Department of Transportation June 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

FMCSA announces its decision to exempt 17 individuals from the requirement in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) that interstate commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers have ``no established medical history or clinical diagnosis of epilepsy or any other condition which is likely to cause loss of consciousness or any loss of ability to control a CMV.'' The exemptions enable these individuals who have had one or more seizures and are taking anti- seizure medication to operate CMVs in interstate commerce.

This rule establishes, amends, suspends, or removes Standard Instrument Approach Procedures (SIAPS) and associated Takeoff Minimums and Obstacle Departure procedures (ODPs) for operations at certain airports. These regulatory actions are needed because of the adoption of new or revised criteria, or because of changes occurring in the National Airspace System, such as the commissioning of new navigational facilities, adding new obstacles, or changing air traffic requirements. These changes are designed to provide safe and efficient use of the navigable airspace and to promote safe flight operations under instrument flight rules at the affected airports.

The FAA is withdrawing the NPRM published in the Federal Register on October 16, 2017, proposing to amend Very High Frequency (VHF) Omnidirectional Range (VOR) Federal airways V-20, V-31, V-33, V- 308, and V-433; and revoke V-379; due to the planned decommissioning of the Nottingham, MD (OTT), VOR/Tactical Air Navigation System (VORTAC).

This action amends Class D airspace, Class E surface airspace, and Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface for Golden Triangle Regional Airport, Columbus, MS, by updating the airport's description header and geographic coordinates, as well as the geographic coordinates of Columbus AFB, Columbus-Lowndes County Airport, Oktibbeha Airport, and McCharen Field. In addition, this action makes the editorial changes replacing the term Notice to Airmen with Notice to Air Missions and replacing the term Airport/Facility Directory with Chart Supplement. This action does not change the airspace boundaries or operating requirements.

In compliance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA), this notice announces that the Information Collection Request (ICR) abstracted below will be submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The ICR describes the nature of the information collection and its expected burden. The information collection described in this document is for NHTSA's Automated Vehicle Transparency and Engagement for Safe Testing (AV TEST) Initiative, which involves the collection of voluntarily-submitted information from entities involved in the testing of vehicles equipped with automated driving systems (ADS) and from States and local authorities involved in the regulation of ADS testing. The purpose of this collection is to provide information to the public about ADS testing operations in the United States and applicable State and local laws, regulations, and guidelines. A Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the information collection was published on April 6, 2023 (83 FR 20608). NHTSA received 3 comment submission and a brief summary and NHTSA's response to those comments is provided in this document.

The Department of Transportation (DOT) invites public comments on our intention to request Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for an information collection in accordance with the requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The collection is necessary for administration of the Multimodal Project Discretionary Grants (MPDG). This includes three funding opportunities: the ``National Infrastructure Project Assistance grants program (Mega),'' the ``Nationally Significant Multimodal Freight and Highways Projects grants program (INFRA)'', and the ``Rural Surface Transportation Grant program (Rural)''. The MPDG provides Federal financial assistance for surface transportation infrastructure projectsincluding highway and bridge, intercity passenger rail, railway-highway grade and separation, wildlife crossing, public transportation, marine highway, and freight and multimodal projects, or groups of such projects, of national or regional significance, as well as to projects to improve and expand the surface transportation infrastructure in rural areas.

This action establishes Class E airspace at Winnie/Stowell, TX. The FAA is taking this action to support new public instrument procedures.

The Federal Aviation Administration announces that a Draft Programmatic Environmental Assessment for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law-funded Airport Traffic Control Tower Replacement Program is available for public review and comment.

This notice contains a summary of a petition seeking relief from specified requirements of Federal Aviation Regulations. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, the FAA's exemption process. Neither publication of this notice nor the inclusion or omission of information in the summary is intended to affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.

On May 17, 2023, the Department of Transportation (DOT) published a request for information (RFI) seeking public input on the development of a national strategy on Advanced Air Mobility as required by the Advanced Air Mobility Coordination and Leadership Act. The comment period for the RFI was scheduled to end on July 17, 2023. DOT received several requests to extend the comment period. DOT is extending the comment period for the RFI by 30 days.

PHMSA proposes amendments to its Hazardous Materials Regulations to require all railroads to generate in electronic form, maintain, and provide to first responders, emergency response officials, and law enforcement personnel, certain information regarding hazardous materials in rail transportation to enhance emergency response and investigative efforts. The proposal responds to a safety recommendation of the National Transportation Safety Board and statutory mandates in The Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act, as amended, and complements existing regulatory requirements pertaining to the generation, maintenance, and provision of similar information in hard copy form, as well as other hazard communication requirements.

