For decades, ALPA has been fully engaged in efforts to change flight-time/duty-time regulations based on science to reduce pilot fatigue and enhance aviation safety. Most recently, ALPA pilots participated extensively on the FAA Aviation Rulemaking Committee (ARC), which submitted its report on September 1, 2009. The FAA is now reviewing the report—which includes a number of consensus-based recommendations made by the ARC—as the next step in preparing to release a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM). The NPRM is expected to be released by the end of the year.

As we await the NPRM, it is worth explaining the process for creating and revising administrative regulations. The FAA created the rule on flight- and duty-time limits and rest requirements, and it has the authority to change it. But changes don’t happen overnight.

A statute known as the Administrative Procedure Act establishes a process that the FAA must follow to create, modify, or eliminate regulations. That process requires the FAA to (1) publish a notice (i.e., the NPRM) of its intention to change existing regulations or implement new ones, (2) solicit comments from interested parties, and (3) consider those comments.

Rulemaking is a time-consuming process. When important regulations are at stake, an agency may receive hundreds or even thousands of comments from interested parties. Indeed, in 1995, when the FAA proposed a change to the rule on flight-/duty-time limits and rest requirements, the agency received more than 2,000 comments. During the comment period, the ARC’s recommendations will become public.

Per the laws that govern any rulemaking activity, in addition to drafting the proposed rule, the agency (in this case, the Department of Transportation) must do a cost-and-benefit analysis for the regulation. The cost benefit is what the rule is anticipated to cost the industry versus the benefit of the change. This estimate and the draft rule proposal must then be sent to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review. Once OMB approves, the proposed rule can then be published for public comment. As mentioned, the agency can expect hundreds, maybe thousands, of public comments. Each must be reviewed and considered before a final rule can be published.

While the timetable for changing the regulations is ultimately based on the consideration of the comments submitted, ALPA remains deeply involved and will continue to be an active participant in the rule-making process.

To read more:
ALPA, the ARC, and the Quest to Reduce Pilot Fatigue
A Short History of Flight-Time/Duty-Time Rulemaking
The Science Behind ALPA’s Recommendations for Flight Time/Duty Time