SEC. 1101. Short Title.
This division may be cited as the “National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act”.
Division C — National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2018
DIVISION C National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act of 2018
SEC. 1102. Definitions.
In this division, the following definitions apply:
Board.— The term “Board” means the National Transportation Safety Board.
Chairman.— The term “Chairman” means the Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board.
Most wanted list.— The term “Most Wanted List” means the Board publication entitled “Most Wanted List”.
SEC. 1103. Authorization of Appropriations.
Section 1118(a) of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
“(a) In General.—There are authorized to be appropriated for the purposes of this chapter $111,400,000 for fiscal year 2019, $112,400,000 for fiscal year 2020, $113,400,000 for fiscal year 2021, and $114,400,000 for fiscal year 2022. Such sums shall remain available until expended.”
SEC. 1104. Still Images.
Still Images, Voice Recorders, and Video Recorders.—
by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3);
in paragraph (3), as so redesignated, by inserting “ References to information in making safety recommendations.—” before “ This”; and
in paragraph (1)—
in the first sentence, by striking “ The Board” and inserting “ Confidentiality of recordings.—Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Board”; and
by amending the second sentence to read as follows:
“(2) Exception.—Subject to subsections (b) and (g), the Board shall make public any part of a transcript, any written depiction of visual information obtained from a video recorder, or any still image obtained from a video recorder the Board decides is relevant to the accident or incident—
“(A) if the Board holds a public hearing on the accident or incident, at the time of the hearing; or
“(B) if the Board does not hold a public hearing, at the time a majority of the other factual reports on the accident or incident are placed in the public docket.”
Surface vehicle recordings and transcripts.— Section 1114(d) of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
by redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3); and
in paragraph (1)—
in the first sentence, by striking “ The Board” and inserting “ Except as provided in paragraph (2), the Board”; and
by amending the second sentence to read as follows:
“(2) Exception.—Subject to subsections (b) and (g), the Board shall make public any part of a transcript, any written depiction of visual information obtained from a video recorder, or any still image obtained from a video recorder the Board decides is relevant to the accident—
“(A) if the Board holds a public hearing on the accident, at the time of the hearing; or
“(B) if the Board does not hold a public hearing, at the time a majority of the other factual reports on the accident are placed in the public docket.”
Privacy protections.— Section 1114 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(g) Privacy Protections.—Before making public any still image obtained from a video recorder under subsection (c)(2) or subsection (d)(2), the Board shall take such action as appropriate to protect from public disclosure any information that readily identifies an individual, including a decedent.”
Cockpit and Surface Vehicle Recordings and Transcripts.— Section 1154(a) of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in the heading, by striking “ Transcripts and Recordings” and inserting “ In General”;
in paragraph (1)—
by redesignating subparagraphs (A) and (B) as subparagraphs (B) and (C), respectively; and
by inserting before subparagraph (B), as so redesignated, the following:
“(A) any still image that the National Transportation Safety Board has not made available to the public under section 1114(c) or 1114(d) of this title;”
in paragraph (3)—
in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking “ recorder recording” and inserting “ recorder recording, including with regard to a video recording any still image that the National Transportation Safety Board has not made available to the public under section 1114(c) or 1114(d) of this title,”; and
in subparagraph (B), by striking “ recorder recording” and inserting “ recorder recording, including with regard to a video recording any still image that the National Transportation Safety Board has not made available to the public under section 1114(c) or 1114(d) of this title,”;
in paragraph (4)—
in subparagraph (A)—
by inserting “ a still image or” before “ a part of a cockpit”; and
by striking “ the part of the transcript or the recording” each place it appears and inserting “ the still image, the part of the transcript, or the recording”;
in subparagraph (B)—
by inserting “ a still image or” before “ a part of a cockpit”; and
by striking “ the part of the transcript or the recording” each place it appears and inserting “ the still image, the part of the transcript, or the recording”; and
in paragraph (6)—
by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); and
by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following:
“(B) Still image.—The term ‘still image’ means any still image obtained from a video recorder.”
SEC. 1105. Electronic Records.
Section 1134(a)(2) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting “ including an electronic record,” after “ record,”.
SEC. 1106. Report on Most Wanted List Methodology.
In General.— Not later than the date on which the first Most Wanted List to be published after the date of enactment of this Act is published, the Chairman shall publish on a publicly available website of the Board and submit to appropriate committees of Congress a report on the methodology used to prioritize and select recommendations to be included by the Board in the Most Wanted List.
