FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024
What changed between versions
The bill was renamed from 'Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act' to 'FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024,' signaling adoption of the Senate version as the final enrolled text.
The Freedom to Fly Act (former Title X) contained nine explicit sections prohibiting vaccine mandates and mask mandates for FAA employees, contractors, and passengers. In the enrolled bill these were reduced to two general provisions in Miscellaneous (Sec. 1106 'Prohibition on mandates' and Sec. 1107 'COVID-19 vaccination status'), substantially narrowing the scope of the mandate prohibitions.
FAA Organizational Reform was elevated from a subtitle (Subtitle B of Title I with 22 sections) to a full Title II ('FAA Oversight and Organizational Reform') with approximately 31 sections, absorbing many provisions that were previously in the Miscellaneous title (telework, office space review, industry standards participation, commercial preference, franchise fund, etc.).
Several House provisions were dropped entirely, including: FAA management board (Sec. 122), Office of Innovation (Sec. 126), Frank A. LoBiondo National Aerospace Safety and Security Campus (Sec. 127), Technical Center for Advanced Aerospace (Sec. 128), FAA Ombudsman (Sec. 130), Aviation noise officer (Sec. 135), prohibition on N-Number profiteering (Sec. 206), ADS-B safety enhancement incentive program (Sec. 221), exemption of fees for air traffic services (Sec. 255), Samya Rose Stumo fellowship extension (Sec. 324), age standards for pilots (Sec. 330), prohibition on operation over Russian airspace (Sec. 856), prohibition on foreign-made UAS procurement (Sec. 871), and study on hardening satellites (Sec. 873).
New UAS provisions in enrolled bill include: FAA comprehensive plan on UAS automation (Sec. 924), third-party service approvals (Sec. 932), special authority for hazardous materials transport by commercial package delivery UAS (Sec. 933), covered drone prohibition (Sec. 936), and expanding use of innovative technologies in the Gulf of Mexico (Sec. 937).
New Advanced Air Mobility provisions include: Sense of Congress on FAA leadership in AAM (Sec. 952), NEPA categorical exclusions for vertiport projects (Sec. 953), advanced propulsion systems regulations (Sec. 956), and Center for Advanced Aviation Technologies (Sec. 961).
New airport infrastructure provisions include: PFAS-related resources for airports (Sec. 767), progress reports on fluorine-free firefighting foam (Sec. 762), universal changing station (Sec. 774), airport human trafficking prevention grants (Sec. 774A), and Washington DC Metropolitan Area Special Flight Rules Area (Sec. 760).
General Aviation was moved from Title II (second in the House bill) to Title VIII (eighth in the enrolled bill), reflecting a reordering that may indicate reduced legislative priority for GA provisions relative to safety, workforce, and passenger experience topics.
The House bill's Title VI 'Aerospace Innovation' was reorganized into Title IX 'New Entrants and Aerospace Innovation,' with the UAS subtitle expanded from 35 to 37 sections and new AAM provisions added, while several space-related provisions (national spaceports policy report, intermodal transportation pilot program, high-speed aircraft airspace access, ICAO activities) were removed or relocated.
A new Section 2 was added providing definitions for Administrator, appropriate committees of Congress, Comptroller General, FAA, NextGen, and Secretary.
New position created: Assistant Administrator for Rulemaking and Regulatory Improvement (Sec. 202), a new senior FAA role not present in the House version.
New Office of Aviation Consumer Protection established (Sec. 501), along with new consumer protection measures including: refunds provision (Sec. 503), Know Your Rights posters (Sec. 504), airline customer service dashboards (Sec. 506), and increased civil penalties (Sec. 507).
New cybersecurity provisions added: 'Securing aircraft avionics systems' (Sec. 394) and 'GAO report on cybersecurity of commercial aviation avionics' (Sec. 396), expanding beyond the House's four-section cybersecurity subtitle.
New whistleblower enforcement provision: 'Civil penalties for whistleblower protection program violations' (Sec. 371), adding a penalty mechanism not present in the House version which only had 'Whistleblower protection enforcement' (former Sec. 825).
New passenger accessibility provision: 'On-board wheelchairs in aircraft cabin' (Sec. 551), requiring or studying the provision of on-board wheelchairs, a topic not addressed in the House version.
New airport discretionary program: 'Airport safety and resilient infrastructure discretionary program' (Sec. 714) replaced the House's 'Transfer of AIP supplemental funds to formula program' (former Sec. 413), shifting from a transfer mechanism to a dedicated discretionary category.
New R&D subtitle specifically for UAS and Advanced Air Mobility (Secs. 1041-1045) with interagency working group, strategic research plan, and partnership provisions, not present in the House version.
Cockpit voice recorder requirement changed from general 'Cockpit voice recorders' (House Sec. 525) to specifically '25-hour cockpit voice recorder' (Enrolled Sec. 366), specifying a recording duration.
New provision: 'Prohibition on provision of airport improvement grant funds to certain entities that have violated intellectual property rights of United States entities' (Sec. 711), creating a new funding restriction not in the House bill.