title-14-part-193

908

14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition)

§ 189.5

(1) Flight regularity messages—
(i) Addressed to the point of intended

landing and to not more than two other
addressees in the general area of the
route segment of the flight to which
the message refers, containing infor-
mation required for weight and balance
computation and remarks essential to
the rapid unloading of the aircraft;

(ii) Concerning changes, taking effect

within 72 hours, in aircraft operating
schedules;

(iii) Concerning the servicing of air-

craft en route or scheduled to depart
within 48 hours;

(iv) Concerning changes in the collec-

tive requirements for passengers, crew,
or cargo of aircraft en route or about
to depart, if the changes are caused by
unavoidable deviations from normal
operating schedules and are necessary
for flight regularity;

(v) Concerning non-routine landings

to be made by aircraft en route or
about to depart;

(vi) Concerning parts or materials ur-

gently needed to operate aircraft en
route or scheduled to depart within 48
hours; or

(vii) Concerning pre-flight arrange-

ment of air navigation services and, in
the case of non-scheduled or irregular
operations, operational servicing of
aircraft scheduled to depart within 48
hours.

(2) Messages originated by and ad-

dressed to aircraft operating agencies
or their representatives that directly
bear on the efficient and economic con-
duct or day to day operations, if ade-
quate non-United States communica-
tions facilities are not available and
the messages concern—

(i) Matter described in paragraph

(b)(1) of this section, but not meeting
the time limitations described in para-
graph (b)(1) of this section;

(ii) Aircraft parts, equipment, or sup-

plies, air navigation or communica-
tions, or essential ground facilities;

(iii) Train or hotel reservations for

passengers or employees;

(iv) Lost baggage or personal effects;
(v) Tickets or cargo shipments and

payment therefore;

(vi) Location of passengers and cargo;
(vii) New or revised passenger or

cargo rates;

(viii) Crew assignments and similar

operations personnel matters taking
effect within 7 days;

(ix) Post flight reports for record pur-

poses;

(x) Publicity and special handling re-

garding dignitaries; or

(xi) Reservations, when originated by

aircraft operating agencies to secure
space required in transport aircraft.

§ 189.5 Limitation of liability.

The United States is not liable for

any omission, error, or delay in trans-
mitting or relaying, or for any failure
to transmit or relay, any message ac-
cepted for transmission or relayed
under this part, even if the omission,
error, delay, or failure to transmit or
relay is caused by the negligence of an
employee of the United States.

PART 193—PROTECTION OF VOL-

UNTARILY SUBMITTED INFORMA-
TION

Sec.
193.1

What does this part cover?

193.3

Definitions.

193.5

How may I submit safety or security

information and have it protected from
disclosure?

193.7

What does it mean for the FAA to des-

ignate information as protected?

193.9

Will the FAA ever disclose informa-

tion that is designated as protected
under this part?

193.11

What is the notice procedure?

193.13

What is the no-notice procedure?

193.15

What FAA officials exercise the au-

thority of the Administrator under this
part?

193.17

How must design and production ap-

proval holders handle information they
receive from the FAA under this part?

UTHORITY

: 49 U.S.C. 106(g), 40113, 40123.

OURCE

: 66 FR 33805, June 25, 2001, unless

otherwise noted.

§ 193.1 What does this part cover?

This part describes when and how the

FAA protects from disclosure safety
and security information that you sub-
mit voluntarily to the FAA. This part
carries out 49 U.S.C. 40123, protection
of voluntarily submitted information.

§ 193.3 Definitions.

Agency

means each authority of the

Government of the United States,

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Federal Aviation Administration, DOT

§ 193.7

whether or not the agency is within or
subject to review by another agency,
but does not include—

(1) The Congress;
(2) The courts of the United States;
(3) The governments of the terri-

tories or possessions of the United
States;

(4) The government of the District of

Columbia;

(5) Court martial and military com-

missions.

De-identified

means that the identity

of the source of the information, and
the names of persons have been re-
moved from the information.