The FAA proposes to supersede Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2020-06-10, which applies to certain Airbus SAS Model A318 series airplanes; Model A319-111, -112, -113, -114, -115, -131, -132, and -133 airplanes; Model A320-211, -212, -214, -216, -231, -232, and -233 airplanes; and Model A321-111, -112, -131, -211, -212, -213, -231, and -232 airplanes. AD 2020-06-10 requires repetitive inspections for cracking of the vertical stiffeners of the left- and right-hand sides of the window frames and corrective actions if necessary. Since the FAA issued AD 2020-06-10, it was determined that certain compliance times need to be reduced. This proposed AD would retain the requirements of AD 2020-06-10, with amended compliance times, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) AD, which is proposed for incorporation by reference (IBR). The FAA is proposing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

The FAA is superseding Airworthiness Directive (AD) 2008-23- 01, which applies to certain Airbus SAS Model A318, A319, A320, and A321 series airplanes. AD 2008-23-01 required inspecting to determine the part number and serial number of the fuel tank boost pumps and, for airplanes with affected pumps, revising the operator's airplane flight manual (AFM) and FAA-approved maintenance program. AD 2008-23-01 also required modifying or replacing certain fuel tank boost pumps, which terminated the AFM limitations and the maintenance program revisions. Since the FAA issued AD 2008-23-01, it has been determined that airplanes fitted with a different fuel pump can be subject to cavitation erosion on the wiring conduit. This AD requires inspecting affected fuel pumps for discrepancies and replacement if necessary, as specified in a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). This AD also requires replacing certain other fuel pumps. This AD also limits the installation of affected fuel pumps under certain conditions. The FAA is issuing this AD to address the unsafe condition on these products.

This document provides the public with notice that, on June 2 and 7, 2023, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) submitted a request for amendment (RFA) to its FRA-certified positive train control (PTC) system. FRA is publishing this notice and inviting public comment on the railroad's RFA to its PTC system.

A final rule was published in the Federal Register on June 8, 2023, amending the West Palm Beach, FL Class E airspace legal description by removing ``West Palm Beach'' from the Palm Beach International Airport name in the legal description sub-header as it is excessive and unnecessary. The FAA discovered the word ``[Amended]'' was not listed after the airspace name in the Class E airspace extending upward from 700 feet above the surface legal description for West Palm Beach, FL. This action corrects this error.

This action corrects a final rule published by the FAA in the Federal Register on June 6, 2023, that amended the Nashville International Airport Class C airspace area and the John C. Tune Class D airspace area. In the final rule, the words ``(when active)'' were inadvertently omitted from the sentences that exclude the Smyrna Airport Class D airspace from the Nashville Class C airspace area. The error would cause the incorrect depiction of the Class C and Class D airspace areas on aeronautical charts. This action corrects that error.

This action amends the Class E airspace at Hastings, MI. This action is the result of an airspace review caused by the decommissioning of the Grand Rapids very high frequency omnidirectional range (VOR) as part of the VOR Minimum Operating Network (MON) Program. The name and geographic coordinates of the airport are also being updated to coincide with the FAA's aeronautical database.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FAA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval to renew an information collection. The collection involves aeronautical information detailing the physical description and operational status of all components of the National Airspace System (NAS). The information to be collected will be used to update government, military, and private aeronautical databases, charts, publications, flight management systems, and in- flight tracking products.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FAA invites public comments about our intention to request the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval to renew an information collection. The Federal Register Notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collection of information was published on December 16, 2022. The collection involves submission of Fatigue Risk Management Plans (FRMP) for flight attendants of certificate holders. The certificate holders will submit the information to be collected to the FAA for review and acceptance as required by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018.

This notice announces a meeting of the National Emergency Medical Services Advisory Council (NEMSAC).

The FAA is withdrawing a previously published notice of proposed rulemaking that proposed to amend the regulations governing the operating limitations for certain experimental light-sport aircraft. The rulemaking proposed to remove the date restriction that currently prevents flight training on these aircraft and add language to permit training in certain experimental light-sport aircraft for compensation or hire through existing deviation authority. The FAA is withdrawing this action because the FAA is concurrently publishing a notice of proposed rulemaking to address the framework of flight training in certain aircraft holding special airworthiness certificates, which will include experimental light-sport aircraft.

As directed by the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, the FAA proposes to allow pilots conducting public aircraft operations (PAO) to credit their flight time towards FAA civil regulatory requirements. Additionally, consistent with the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for 2023 (2023 NDAA), the FAA proposes to amend the operating rules for experimental aircraft to permit certain flight training, testing, and checking in these aircraft without a letter of deviation authority (LODA). The FAA proposes to extend the same relief to certain flight training, testing, and checking in limited category, primary category, and experimental light sport aircraft. The FAA also proposes miscellaneous amendments related to recent flight experience, flight instructor privileges, flight training in certain aircraft holding special airworthiness certificates, and the related prohibitions on conducting these activities for compensation or hire. These proposed changes will clarify existing regulatory requirements, align the regulations with current industry practice, and ensure compliance with the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 and the 2023 NDAA.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR) described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. This notice invites comments on a proposed information collection titled Human Factors Considerations in Commercial Motor Vehicle Automated Driving Systems and Advanced Driver Assistance Systems. It is a driving simulator study with a series of questionnaires that will evaluate how commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers engage in CMVs equipped with SAE International Level 2 (L2) advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and Level 3 (L3) automated driving systems (ADS). Approximately 100 CMV drivers will participate in the study. The study will examine the effect of non-driving secondary task engagement, transfer of control, and training on driver behavior in CMVs equipped with ADAS and ADS.

This notice contains a summary of a petition seeking relief from specified requirements of Federal Aviation Regulations. The purpose of this notice is to improve the public's awareness of, and participation in, the FAA's exemption process. Neither publication of this notice nor the inclusion nor omission of information in the summary is intended to affect the legal status of the petition or its final disposition.