
[Federal Register: June 21, 2010 (Volume 75, Number 118)]
[Rules and Regulations]               
[Page 34925-34927]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr21jn10-4]                         

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Office of the Secretary

14 CFR Part 234

[Docket No. DOT-OST-2007-0022]
RIN No. 2105-AE02

 
Posting of Flight Delay Data on Web Sites

AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), Department of Transportation 
(DOT).

ACTION: Direct Final Rule, request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This direct final rule amends the time period for uploading 
flight

[[Page 34926]]

performance information to an air carrier's Web site from anytime 
between the 20th and 23rd day of the month to the fourth Saturday of 
the month. The intended effect of this rule is to provide regulatory 
relief to industry by allowing carriers to follow standard industry 
practice of updating flight information such as schedule changes on 
Saturday. This action is necessary to address difficulties concerning 
implementation and compliance with the requirement to post flight delay 
data on carriers' Web sites. Moreover, this change would further the 
Department's goal of having all carriers upload flight information at 
the same time, thus ensuring passengers are comparing flight 
performance data from the same time period. The amendment contained in 
this rule is a minor substantive change, in the public interest, and 
unlikely to result in adverse comment.

DATES: This final rule is effective July 21, 2010, unless an adverse 
comment or notice to file an adverse comment is received by July 6, 
2010. OST will publish in the Federal Register a timely document 
confirming the effective date of this final rule.

ADDRESSES: You may file comments identified by the docket number DOT-
OST-2007-0022 by any of the following methods:
    [cir] Federal eRulemaking Portal: go to http://www.regulations.gov 
and follow the online instructions for submitting comments.
    [cir] Mail: Docket Management Facility, U.S. Department of 
Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., Room W12-140, Washington, DC 
20590-0001.
    [cir] Hand Delivery or Courier: West Building Ground Floor, Room 
W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, 
Monday through Friday, except Federal Holidays.
    [cir] Fax: (202) 493-2251.
    Instructions: You must include the agency name and docket number 
DOT-OST-2007-0022 or the Regulatory Identification Number (RIN) for the 
rulemaking at the beginning of your comment. All comments received will 
be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any 
personal information provided.
    Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search the electronic form of all 
comments received in any of our dockets by the name of the individual 
submitting the comment (or signing the comment if submitted on behalf 
of an association, a business, a labor union, etc.). You may review 
DOT's complete Privacy Act statement in the Federal Register published 
on April 11, 2000 (65 FR 19477-78), or you may visit http://
DocketsInfo.dot.gov.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov or to the street 
address listed above. Follow the online instructions for accessing the 
docket.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Blane A. Workie, Deputy Assistant 
General Counsel, Office of the Assistant General Counsel for Aviation 
Enforcement and Proceedings, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 
New Jersey Ave., SE., Washington, DC 20590, 202-366-9342 (phone), 202-
366-7152 (fax), blane.workie@dot.gov (e-mail).

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Department of Transportation requires that certificated air 
carriers that account for at least 1 percent of domestic scheduled 
passenger revenues (reporting carriers) provide certain flight delay 
data on their Web sites. Under that provision, a reporting carrier must 
display on its Web site between the 20th and 23rd day of the month the 
prior month's flight delay information for each flight it operates and 
for each flight its U.S. code-share partners operate for which schedule 
information is available. More specifically, the provision requires 
that reporting carriers provide on their Web sites the following on-
time performance information: (1) The percentage of arrivals that were 
on time--i.e., within 15 minutes of scheduled arrival time; (2) the 
percentage of arrivals that were more than 30 minutes late (including 
special highlighting if the flight was more than 30 minutes late more 
than 50 percent of the time); and (3) the percentage of flight 
cancellations if 5 percent or more of the flight's operations were 
canceled in the month covered. The first time carriers must load the 
flight delay information onto their Web sites is between July 20 and 
23, 2010, for June data.
    On May 7, 2010, the Air Transport Association of America (ATA), the 
Regional Airline Association (RAA) and the Air Carrier Association of 
America (ACAA) submitted a joint petition to the Department requesting 
a change of the date to upload flight data from the 20th to the 23rd of 
the month, which sometimes does not fall on a Saturday, to a set 
Saturday, as this would allow carriers to follow standard industry 
practice of updating flight information such as schedule changes on 
Saturdays. In addition, the carrier associations requested that the 
specific date for uploading flight performance information on Web sites 
be the fourth Saturday of the month to avoid a conflict with the 
requirement to file other flight performance information with the 
Department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) on the 15th day 
of the month, which at times falls on the third Saturday of the month. 
The carrier associations explain that carriers use the same technical 
personnel and resources for both activities and having the carriers 
file required BTS data and upload flight performance information to a 
carrier's Web site on the same day would increase their cost burdens. 
ATA, RAA, and ACAA are also concerned that if DOT were to require that 
Web sites be updated on the third Saturday of the month there would be 
certain months where the reporting carriers would be required to upload 
information on their Web sites before submitting the flight data to 
BTS. ATA, RAA, and ACAA represent all but one of the carriers covered 
by the requirement to post flight delay data. The only reporting 
carrier that is not represented by these associations is Mesa, and the 
carrier associations have indicated in their petition that Mesa 
supports their request.
    In addition, this change in the rule would be beneficial to 
consumers as it would require carriers to load data for the previous 
month on a particular day instead of allowing carriers to load 
information on their Web site over several days, thereby ensuring 
passengers are better able to compare flight performance data. It is 
also worth noting that when we requested comment in the NPRM on the 
proposal that carriers load data for the previous month between the 
20th and 23rd day of the current month, we received no comments. See 73 
FR 74586 (December 8, 2008).