Disclose

means to release information

to a person other than another agency.
Examples are disclosures under the
Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C.
552), in rulemaking proceedings, in a
press release, or to a party to a legal
action.

Information

includes data, reports,

source, and other information. ‘‘Infor-
mation’’ may be used to describe the
whole or a portion of a submission of
information.

Summarized

means that individual in-

cidents are not specifically described,
but are presented in statistical or
other general form.

Voluntary

means that the informa-

tion was not required to be submitted
as part of a mandatory program, and
was not submitted as a condition of
doing business with the government.
‘‘Voluntarily-provided information’’
does not include information submitted
as part of complying with statutory,
regulatory, or contractual require-
ments, except that information sub-
mitted as part of complying with a vol-
untary program under this part is con-
sidered to be voluntarily provided.

§ 193.5 How may I submit safety or se-

curity information and have it pro-

tected from disclosure?

(a) You may do so under a program

under this part. The program may be
developed based on your proposal, a
proposal from another person, or a pro-
posal developed by the FAA.

(b) You may be any person, including

an individual, a company, or an organi-
zation.

gram under this part using either the

notice procedure in § 193.11 or the no-
notice procedure in § 193.13.

(d) If the FAA decides to protect the

information that you propose to sub-
mit it issues an order designating the
information as protected under this
part.

(e) The FAA only issues an order des-

ignating information as protected if
the FAA makes the findings in § 193.7.

(f) The designation may be for a pro-

gram in which all similar persons may
participate, or for a program in which
only you submit information.

(g) Even if you receive protection

from disclosure under this part, this
part does not establish the extent to
which the FAA may or may not use the
information to take enforcement ac-
tion. Limits on enforcement action ap-
plicable to a program under this part
will be in another policy or rule.

§ 193.7 What does it mean for the FAA

to designate information as pro-

tected?

(a)

General.

When the FAA issues an

order designating information as pro-
tected under this part, the FAA does
not disclose the information except as
provided in this part.

(b)

What findings does the FAA make

before designating information as pro-
tected?

The FAA designates informa-

tion as protected under this part when
the FAA finds that—

(1) The information is provided vol-

untarily;

(2) The information is safety or secu-

rity related;

(3) The disclosure of the information

would inhibit the voluntary provision
of that type of information;

(4) The receipt of that type of infor-

mation aids in fulfilling the FAA’s
safety and security responsibilities;
and

(5) Withholding such information

from disclosure, under the cir-
cumstances provided in this part, will
be consistent with the FAA’s safety
and security responsibilities.

(c)

How will the FAA handle requests

for information under the Freedom of In-
formation Act (FOIA)?

The FAA does

not disclose information that is des-
ignated as protected under this part in
response to a FOIA request.

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14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition)

§ 193.9

(d)

What if the FAA obtains from an-

other source the same information I sub-
mit?

Only information received under a

program under this part is protected
from disclosure under this part. Infor-
mation obtained by the FAA through
another means is not protected under
this part.

(e)

Sharing information with other

agencies.

The FAA may provide infor-

mation that you have submitted under
this part to other agencies with safety
or security responsibilities. The agen-
cies are subject to the requirements of
49 U.S.C. 40123 regarding nondisclosure
of information. The FAA will give the
information to another agency only if,
for each such request, the other agency
provides the FAA with adequate assur-
ance, in writing, that—

(1) The agency has a safety or secu-

rity need for the information, includ-
ing the general nature of the need.

(2) The agency will protect the infor-

mation from disclosure as required in
49 U.S.C. 40123, this part, and the des-
ignation. This includes a commitment
that the agency will mark the informa-
tion as provided in the designation.

(3) The agency will limit access to

those with a need to know to carry out
safety or security responsibilities.

(f)

What if the FAA receives a subpoena

for the information I submit?

When the

FAA receives a subpoena for informa-
tion you have submitted under this
part, the FAA contacts you to deter-
mine whether you object to disclosure
of the information or you wish to par-
ticipate in responding to the subpoena.
If both you and the FAA determine
that release of the information is ap-
propriate, the information is released.
Otherwise, the FAA will not release in-
formation designated as protected
under this part unless ordered to do so
by a court of competent jurisdiction.

