[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1187 Introduced in House (IH)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1187
To modify the requirements for the registration of certain aircraft,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 24, 2023
Mr. Lynch introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To modify the requirements for the registration of certain aircraft,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Civil Aviation Security and Safety
Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW OF REGISTRATION APPLICATIONS.
(a) In General.--The Administrator, in consultation with the Drug
Enforcement Administration of the Department of Justice, Homeland
Security Investigations of the Department of Homeland Security, the
Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of Treasury, the
National Transportation Safety Board, and the Office of the Inspector
General of the Department of Transportation, shall conduct a
comprehensive review of the process under which the Administration
reviews and approves aircraft registration applications and dealer
certifications under chapter 441 of title 49, United States Code.
(b) Contents of Review.--The review under subsection (a) shall
include the identification of criminal, national security, or safety
risks arising from the Civil Aviation Registry process under chapter
441 of title 49, United States Code.
(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall submit to the Committee
on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee on Financial
Services of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs of the Senate a report describing the results of the
review under subsection (a).
(d) Regulations Required.--Not later than 180 days after the
submission of the report under subsection (c), the Administrator shall
issue such regulations as are necessary to require the collection and
recording of any personal identifiable information identified under the
comprehensive review under subsection (a) determined to be reasonably
necessary for the mitigation of criminal, national security, or safety
risks under chapter 441 of title 49, United States Code.
SEC. 3. REGISTRATION OF AIRCRAFT.
Section 44102 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(c) Application Requirements.--
``(1) In general.--Each owner of an aircraft submitting an
application under this section shall include the name, address,
date of birth, driver's license or pilot's license (or both if
applicable), and applicant photos in the submission of such
application.
``(2) Submission by entity.--Each entity that is not
publicly traded submitting an application under this section
shall include--
``(A) the name, date of birth, physical address,
and driver's license or pilot's license (or both if
applicable), and applicant photos for each individual
that owns more than 25 percent of the aircraft in the
submission of such application; and
``(B) the name, physical address, State of
residence, and taxpayer identification number for each
entity that owns more than 25 percent of the aircraft
in the submission of such application.
``(d) Review of Information.--Beginning on the date of enactment of
the Civil Aviation Security and Safety Act of 2023, the Administrator
shall review Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctions data on
individuals and entities described in subsection (c) with potentially
significant responsibilities for aircraft ownership for coordination
with the Office of Foreign Assets Control in order to identify Office
of Foreign Assets Control-sanctioned applicants to the Office of
Foreign Assets Control before issuing a registration or dealer
certificate under this chapter.
``(e) Restriction of Certain Entities.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of this chapter, the Administrator may not issue a
registration or dealer certificate under this chapter to any individual
or entity listed on the sanctions list of the Office of Foreign Assets
Control.''.
SEC. 4. REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS.
Section 44103 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding
at the end the following:
``(e) Verification of Eligibility.--Beginning on the date of
enactment of the Civil Aviation Security and Safety Act of 2023, the
Administrator shall ensure that all eligibility and registration
information provided in an application for an aircraft under this
chapter is true and correct and any deficiency described in subsection
(f) is addressed before issuing a registration or dealer certificate
under this chapter.
``(f) Authority To Make Modifications.--The Administrator shall
make modifications in the application process under this chapter
necessary to make the process more effective in serving the needs of--
``(1) buyers and sellers of aircraft;
``(2) officials responsible for enforcing laws related to
the regulation of controlled substances (as defined in section
102 of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act
of 1970 (21 U.S.C. 802)); and
``(3) other users of the process.
``(g) Nature of Modifications.--Modifications made under subsection
(e) of this section--
``(1) may include a system of titling aircraft or
registering all aircraft, even aircraft not operated;
``(2) shall ensure positive, verifiable, and timely
identification of the true owner; and
``(3) shall address at least each of the following
deficiencies in and abuses of the existing system:
``(A) The registration of aircraft to fictitious
persons.
``(B) The use of false or nonexistent addresses by
persons registering aircraft.
``(C) The use by a person registering an aircraft
of a post office box or `mail drop' as a return address
to evade identification of the person's address.
``(D) The registration of aircraft to entities
established to facilitate unlawful activities.
``(E) The submission of names of individuals on
applications for registration of aircraft that are not
identifiable.
``(F) The ability to make frequent legal changes in
the registration markings assigned to aircraft.
``(G) The use of false registration markings on
aircraft.
``(H) The illegal use of `reserved' registration
markings on aircraft.
``(I) The large number of aircraft classified as
being in `self-reported status'.
``(J) The lack of a system to ensure timely and
adequate notice of the transfer of ownership of
aircraft.
``(K) The practice of allowing temporary operation
and navigation of aircraft without the issuance of a
certificate of registration.''.
SEC. 5. REGISTRATION FEES.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Administrator shall issue such regulations as are necessary to
increase the fees for registration of an aircraft under section 44103
of title 49, United States Code, to a level sufficient to cover the
costs of efforts of the Administration to collect and verify applicant
data and to cover the costs of inflation (to reflect the change in the
Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers).
SEC. 6. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY MODERNIZATION.
In carrying out this Act, the Administrator shall ensure that, as
the Administration undertakes information technology modernization
efforts, the information collected in ancillary files or in PDF format
on owners and related individuals and entities with potentially
significant responsibilities for aircraft ownership (including
beneficial owners (as such term is defined in section 5901 of title 49,
United States Code), trustors, trustees, beneficiaries, stockholders,
directors, and managers) and declaration of international operations
are recorded in an electronic format that facilitates data analytics by
the Administration and relevant Federal national security, law
enforcement, and public safety agencies. The Administrator shall ensure
that such information is linked through a common identifier. The
Administrator shall ensure that modernization efforts include the
development and implementation of a process by which the Administration
may easily review relevant Office of Foreign Asset Control sanctions
data on registration and dealer certificate applicants under section
44103 of title 49, United States Code, and flag sanctioned applicants
for such Office.
SEC. 7. INTERNATIONAL OPERATIONS.
The Administrator shall provide to the Drug Enforcement
Administration and Homeland Security Investigations declarations of
international operations of the Federal Aviation Administration to
maximize the ability of Federal national security and law enforcement
agencies to assist the Administration in preventing use of the Civil
Aviation Registry for illicit purposes and detect trade-based money
laundering and other cross-border schemes.
SEC. 8. SUSPENSION AND REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATES.
Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Administrator shall issue such regulations as are necessary to
implement an enforcement mechanism for suspending and revoking dealer
certificates under chapter 441 of title 49, United States Code.
SEC. 9. AIRCRAFT REGISTRY TASK FORCE.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 30 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Administrator shall establish an Aircraft
Registry Task Force (in this section referred to as the ``Task Force'')
to examine national security, law enforcement, and public safety issues
related to civil aircraft registration and developing solutions to
mitigate security and safety risks and increase inter-agency
cooperation.
(b) Membership.--The Task Force shall include--
(1) the Administrator of the Administration; and
(2) representatives of--
(A) the Drug Enforcement Administration;
(B) Homeland Security Investigations;
(C) the Office of Foreign Asset Control; and
(D) any other Federal national security, law
enforcement, or public safety entity determined
necessary by the Administrator to facilitate the task
force's mission.
(c) Termination.--The Task Force under this section shall not
terminate.
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