The Direct Final Rule Procedure

    On January 30, 2004, OST published a final rule adopting direct 
final rulemaking procedures intended to expedite the rulemaking process 
for noncontroversial rules (69 FR 4455). By using direct final 
rulemaking, OST can reduce the time necessary to develop, review, clear 
and publish a rule to which no adverse public comment is anticipated by 
eliminating the need to publish separate proposed and final rules.
    OST anticipates that this amendment will not result in adverse or 
negative comment and, therefore, is issuing it as a direct final rule. 
Unless a written adverse or negative comment, or a written notice of 
intent to submit an adverse or negative comment is received within the 
comment period, the

[[Page 34927]]

regulation will become effective on the date specified above. In that 
event, after the close of the comment period OST will publish a 
document in the Federal Register indicating that no adverse or negative 
comments were received and confirming the date on which the final rule 
will become effective. If OST does receive, within the comment period, 
an adverse or negative comment, or written notice of intent to submit 
such a comment, a document withdrawing the direct final rule will be 
published in the Federal Register, and a notice of proposed rulemaking 
may be published with a new comment period.

Comments Invited

    Interested parties are invited to participate in this rulemaking by 
submitting such written data, views, or arguments, as they may desire. 
Comments that provide the factual basis supporting the views and 
suggestions presented are particularly helpful in developing reasoned 
regulatory decisions on the proposal.

Regulatory Analyses and Notices

A. Executive Order 12866 (Regulatory Planning and Review) and DOT 
Regulatory Policies and Procedures

    This final rule is not a significant regulatory action under 
Executive Order 12866 and the Department of Transportation's Regulatory 
Policies and Procedures. Accordingly, this final rule has not been 
reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    Pursuant to section 605 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA), 5 
U.S.C. 605(b), as amended by the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement 
and Fairness Act of 1996 (SBREFA), DOT certifies that this final rule 
does not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of 
small entities. The final rule does not impose any duties or 
obligations on small entities.

C. Executive Order 13132 (Federalism)

    This Final Rule does not have a substantial direct effect on the 
States, on the relationship between the national Government and the 
States, or on the distribution of power and responsibilities among the 
various levels of government, and therefore does not have federalism 
implications.

D. Executive Order 13084

    This Final Rule has been analyzed in accordance with the principles 
and criteria contained in Executive Order 13084 (``Consultation and 
Coordination with Indian Tribal Governments''). Because the rule does 
not significantly or uniquely affect the communities of the Indian 
tribal governments or impose substantial direct compliance costs on 
them, the funding and consultation requirements of Executive Order 
13084 do not apply.

E. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.) 
requires that DOT consider the impact of paperwork and other 
information collection burdens imposed on the public and, under the 
provisions of PRA section 3507(d), obtain approval from the Office of 
Management and Budget (OMB) for each collection of information it 
conducts, sponsors, or requires through regulations. DOT has determined 
that there is no new information collection requirements associated 
with this final rule.

F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act

    The Department has determined that the requirements of Title II of 
the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 do not apply to this Final 
Rule.

    Issued June 16, 2010, in Washington, DC.
Ray LaHood,
Secretary of Transportation.

List of Subjects in 14 CFR Part 234

    Air carriers, Consumer protection, Reporting and recordkeeping 
requirements.


0
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, the Department amends 14 CFR 
part 234 as follows:

PART 234--AIRLINE SERVICE QUALITY PERFORMANCE REPORTS

0
1. The authority citation for Part 234 continues to read as follows:

    Authority:  49 U.S.C. 329 and chapters 401 and 417.
0
2. In Sec.  234.11, revise paragraph (c) to read as follows:


Sec.  234.11  Disclosure to consumers.

* * * * *
    (c) The first time each carrier must load the information whose 
disclosure is required under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section 
onto its Web site is on Saturday, July 24, 2010, for June data. 
Carriers must load all subsequent flight performance information on 
the fourth Saturday of the month following the month that is being 
reported.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2010-15000 Filed 6-17-10; 11:15 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P