§ 193.9 Will the FAA ever disclose in-

formation that is designated as pro-

tected under this part?

The FAA discloses information that

is designated as protected under this
part when withholding it would not be
consistent with the FAA’s safety and
security responsibilities, as follows:

(a)

Disclosure in all programs.

(1) The

FAA may disclose de-identified, sum-
marized information submitted under

this part to explain the need for
changes in policies and regulations. An
example is the FAA publishing a notice
of proposed rulemaking based on your
information, and including a de-identi-
fied, summarized version of your infor-
mation (and the information from
other persons, if applicable) to explain
the need for the notice of proposed
rulemaking.

(2) The FAA may disclose informa-

tion provided under this part to correct
a condition that compromises safety or
security, if that condition continues
uncorrected.

(3) The FAA may disclose informa-

tion provided under this part to carry
out a criminal investigation or pros-
ecution.

(4) The FAA may disclose informa-

tion provided under this part to comply
with 49 U.S.C. 44905, regarding informa-
tion about threats to civil aviation.

(b)

Additional disclosures.

For each

program, the FAA may find that there
are additional circumstances under
which withholding information pro-
vided under this part would not be con-
sistent with the FAA’s safety and secu-
rity responsibilities. Those cir-
cumstances are described in the des-
ignation for that program.

§ 193.11 What is the notice procedure?

This section states the notice proce-

dure for the FAA to designate informa-
tion as protected under this part. This
procedure is used when there is not an
immediate safety or security need for
the information. This procedure gen-
erally is used to specify a type of infor-
mation that you and others like you
will provide on an on-going basis.

(a)

Application.

You may apply to

have information designated as pro-
tected under this part by submitting
an application addressed to the U.S.
Department of Transportation, Docket
Operations, West Building Ground
Floor, Room W12–140, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue, SE., Washington, DC 20590 for
paper submissions, and the Federal
Docket Management System (FDMS)
Web page at

http://www.regulations.gov

for electronic submissions. Your appli-
cation must include the designation de-
scribed in paragraph (c) of this section
that you want the FAA to issue. You
should not include in your application

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Federal Aviation Administration, DOT

§ 193.13

any information that you do not want
available to the public. The FAA may
issue a proposed designation based on
the application or may deny your ap-
plication.

(b)

Proposed designation.

Before

issuing a designation under this sec-
tion, based either on your application
or the FAA’s own initiative, the FAA
publishes a proposed designation in the
F

EDERAL

EGISTER

and requests com-

ment.

(c)

Designation.

The FAA designates

information as protected under this
part if, after review of the comments,
the FAA makes the findings in § 193.7.
The FAA publishes in the F

EDERAL

EGISTER

an order designating the in-

formation provided under the program
as protected under this part. The des-
ignation includes the following:

(1) A summary of why the FAA finds

that you and others, if applicable, will
provide the information voluntarily.

(2) A description of the type of infor-

mation that you and others, if applica-
ble, may voluntarily provide under the
program and a summary of why the
FAA finds that the information is safe-
ty or security related.

(3) A summary of why the FAA finds

that the disclosure of the information
would inhibit you and others, if appli-
cable, from voluntarily providing of
that type of information.

(4) A summary of why the receipt of

that type of information aids in ful-
filling the FAA’s safety and security
responsibilities.

(5) A summary of why withholding

such information from disclosure
would be consistent with the FAA’s
safety and security responsibilities, in-
cluding a statement as to the cir-
cumstances under which, and a sum-
mary of why, withholding such infor-
mation from disclosure would not be
consistent with the FAA’s safety and
security responsibilities, as described
in § 193.9.

(6) A summary of how the FAA will

distinguish information protected
under this part from information the
FAA receives from other sources.

(7) A summary of the significant

comments received and the FAA’s re-
sponses.

(d)

Amendment of designation.

The

FAA may amend a designation using

the procedures in paragraphs (a), (b),
and (c) of this section.

