
    of 826.3(a). It should have read ``These are adjudications * * *.'' The 
    Federal Register also mistakenly repeated two lines in the third 
    sentence of that same rule. The phrase ``suspend, or revoke * * * 
    proceedings to modify,'' improperly appears twice.20
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        \2\0One commentor urges us to extend the scope of our new review 
    authority to dispatchers, noticing that they also are certificated 
    airmen. We decline to do so. The statute identifies the categories 
    of airmen that are covered and does not include dispatchers. See 
    H.R. Rep. 102-671, supra, at 20, where nine Congressmen indicated 
    their preference for extending coverage not only to dispatchers but 
    to air carriers, parachute riggers, and air traffic control tower 
    operators. Cf. FAA rulemaking proposal to include flight 
    instructors. 59 FR 40193.
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        As required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act, we certify that the 
    amended rules will not have a substantial impact on a significant 
    number of small entities. The rules are not major rules for the 
    purposes of Executive Order 12291. We also conclude that this action 
    will not significantly affect either the quality of the human 
    environment or the conservation of energy resources, nor will this 
    action impose any information collection requirements requiring 
    approval under the Paperwork Reduction Act.
    
    List of Subjects
    
    49 CFR Part 821
    
        Administrative practice and procedure, Airmen, Aviation safety.
    
    49 CFR Part 826
    
        Claims, Equal access to justice, Lawyers.
    
        Accordingly, the interim rule published on February 25, 1993 is 
    adopted as final, with the following changes:
    
    PART 821--RULES OF PRACTICE IN AIR SAFETY PROCEEDINGS
    
        1. The authority citation for Part 821 continues to read as 
    follows:
    
        Authority: Title VI, Federal Aviation Act of 1958, as amended 
    (49 U.S.C. 40101 et seq.); Independent Safety Board Act of 1974, 
    Pub.L. 93-633, 88 Stat. 2166 (49 U.S.C. 1101, et seq.), and FAA 
    Civil Penalty Administrative Assessment Act of 1992, Pub.L. 102-345 
    (49 U.S.C. 46301), unless otherwise noted.
    
        2. Section 821.2 is revised to read as follows:
    
    
    Sec. 821.2  Applicability and description of part.
    
        The provisions of this part govern all air safety proceedings, 
    including proceedings involving airman medical certification, before a 
    law judge on petition for review of the denial of any airman 
    certificate or on appeal from any order of the Administrator amending, 
    modifying, suspending or revoking any certificate. The provisions of 
    this part also govern all proceedings on appeal from an order of the 
    Administrator imposing a civil penalty on a flight engineer, mechanic, 
    pilot, or repairman, or a person acting in that capacity, where the 
    underlying violation occurred on or after August 26, 1992, and all 
    proceedings on appeal to the Board from any order or decision of a law 
    judge.
    
    PART 826--[AMENDED]
    
        3. The authority citation for Part 826 continues to read as 
    follows:
    
        Authority: Section 203(a)(1) Pub.L. 99-80, 99 Stat. 186 (5 
    U.S.C. 504).
    
        4. Section 826.3(a) is revised to read as follows:
    
    
    Sec. 826.3  Proceedings covered.
    
        (a) The Act applies to certain adversary adjudications conducted by 
    the Board. These are adjudications under 5 U.S.C. 554 in which the 
    position of the FAA is presented by an attorney or other representative 
    who enters an appearance and participates in the proceedings. 
    Proceedings to grant or renew certificates or documents, hereafter 
    referred to as ``licenses,'' are excluded, but proceedings to modify, 
    suspend, or revoke licenses or to impose a civil penalty on a flight 
    engineer, mechanic, pilot, or repairman (or person acting in that 
    capacity) are covered if they are otherwise ``adversary 
    adjudications.'' For the Board, the type of proceeding covered includes 
    (but may not be limited to) aviation enforcement cases appealed to the 
    Board under sections 501, 609, 611 and 901 of the Federal Aviation Act 
    (49 U.S.C. 44101 et seq., 44720-44711, 44715, 46301).
    * * * * *
        Issued in Washington, DC on this 8th day of November, 1994.
    James Hall,
    Acting Chairman.
    [FR Doc. 94-28075 Filed 11-14-94; 8:45 am]
    BILLING CODE 7533-01-P
    
    
    

Document Information

Effective Date:
12/15/1994
Published:
11/15/1994
Department:
National Transportation Safety Board
Entry Type:
Uncategorized Document
Action:
Final rules.
Document Number:
94-28075
Dates:
The final rules are effective on December 15, 1994.
Pages:
0-0 (1 pages)
Docket Numbers:
Federal Register: November 15, 1994
CFR: (2)
49 CFR 821.2
49 CFR 826.3