[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 12 (Tuesday, January 20, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2772-2773]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00749]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee--New Task
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of a continuation of task assignment for the Aviation
Rulemaking Advisory Committee (ARAC).
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SUMMARY: The FAA assigned the Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee
(ARAC) a continuation of task to a previously established working
group. This continuation of task requests the working group to provide
cost and benefit data for the proposed implementation of the ARAC
recommendations submitted in 2012 regarding the FAA's approach to
update, reorganize and improve the level of safety requirements for the
flammability of materials for transport category airplanes. This notice
informs the public of a continuation to a previous ARAC activity,
reinstates the Materials Flammability Working Group, and does not
solicit membership.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Jeff Gardlin, Airframe/Cabin Safety
Branch, ANM-115, Transport Airplane Directorate, Federal Aviation
Administration, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., Renton, Washington 98057,
telephone (425) 227-2136, facsimile (425) 227-1149; email
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
ARAC Acceptance of Task
As a result of the December 18, 2014, ARAC meeting, the FAA
assigned and ARAC accepted and designated this task to the Transport
Airplane and Engine (TAE) Subcommittee, reinstating the Materials
Flammability Working Group. The Materials Flammability Working Group
will serve as staff to the ARAC, through the TAE Subcommittee, and will
provide advice and recommendations on the assigned task. The TAE
Subcommittee will review and approve the recommendation report and will
send the approved recommendation report to the ARAC for acceptance.
After ARAC accepts the recommendation report, it will submit the
recommendation report to the FAA.
Background
The FAA established the ARAC to provide information, advice, and
recommendations on aviation related issues that could result in
rulemaking to the FAA Administrator, through the Associate
Administrator of Aviation Safety.
On August 27, 2010 [75 FR 52807], the FAA tasked ARAC to consider
the merits and make recommendations for improvement of an approach
drafted by the FAA that would simplify compliance demonstrations, and
upgrade the level of safety for flammability throughout the airplane.
The objective of the proposed approach was to completely revisit the
flammability requirements and take advantage of the wealth of data
available from FAA research and advances in material fire safety to
provide a simpler regulation that provides a higher level of safety for
transport category airplanes.
The flammability requirements for interior materials on transport
category airplanes have evolved significantly over the years to become
more threat-based. By ``threat-based,'' the FAA means the flammability
requirements use a more realistic test method based on the type of fire
hazard most critical for the components in question. Historically,
these requirements have been based on an analysis of the type of
threat, the usage of the potentially flammable material (e.g.,
sidewall), and the material type (e.g., elastomeric materials). This
approach has led to problems, including multiple requirements applying
to the same component; conflicting requirements for the same component
depending on what material it is made from; and ambiguous requirements
for components not explicitly listed in Sec. 25.853 or Appendix F part
I of part 25. These ambiguous requirements for components not
explicitly listed have resulted in the requirements of Sec. 25.853 or
Appendix F, part I of part 25 becoming obsolete whenever materials
change, or incomplete when components have been developed after the
regulation and Appendix F of part 25 were issued.
The Materials Flammability Working Group completed the task, and
the ARAC submitted the recommendations to the FAA in August 2012. The
Materials Flammability Working Group believed the proposed threat-based
organization for the flammability regulations was logical, practical
and a more effective framework for regulation going forward than the
current published regulations. The Materials Flammability Working Group
believed the resulting regulation draft, along with appropriate
advisory material, would ultimately be simpler and more easily
understood and enforced. In order to proceed with rulemaking to
implement the recommendations, the FAA is tasking the ARAC to provide
cost and benefit data associated with implementation.
The Task
The Materials Flammability Working Group will provide advice and
recommendations to the ARAC, through the TAE Subcommittee, on the costs
and benefits of implementing the recommendations previously submitted
by the Materials Flammability Working Group in August 2012. The
recommendation report can be found at: http://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/rulemaking/committees/arac/.
The Materials Flammability Working Group is tasked to:
1. Review the Materials Flammability Working Group Recommendation
Report dated July 9, 2012 and submitted in August 2012, along with
subsequent research results to be provided to the Materials
Flammability Working Group by the FAA.
2. Provide quantitative cost data for each recommendation, if
applicable, along with assumptions and rationale for the cost data. The
FAA will provide key assumptions to assist with cost estimation.
3. Provide quantitative economic benefit data for each
recommendation, if applicable.
4. Provide service data regarding incidents (precursors) or
accidents related to materials flammability that would be mitigated in
the future by implementation of each recommendation.
5. Develop a report containing recommendations on the findings and
results of the tasks explain above.
a. The recommendation report should document both majority and
dissenting positions on the findings and the rationale for each
position.
b. Any disagreements should be documented, including the rationale
for position and the reasons for the disagreements.
[[Page 2773]]
6. The Materials Flammability Working Group may be reinstated to
assist the ARAC, through the TAE Subcommittee, by responding to the
FAA's questions or concerns after the recommendation report has been
submitted.
Schedule
The recommendation report should be submitted to the FAA for review
and acceptance no later than 8 months from publication of the tasking
statement in the Federal Register.
Working Group Activity
The Materials Flammability Working Group must comply with the
procedures adopted by the ARAC and are as follows:
1. Conduct a review and analysis of the assigned tasks and any
other related materials or documents.
2. Draft and submit the recommendation report based on the review
and analysis of the assigned tasks.
3. Present the recommendation report at the TAE Subcommittee
meeting.
Participation in the Working Group
The reinstated Materials Flammability Working Group is comprised of
technical experts having an interest in the assigned task. A working
group member need not be a member representative of the ARAC or the TAE
Subcommittee. The FAA is not soliciting membership for the reinstated
Materials Flammability Working Group. The provisions of the August 13,
2014, Office of Management and Budget guidance, ``Revised Guidance on
Appointment of Lobbyists to Federal Advisory Committees, Boards, and
Commissions'' (79 FR 47482), continues the ban on registered lobbyists
participating on Agency Boards and Commissions if participating in
their ``individual capacity.'' The revised guidance now allows
registered lobbyists to participate on Agency Boards and Commissions in
a ``representative capacity'' for the ``express purpose of providing a
committee with the views of a nongovernmental entity, a recognizable
group of persons or nongovernmental entities (an industry, sector,
labor unions, or environmental groups, etc.) or state or local
government.'' (For further information see Lobbying Disclosure Act of
1995 (LDA) as amended, 2 U.S.C 1603, 1604, and 1605.)
The members of the Materials Flammability Working Group must
actively participate by attending all meetings, and providing written
comments when requested. The members must devote the resources
necessary to support the Materials Flammability Working Group in
meeting any assigned deadlines. The members must keep management and
those represented advised of the Materials Flammability Working Group
activities and decisions to ensure the proposed technical solutions
does not conflict with the position of the member's represent.
The Secretary of Transportation determined the formation and use of
the ARAC is necessary and in the public interest in connection with the
performance of duties imposed on the FAA by law.
ARAC meetings are open to the public. However, meetings of the
Materials Flammability Working Group are not open to the public. The
FAA will make no public announcement of working group meetings.
Issued in Washington, DC, on January 14, 2015.
Lirio Liu,
Designated Federal Officer, Aviation Rulemaking Advisory Committee.
[FR Doc. 2015-00749 Filed 1-16-15; 8:45 am]
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