Upholds FAA Authority to Withhold Grants for Unreasonable
Restrictions on Aircraft Access
NBAA has welcomed a
court decision upholding authority for the FAA to take action
against unreasonable restrictions on certain types of business
aircraft. At the same time, the Association's enthusiasm was
tempered by some of the specifics related to the case.
The decision, issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the
District of Columbia Circuit on June 3, resulted from court
proceedings to determine whether a ban on Stage 2 aircraft at
Naples Airport was unreasonable, as the FAA claimed. “Stage
2” refers to an FAA designation related to the decibel level
at which an aircraft operates.
In 2002, the FAA began
withholding federal funding for Naples Airport as an enforcement
action against the Stage 2 ban, which was put in place by the
Florida city's Airport Authority. In taking the enforcement action,
the FAA maintained that the noise ban at Naples was in violation of
the Airport and Airway Improvement Act of 1982, which stipulates
that airports must be “available for public use on reasonable
conditions and without unjust discrimination” in order to be
eligible for federal grant funds. NBAA submitted an amicus brief in
the court proceeding supporting the FAA's position.
For its part, the Airport Authority contended that once an
airport completed the FAA's procedures for reviewing airport
restrictions (known as the Part 161 process), the Agency lost its
ability to take enforcement action on the airport's Stage 2
ban. In the opinion issued last week, the court stated that
it would “…defer to the FAA's determination that it
retains that power.”
“NBAA is pleased
that the court recognized and preserved the FAA's authority to
withhold federal funding from airports that impose unreasonable
restrictions on aircraft,” said NBAA President and CEO Ed
Bolen. “Airports that receive federal funding and are
available for public use should not unjustly discriminate against
certain types of aircraft. With its decision last week, the
court signaled its agreement with that principle.”
Last week's ruling was only a partial victory for business
aircraft operators, because the court's ruling also concluded that,
in this specific instance, the Naples Airport Authority provided
“ample evidence” that its ban on Stage 2 aircraft is
reasonable. In its ruling, the court stated that the FAA had not
adequately explained why the Stage 2 ban at Naples was
unreasonable, and the case was sent back to the FAA for further
consideration of the facts underlying the Agency's unreasonableness
determination.
“NBAA respectfully disagrees with the court's conclusion
that the FAA lacked evidence supporting its determination that the
Stage 2 ban at Naples Airport was unreasonable,” Bolen
continued.
“At the same time, the court's decision preserves the
integrity of the uniform, fact-based, federal process in place for
review of airport restrictions, and underscores the premise that
this process is the proper way to approach airport access
restrictions. That approach has worked well for many years,
and continues to work well today. With its decision, the court
recognized that this is the case, and that is a 'win' for the
business aviation community.”
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