Elements.— The report under subsection (a) shall include—
a detailed description of how the Board accounts for the risk to safety addressed in each of its recommendations, including the extent to which the Board considers—
the types of data and other information, including studies and reports, used to identify the amount and probability of risk to safety;
the reduction of the risk to safety, estimated over a period of time, by implementing each recommendation;
the practicality and feasibility of achieving the reduction of the risk to safety described in subparagraph (B); and
any alternate means of reducing the risk;
a detailed description of the extent to which the Board considers any prior, related investigation, safety recommendation, or other safety action when prioritizing and selecting recommendations; and
a description of the extent of coordination and consultation when prioritizing and selecting the recommendations.
GAO Report.— Not later than 15 months after the date that the methodology report is published under subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report examining the methodology used by the Board to prioritize and select safety recommendations for inclusion in the Most Wanted List.
SEC. 1107. Methodology.
Redesignation.— Section 1116 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
“(c) Annual Report.—The National Transportation Safety Board shall submit a report to Congress on July 1 of each year. The report shall include—
“(1) a statistical and analytical summary of the transportation accident investigations conducted and reviewed by the Board during the prior calendar year;
“(2) a survey and summary of the recommendations made by the Board to reduce the likelihood of recurrence of those accidents together with the observed response to each recommendation;
“(3) a detailed appraisal of the accident investigation and accident prevention activities of other departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the United States Government and State and local governmental authorities having responsibility for those activities under a law of the United States or a State;
“(4) a description of the activities and operations of the National Transportation Safety Board Training Center during the prior calendar year;
“(5) a list of accidents, during the prior calendar year, that the Board was required to investigate under section 1131 but did not investigate and an explanation of why they were not investigated; and
“(6) a list of ongoing investigations that have exceeded the expected time allotted for completion by Board order and an explanation for the additional time required to complete each such investigation.”
Methodology.—
In general.— Section 1117 of title 49, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
Ҥ 1117. Methodology
“(a) In General.—Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of the National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act, the Chairman shall include with each investigative report in which a recommendation is issued by the Board a methodology section detailing the process and information underlying the selection of each recommendation.
“(b) Elements.—Except as provided in subsection (c), the methodology section under subsection (a) shall include, for each recommendation—
“(1) a brief summary of the Board’s collection and analysis of the specific accident investigation information most relevant to the recommendation;
“(2) a description of the Board’s use of external information, including studies, reports, and experts, other than the findings of a specific accident investigation, if any were used to inform or support the recommendation, including a brief summary of the specific safety benefits and other effects identified by each study, report, or expert; and
“(3) a brief summary of any examples of actions taken by regulated entities before the publication of the safety recommendation, to the extent such actions are known to the Board, that were consistent with the recommendation.
“(c) Acceptable Limitation.—If the Board knows of more than 3 examples taken by regulated entities before the publication of the safety recommendation that were consistent with the recommendation, the brief summary under subsection (b)(3) may be limited to only 3 of those examples.
“(d) Exception.—Subsection (a) shall not apply if the recommendation is only for a person to disseminate information on—
“(1) an existing agency best practices document; or
“(2) an existing regulatory requirement.
“(e) Rule of Construction.—Nothing in this section may be construed to require any change to a recommendation made by the Board before the date of enactment of the National Transportation Safety Board Reauthorization Act, unless the recommendation is a repeat recommendation issued on or after the date of enactment of such Act.
“(f) Savings Clause.—Nothing in this section may be construed—
“(1) to delay publication of the findings, cause, or probable cause of a Board investigation;
“(2) to delay the issuance of an urgent recommendation that the Board has determined must be issued to avoid immediate loss, death, or injury; or
“(3) to limit the number of examples the Board may consider before issuing a recommendation.”
Clerical amendment.— The analysis for chapter 11 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1116 the following:
“117. Methodology.”.
SEC. 1108. Multimodal Accident Database Management System.
Establishment.— Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the Board shall establish and maintain a multimodal accident database management system for Board investigators.
Purposes.— The purposes of the system shall be to support the Board in improving—
the quality of accident data the Board makes available to the public; and
the selection of accidents for investigation and allocation of limited resources.
Requirements.— The system shall—
maintain a historical record of accidents that are investigated by the Board; and
be capable of the secure storage, retrieval, and management of information associated with the investigations of such accidents.
