[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 178 (Friday, September 15, 2023)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 63518-63519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-20074]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Aviation Administration
14 CFR Part 89
[Docket No. FAA-2019-1100; Amdt. No. 89-2]
RIN 2120-AL31
Enforcement Policy Regarding Operator Compliance Deadline for
Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft
AGENCY: Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), U.S. Department of
Transportation (DOT).
ACTION: Notification of enforcement policy.
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SUMMARY: For noncompliance with the remote identification operating
requirements applicable to unmanned aircraft, which occurs on or before
March 16, 2024, the FAA will consider all circumstances, in particular,
unanticipated issues with the available supply and excessive cost of
remote identification broadcast modules and unanticipated delay in the
FAA's approval of FAA-recognized identification areas, when exercising
its discretion in determining whether to take enforcement action.
DATES: This policy is effective September 15, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ben Walsh, Flight Technologies and
Procedures Division, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence
Ave. SW, Building 10A/8th Floor, Washington, DC 20591; telephone 1-844-
FLY-MY-UA (1-844-359-6981); email: [email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Electronic Access and Filing
A copy of this document may be viewed online at https://www.regulations.gov using the docket number listed above. A copy of
this document will be placed in the docket. Electronic retrieval help
and guidelines are available on the website. It is available 24 hours
each day, 365 days each year. An electronic copy of this document may
also be downloaded from the Office of the Federal Register's website at
https://www.federalregister.gov and the Government Publishing Office's
website at https://www.govinfo.gov.
Background
On January 15, 2021, the Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft
final rule (RIN 2120-AL31) published in the Federal Register.\1\ Unless
otherwise authorized by the Administrator or as prescribed in 14 CFR
89.120, no person may operate an unmanned aircraft subject to the
applicability in Sec. 89.101 after September 16, 2023, outside the
boundaries of an FAA-recognized identification area (FRIA) unless it is
a standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or equipped with a
remote identification broadcast module.\2\ The application and approval
process for FRIAs is set forth in 14 CFR 89 subpart C. The majority of
the final rule became effective on April 21, 2021.\3\
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\1\ Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft final rule, 86 FR
4390, January 15, 2021, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/01/15/2020-28948/remote-identification-of-unmanned-aircraft.
\2\ 14 CFR 89.105.
\3\ Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft; Delay, 86 FR
13629, March 10, 2021, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2021/03/10/2021-04882/remote-identification-of-unmanned-aircraft-delay.
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In accordance with the final rule, standard remote identification
unmanned aircraft and remote identification broadcast modules must be
designed and produced to meet the requirements of Title 14 of the Code
of Federal Regulations part 89 (14 CFR part 89). A person designing or
producing a standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or remote
identification broadcast module for operation in the United States must
show that the unmanned aircraft or broadcast module meets the
requirements of an FAA accepted means of compliance. A means of
compliance describes the methods by which the person complies with the
performance-based requirements for remote identification.
On September 12, 2022, the FAA published an Enforcement Policy
indicating that the FAA would exercise its discretion in determining
how to handle any apparent noncompliance with the manufacturing
deadline set forth in the final rule, due to the delay in acceptance of
the ASTM means of compliance.\4\
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\4\ Enforcement Policy Regarding Production Requirements for
Standard Remote Identification Unmanned Aircraft, 87 FR 55685,
September 12, 2022, available at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/09/12/2022-19644/enforcement-policy-regarding-production-requirements-for-standard-remote-identification-unmanned.
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In recent months, the FAA has received significant public feedback
regarding remote identification requirements, including multiple
requests for an extension of the September 16, 2023, remote
identification operational compliance date. Additionally, the FAA has
[[Page 63519]]
received hundreds of inquiries through emails, phone calls, and in-
person questions about the remote identification operational compliance
date. Flight Standards District Offices alone are receiving over 10
emails a day related to remote identification requirements. The FAA UAS
Support Center has received over 380 inquires over the past 60 days.
Their primary inquiry was about the compliance date and the inability
to obtain remote identification modules. UAS operators within the
Commercial Drone Alliance, the Association of Uncrewed Vehicle Systems
International, multiple public safety agencies such as the Nebraska
Department of Transportation and the Iowa Department of Transportation,
as well as FAA Lead Participants in the BEYOND program, have all
indicated that they are encountering significant difficulty obtaining
remote identification broadcast modules, which would allow continued
operation of existing unmanned aircraft instead of purchasing new
standard remote identification unmanned aircraft. Those difficulties
are primarily related to availability of broadcast modules, the
shipping timelines for broadcast modules, and the cost of those
modules. Data from the FAA Drone Zone as of August 28, 2023, shows that
there are 261,143 operators flying with a remote pilot certificate
under 14 CFR part 107 and 328,372 recreational flyers operating under
the provisions of 49 U.S.C. 44809 who are not remote identification
equipped. The FAA has also received feedback from operators, including
numerous public safety agencies, about difficulties in obtaining
firmware updates to some existing models of unmanned aircraft to
activate standard remote identification capabilities and make them
remote identification compliant.
As a separate matter, as of August 18, 2023, the FAA has approved
412 applications for FRIAs, with 1,206 yet to be reviewed. The FAA has
endeavored to review these FRIA applications as quickly as possible but
expects a large increase in applications as the mandatory compliance
date approaches. This influx is expected to increase the application
processing backlog and impair the ability of recreational operators to
comply with the rule. The FAA anticipates that the supply of remote
identification broadcast modules, resolution of firmware issues, and
approval of FAA-recognized identification areas will increase in the
next six months.
Statement of Policy
The FAA recognizes that it has yet to evaluate a majority of
submitted applications for FAA-recognized identification areas. The FAA
also recognizes the unanticipated issues that operators are facing
related to the availability of remote identification broadcast modules.
The FAA has continued to monitor this situation as long as possible
before making a determination, but with less than a month remaining
until the operational compliance date, the FAA acknowledges that for
many operators, compliance with Sec. 89.105 may prove difficult or
impossible in the timeframe presented. While some operators, such as
those who are using standard remote identification unmanned aircraft or
those operating in FRIAs that have already been approved by the FAA,
will be able to comply with the rule, the cumulative effect of the
current state of the compliance issues reported to the FAA could
otherwise cause a cessation of numerous UAS operations, which is not
consistent with the FAA's intent for this rule or its statutory mandate
to integrate UAS operations into the National Airspace System.
Accordingly, the FAA will exercise its discretion in determining
how to handle any apparent noncompliance, including exercising
discretion to not take enforcement action, if appropriate, for any
noncompliance that occurs on or before March 16, 2024--the six-month
period following the compliance deadline for operators initially
published in the Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft final rule,
RIN 2120-AL31. The exercise of enforcement discretion herein creates no
individual right of action and establishes no precedent for future
determinations.
Issued in Washington, DC, on September 12, 2023.
Taneesha Dobyne Marshall,
Assistant Chief Counsel for Aviation Litigation, Federal Aviation
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2023-20074 Filed 9-13-23; 11:15 am]
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