title-14-part-16-sec16-3

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition)

§ 16.3

by those authorities. Where a grant as-
surance concerns a statute, executive
order, regulation, or other authority
that enables a Federal agency other
than the FAA to investigate, adju-
dicate, and enforce compliance under
those authorities on its own initiative,
the FAA may defer to that Federal
agency.

(c)

Other enforcement. If a complaint

or action initiated by the FAA involves
a violation of the 49 U.S.C. subtitle VII
or FAA regulations, except as specified
in paragraphs (a)(1) and (a)(2) of this
section, the FAA may take investiga-
tive and enforcement action under 14
CFR part 13, ‘‘Investigative and En-
forcement Procedures.’’

(d)

Effective date. This part applies to

a complaint filed with the FAA and to
an investigation initiated by the FAA
on or after December 16, 1996.

[Doc. No. 27783, 61 FR 54004, Oct. 16, 1996, as
amended at Amdt. 16–1, 78 FR 56141, Sept. 12,
2013]

§ 16.3

Definitions.

Terms defined in the Acts are used as

so defined. As used in this part:

Act means a statute listed in § 16.1

and any regulation, agreement, or doc-
ument of conveyance issued or made
under that statute.

Administrator means the Adminis-

trator of the FAA.

Agency means the FAA.
Agency attorney means the Deputy

Chief Counsel; the Assistant Chief
Counsel and attorneys in the Airports/
Environmental Law Division of the Of-
fice of the Chief Counsel; the Assistant
Chief Counsel and attorneys in an FAA
region or center who represent the
FAA during the investigation of a com-
plaint or at a hearing on a complaint,
and who prosecute on behalf of the
FAA, as appropriate. An agency attor-
ney shall not include the Chief Coun-
sel; the Assistant Chief Counsel for
Litigation, or any attorney on the staff
of the Assistant Chief Counsel for Liti-
gation, who advises the Associate Ad-
ministrator regarding an initial deci-
sion of the hearing officer or any ap-
peal to the Associate Administrator or
who is supervised in that action by a
person who provides such advice in an
action covered by this part.

Agency employee means any employee

of the FAA.

Associate Administrator means the

FAA Associate Administrator for Air-
ports or a designee. For the purposes of
this part only, Associate Adminis-
trator also means the Assistant Ad-
ministrator for Civil Rights or a des-
ignee for complaints that the FAA As-
sociate Administrator for Airports
transfers to the Assistant Adminis-
trator for Civil Rights.

Complainant means the person sub-

mitting a complaint.

Complaint means a written document

meeting the requirements of this part
and filed under this part:

(1) By a person directly and substan-

tially affected by anything allegedly
done or omitted to be done by any per-
son in contravention of any provision
of any Act, as defined in this section,
as to matters within the jurisdiction of
the Administrator, or

(2) By a person under 49 CFR 26.105(c)

against a recipient of FAA funds al-
leged to have violated a provision of 49
CFR parts 23 and/or 26.

Decisional employee means the Admin-

istrator, Deputy Administrator, Asso-
ciate Administrator, Director, hearing
officer, or other FAA employee who is
or who may reasonably be expected to
be involved in the decisional process of
the proceeding.

Director means the Director of the

FAA Office of Airport Compliance and
Management Analysis, or a designee.
For the purposes of this part only, Di-
rector also means the Deputy Assistant
Administrator for Civil Rights for com-
plaints that the Director of the FAA
Office of Airport Compliance and Man-
agement Analysis transfers to the Dep-
uty Assistant Administrator for Civil
Rights or designee.

Electronic filing means the process of

sending electronic mail (email) to the
FAA Part 16 Docket Clerk, with
scanned documents attached, as a
Portable Document Format (PDF) file.

Ex parte communication means an oral

or written communication not on the
public record with respect to which
reasonable prior notice to all parties is
not given, but it shall not include re-
quests for status reports on any matter
or proceeding covered by this part, or

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§ 16.5

communications between FAA employ-
ees who participate as parties to a
hearing pursuant to 16.203(b) of this
part and other parties to a hearing.

Hearing officer means an attorney

designated by the Deputy Chief Coun-
sel in a hearing order to serve as a
hearing officer in a hearing under this
part. The following are not designated
as hearing officers: the Chief Counsel
and Deputy Chief Counsel; the Re-
gional or Center Counsel and attorneys
in the FAA region or center in which
the noncompliance has allegedly oc-
curred or is occurring; the Assistant
Chief Counsel and attorneys in the Air-
ports and Environmental Law Division
of the FAA Office of the Chief Counsel;
and the Assistant Chief Counsel and at-
torneys in the Litigation Division of
the FAA Office of Chief Counsel.

Initial decision means a decision made

by the hearing officer in a hearing
under subpart F of this part.

Mail means U.S. first class mail; U.S.

certified mail; and U.S. express mail.
Unless otherwise noted, mail also
means electronic mail containing PDF
copies of pleadings or documents re-
quired herein.

Noncompliance means anything done

or omitted to be done by any person in
contravention of any provision of any
Act, as defined in this section, as to
matters within the jurisdiction of the
Administrator.

Party means the complainant(s) and

the respondent(s) named in the com-
plaint and, after an initial determina-
tion providing an opportunity for hear-
ing is issued under § 16.31 and subpart E
of this part, the agency.

Person in addition to its meaning

under 49 U.S.C. 40102(a)(33), includes a
public agency as defined in 49 U.S.C.
47102(a)(15).

Personal delivery means same-day

hand delivery or overnight express de-
livery service.

Respondent means any person named

in a complaint as a person responsible
for noncompliance.

Sponsor means:
(1) Any public agency which, either

individually or jointly with one or
more other public agencies, has re-
ceived Federal financial assistance for
airport development or planning under
the Federal Airport Act, Airport and

Airway Development Act or Airport
and Airway Improvement Act;

(2) Any private owner of a public-use

airport that has received financial as-
sistance from the FAA for such airport;
and

(3) Any person to whom the Federal

Government has conveyed property for
airport purposes under section 13(g) of
the Surplus Property Act of 1944, as
amended.

Writing or written includes paper doc-

uments that are filed and/or served by
mail, personal delivery, facsimile, or
email (as attached PDF files).

[Doc. No. 27783, 61 FR 54004, Oct. 16, 1996, as
amended at Amdt. 16–1, 78 FR 56141, Sept. 12,
2013]

§ 16.5

Separation of functions.

(a) Proceedings under this part, in-

cluding hearings under subpart F of
this part, will be prosecuted by an
agency attorney.

(b) After issuance of an initial deter-

mination in which the FAA provides
the opportunity for a hearing, an agen-
cy employee engaged in the perform-
ance of investigative or prosecutorial
functions in a proceeding under this
part will not, in that case or a factu-
ally related case, participate or give
advice in an initial decision by the
hearing officer, or a final decision by
the Associate Administrator or des-
ignee on written appeal, and will not,
except as counsel or as witness in the
public proceedings, engage in any sub-
stantive communication regarding that
case or a related case with the hearing
officer, the Associate Administrator on
written appeal, or agency employees
advising those officials in that capac-
ity.

Chief Counsel for Litigation, or an at-
torney on the staff of the Assistant
Chief Counsel for Litigation advises
the Associate Administrator regarding
an initial decision, an appeal, or a final
decision regarding any case brought
under this part.