SEC. 1109. Addressing the Needs of Families of Individuals Involved in Accidents.
Air Carriers Holding Certificates of Public Convenience and Necessity.— Section 41113 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (a), by striking “ a major” and inserting “ any”; and
in subsection (b)—
in paragraph (9), by striking “ (and any other victim of the accident)” and inserting “ (and any other victim of the accident, including any victim on the ground)”;
in paragraph (16), by striking “ major” and inserting “ any”; and
in paragraph (17)(A), by striking “ significant” and inserting “ any”.
Foreign Air Carriers Providing Foreign Air Transportation.— Section 41313 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (b), by striking “ a major” and inserting “ any”; and
in subsection (c)—
in paragraph (1), by striking “ a significant” and inserting “ any”;
in paragraph (2), by striking “ a significant” and inserting “ any”;
by amending paragraph (9) to read as follows:
“(9) Equal treatment of passengers.—An assurance that the treatment of the families of nonrevenue passengers (and any other victim of the accident, including any victim on the ground) will be the same as the treatment of the families of revenue passengers.”
in paragraph (16)—
by striking “ major” and inserting “ any”; and
by striking “ the foreign air carrier will consult” and inserting “ will consult”; and
in paragraph (17)(A), by striking “ significant” and inserting “ any”.
Assistance to Families of Passengers Involved in Aircraft Accidents.— Section 1136 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (a), by striking “ aircraft accident within the United States involving an air carrier or foreign air carrier and resulting in a major loss of life” and inserting “ aircraft accident involving an air carrier or foreign air carrier, resulting in any loss of life, and for which the National Transportation Safety Board will serve as the lead investigative agency”; and
in subsection (h)—
by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
“(1) Aircraft accident.—The term ‘aircraft accident’ means any aviation disaster, regardless of its cause or suspected cause, for which the National Transportation Safety Board is the lead investigative agency.”
; and
in paragraph (2)—
in subparagraph (A), by striking “ ; and” and inserting a semicolon;
in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end and inserting “ ; and”; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(C) any other person injured or killed in the aircraft accident, as determined appropriate by the Board.”
Assistance to Families of Passengers Involved in Rail Passenger Accidents.— Section 1139 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (a), by striking “ resulting in a major loss of life” and inserting “ resulting in any loss of life, and for which the National Transportation Safety Board will serve as the lead investigative agency”; and
by amending subsection (h)(1) to read as follows:
“(1) Rail passenger accident.—The term ‘rail passenger accident’ means any rail passenger disaster that—
“(A) results in any loss of life;
“(B) the National Transportation Safety Board will serve as the lead investigative agency for; and
“(C) occurs in the provision of—
“(i) interstate intercity rail passenger transportation (as such term is defined in section 24102); or
“(ii) high-speed rail (as such term is defined in section 26105) transportation, regardless of its cause or suspected cause.”
Information for Families of Individuals Involved in Accidents.—
In general.— Subchapter III of chapter 11 of subtitle II of title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
Ҥ 1140. Information for families of individuals involved in accidents
“In the course of an investigation of an accident described in section 1131(a)(1), except an aircraft accident described in section 1136 or a rail passenger accident described in section 1139, the Board may, to the maximum extent practicable, ensure that the families of individuals involved in the accident, and other individuals the Board deems appropriate—
“(1) are informed as to the roles, with respect to the accident and the post-accident activities, of the Board;
“(2) are briefed, before any public briefing, about the accident, its causes, and any other findings from the investigation; and
“(3) are individually informed of and allowed to attend any public hearings and meetings of the Board about the accident.”
Table of contents.— The table of contents of chapter 11 of subtitle II of title 49, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1139 the following:
“1140. Information for families of individuals involved in accidents.”.
SEC. 1110. Government Accountability Office Report on Investigation Launch Decision-Making Processes.
Section 1138 of title 49, United States Code, is amended—
in subsection (b)—
by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as paragraphs (6) and (7), respectively; and
by inserting after paragraph (4) the following:
“(5) the process and procedures to select an accident to investigate;”
; and
in subsection (c), by inserting a comma after “ Science”.
SEC. 1111. Periodic Review of Safety Recommendations.
in the heading, by striking “ and studies” and inserting “ , studies, and retrospective reviews”; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(d) Retrospective Reviews.—
“(1) In general.—Subject to paragraph (2), not later than June 1, 2019, and at least every 5 years thereafter, the Chairman shall complete a retrospective review of recommendations issued by the Board that are classified as open by the Board.