(e)

Withdrawal of designation.

The

FAA may withdraw a designation
under this section at any time the FAA
finds that continuation of the designa-
tion does not meet the elements of
§ 193.7, or if the requirements of the
designation are not met. The FAA
withdraws the designation by pub-
lishing a notice in the F

EDERAL

ISTER

. The withdrawal is effective on

the date of publication or such later
date as the notice may state. Informa-
tion provided during the time the pro-
gram was designated remains protected
under this part and the program. Infor-
mation provided after the withdrawal
of the designation is effective is not
protected under this part or the pro-
gram.

[66 FR 33805, June 25, 2001, as amended at 72
FR 68475, Dec. 5, 2007]

§ 193.13 What is the no-notice proce-

dure?

This section states the no-notice pro-

cedure for the FAA to designate infor-
mation as protected under this part.
This procedure is used when there is an
immediate safety or security need for
the information. This procedure gen-
erally is used for specific information
that you will provide on a short-term
basis.

(a)

Application.

You may request that

the FAA designate information you are
offering as protected under this part.
You must state your name, at least the
general nature of information, and
whether you will provide the informa-
tion without the protection of this
part. Your request may be verbal or
writing.

(b)

Designation.

The FAA issues a

written order designating information
provided under this section as pro-
tected under this part. The FAA des-
ignates the information as protected
under this part if the FAA—

(1) Makes the findings as § 193.7; and
(2) Finds that there is an immediate

safety or security need to obtain the
information without carrying out the
procedures in § 193.11 of this part.

(c)

Time limit.

Except as provided in

paragraphs (c)(1) and (c)(2) of this sec-
tion, no designation under this section
continues in effect for more than 60

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14 CFR Ch. I (1–1–24 Edition)

§ 193.15

days after the date of designation. In-
formation provided during the time the
designation was in effect remains pro-
tected under this part. Information
provided that the designation ceases to
be in effect is not protected under this
part. The designation remains in effect
for more than 60 days if—

(1) The procedures to designate such

information under § 193.11(a) have been
initiated, or

(2) There is an ongoing enforcement

or criminal investigation, in which
case the designation may continue
until the investigation is completed.

(d)

Amendment of designation.

The

FAA may amend a designation under
this section using the procedures in
paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section.

(e)

Withdrawal of designation.

The

FAA may withdraw a designation
under this section at any time the FAA
finds that continuation does not meet
the elements of § 193.7, or if the require-
ments of the designation are not met.
The FAA withdraws the designation by
notifying the person in writing that
the designation is withdrawn. The
withdrawal is effective on the date of
receipt of the notice or such later date
as the notice may state. Information
provided during the time the designa-
tion was in effect remains protected
under this part. Information provided
after the withdrawal is effective is not
protected under this part.

§ 193.15 What FAA officials exercise

the authority of the Administrator

under this part?

(a) The authority to issue proposed

and final designations, to issue pro-
posed and final amendments of des-
ignations, and to withdraw designa-
tions under this part, and to disclose
information that has been designated
as protected under this part, is dele-
gated by the Administrator to Asso-
ciate Administrators and Assistant Ad-
ministrators and to the Chief Counsel,
their Deputies, and any individual for-
mally designated as Acting Associate
or Assistant Administrator, Acting
Chief Counsel, or Acting Deputy of
such offices.

(b) The officials identified in para-

graph (a) of this section may further
delegate the authority to issue pro-
posed designations and proposed
amendments to designations.

§ 193.17 How must design and produc-

tion approval holders handle infor-

mation they receive from the FAA

under this part?

(a) If the FAA discloses information

under § 193.9(a)(2) to the holders of de-
sign approvals of production approvals
issued by the FAA, the approval holder
must disclose that information only to
persons who need to know the informa-
tion to address the safety or security
condition.

(b) Unless an emergency exists, be-

fore disclosing information to approval
holders the FAA will contact the sub-
mitter of the information.

SUBCHAPTERS L–M

[

RESERVED

]