“(2) Contents.—A review under paragraph (1) shall include—
“(A) a determination of whether the recommendation should be updated, closed, or reissued in light of—
“(i) changed circumstances;
“(ii) more recently issued recommendations;
“(iii) the availability of new technologies; or
“(iv) new information making the recommendation ineffective or insufficient for achieving its objective; and
“(B) a justification for each determination under subparagraph (A).
“(3) Report.—Not later than 180 days after the date a review under paragraph (1) is complete, the Chairman shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives a report that includes—
“(A) the findings of the review under paragraph (1);
“(B) each determination under paragraph (2)(A) and justification under paragraph (2)(B); and
“(C) if applicable, a schedule for updating, closing, or reissuing a recommendation.”
Clerical Amendment.— The analysis for chapter 11 of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking the item relating to section 1116 and inserting the following:
“1116. Reports, studies, and retrospective reviews.”.
Savings Clause.— Nothing in this section or the amendments made by this section may be construed to limit or otherwise affect the authority of the Board to update, close, or reissue a recommendation.
SEC. 1112. General Organization.
Terms of the Chairman and Vice Chairman.— Section 1111(d) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking “ 2 years” and inserting “ 3 years”.
Nonpublic Collaborative Discussions.— Section 1111 of such title is further amended by adding at the end the following:
“(k) Open Meetings.—
“(1) In general.—The Board shall be deemed to be an agency for purposes of section 552b of title 5.
“(2) Nonpublic collaborative discussions.—
“(A) In general.—Notwithstanding section 552b of title 5, a majority of the members may hold a meeting that is not open to public observation to discuss official agency business if—
“(i) no formal or informal vote or other official agency action is taken at the meeting;
“(ii) each individual present at the meeting is a member or an employee of the Board;
“(iii) at least 1 member of the Board from each political party is present at the meeting, if applicable; and
“(iv) the General Counsel of the Board is present at the meeting.
“(B) Disclosure of nonpublic collaborative discussions.—Except as provided under subparagraphs (C) and (D), not later than 2 business days after the conclusion of a meeting under subparagraph (A), the Board shall make available to the public, in a place easily accessible to the public—
“(i) a list of the individuals present at the meeting; and
“(ii) a summary of the matters, including key issues, discussed at the meeting, except for any matter the Board properly determines may be withheld from the public under section 552b(c) of title 5.
“(C) Summary.—If the Board properly determines a matter may be withheld from the public under section 552b(c) of title 5, the Board shall provide a summary with as much general information as possible on each matter withheld from the public.
“(D) Active investigations.—If a discussion under subparagraph (A) directly relates to an active investigation, the Board shall make the disclosure under subparagraph (B) on the date the Board adopts the final report.
“(E) Preservation of open meetings requirements for agency action.—Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to limit the applicability of section 552b of title 5 with respect to a meeting of the members other than that described in this paragraph.
“(F) Statutory construction.—Nothing in this paragraph may be construed—
“(i) to limit the applicability of section 552b of title 5 with respect to any information which is proposed to be withheld from the public under subparagraph (B)(ii); or
“(ii) to authorize the Board to withhold from any individual any record that is accessible to that individual under section 552a of title 5.”
Authority To Acquire Small Unmanned Aircraft Systems for Investigation Purposes.— Section 1113(b)(1) of such title is amended—
in subparagraph (H), by striking “ and” at the end;
in subparagraph (I), by striking the period at the end and inserting “ ; and”; and
by adding at the end the following:
“(J) notwithstanding section 1343 of title 31, acquire 1 or more small unmanned aircraft (as defined in section 44801) for use in investigations under this chapter.”
Investigative Officers.— Section 1113 of such title is amended by striking subsection (h).
Technical Amendment.— Section 1113(a)(1) of such title is amended by striking “ subpena” and inserting “ subpoena”.
SEC. 1113. Technical and Conforming Amendments.
Table of Contents.— The table of contents of subchapter III of chapter 11 of subtitle II of title 49, United States Code, is amended in the item relating to section 1138 by striking “ Board” and inserting “ Board.”.
General Authority.— Section 1131(a)(1)(A) of title 49, United States Code, is amended by striking “ a public aircraft as defined by section 40102(a)(37) of this title” and inserting “ a public aircraft as defined by section 40102(a) of this title”.