Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 223 / Tuesday, November 20, 2007 / Proposed Rules 65237 with Indian Tribal Governments’’). F. Unfunded Mandates Reform Act • Fax: (202) 493–2251. Because none of the options on which The Department has determined that Instructions: You must include the we are seeking comment would the requirements of Title II of the agency name and docket number DOT– significantly or uniquely affect the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 OST–01–9325 or the Regulatory communities of the Indian tribal do not apply to this notice. Identification Number (RIN) for the governments or impose substantial rulemaking at the beginning of your direct compliance costs on them, the Issued this 15th day of November, 2007, at comment. All comments received will Washington, DC. funding and consultation requirements be posted without change to http:// of Executive Order 13084 do not apply. Michael W. Reynolds, www.regulations.gov, including any Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aviation and personal information provided. D. Regulatory Flexibility Act International Affairs. Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search [FR Doc. 07–5760 Filed 11–15–07; 4:15 pm] The Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 the electronic form of all comments BILLING CODE 4910–13–P U.S.C. 601 et seq.) requires an agency to received in any of our dockets by the review regulations to assess their impact name of the individual submitting the comment (or signing the comment, if on small entities unless the agency DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION submitted on behalf of an association, determines that a rule is not expected to business, labor union, etc.). You may have a significant economic impact on Office of the Secretary review DOT’s complete Privacy Act a substantial number of small entities. statement in the Federal Register The regulatory initiatives discussed in 14 CFR Part 250 published on April 11, 2000 (65 FR this ANPRM would have some impact [Docket No. DOT–OST–01–9325] 19477–78), or you may visit http:// on some small entities but we do not DocketsInfo.dot.gov. believe that it would have a significant RIN No. 2105–AD63 Docket: For access to the docket to impact on a substantial number of small read background documents or entities. We invite comment to facilitate Oversales and Denied Boarding Compensation comments received, go to http:// our assessment of the potential impact www.regulations.gov or to the street of these initiatives on small entities. AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), address listed above. Follow the online E. Paperwork Reduction Act Department of Transportation (DOT). instructions for accessing the docket. ACTION: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim The ANPRM proposes several new (NPRM). Kelly, Aviation Consumer Protection collections of information that would Division, Office of the General Counsel, SUMMARY: The Department of require approval by the Office of Department of Transportation, 1200 Transportation (DOT or Department) is Management and Budget (OMB) under New Jersey Ave., SE., Washington, DC proposing to amend its rules relating to the Paperwork Reduction Act (49 U.S.C. 20590, 202–366–5952 (voice), 202–366– oversales and denied boarding 3501 et seq.) The ANPRM solicits 5944 (fax), [email protected] (e-mail). comment on requiring certificated and compensation to increase the limits on SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: commuter airlines that operate domestic the compensation paid to ‘‘bumped’’ scheduled passenger service using any passengers, to cover flights by certain Background aircraft with more than 30 passenger U.S. and foreign air carriers operated with aircraft seating 30 to 60 passengers, Part 250 establishes minimum seats to retain for two years the standards for the treatment of airline following information about any ground which are currently exempt from the rule, and to make other changes. Such passengers holding confirmed delay that triggers their contingency reservations on certain U.S. and foreign plan or lasts at least four hours: (1) The changes in the rule, if adopted, would be intended to maintain consumer carriers who are involuntarily denied length of the delay, (2) the cause of the boarding (‘‘bumped’’) from their flights delay, and (3) actions taken to minimize protection commensurate with developments in the aviation industry. because they have been oversold. In hardships for passengers. The most cases, bumped passengers are Department plans to use this DATES: Comments are requested by entitled to compensation. Part 250 information to conduct reviews of January 22, 2008. Late-filed comments contains limits on the amount of incidents involving long delays on the will be considered to the extent compensation that is required to be ground and to identify any trends and practicable. provided to passengers who are bumped patterns that may develop. The ANPRM ADDRESSES: You may file comments involuntarily. The rule does not apply further proposes to require the identified by the docket number DOT– to flights operated with aircraft with a collection of flight delay data from OST–01–9325 by any of the following design capacity of 60 or fewer passenger certain U.S. and foreign air carriers methods: seats. regarding their flights to and from the • Federal eRulemaking Portal: go to In adopting the original rule in the U.S. and also to require certain U.S. http://www.regulations.gov and follow 1960’s, the Civil Aeronautics Board (the carriers to compile and publish the online instructions for submitting Department’s predecessor in aviation complaint information. We invite comments. economic regulation) recognized the comments regarding any aspect of these • Mail: Docket Management Facility, inherent unfairness in carriers selling information collections, including the U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 more ‘‘confirmed’’ ticketed reservations following: (1) The necessity and utility New Jersey Ave., SE., West Building for a flight than they have seats. of the information collection, (2) the Ground Floor, Room W12–140, Therefore, the CAB sought to reduce the estimated burden, (3) ways to enhance Washington, DC 20590–0001. number of passengers involuntarily the quality, utility, and clarity of the • Hand Delivery or Courier: West denied boarding to the smallest information collected, and (4) ways to Building Ground Floor, Room W12–140, practicable number without prohibiting minimize the collection burden without 1200 New Jersey Ave., SE., between 9 deliberate overbooking or interfering reducing the quality of the information a.m. and 5 p.m. ET, Monday through unnecessarily with the carriers’ collected. Friday, except Federal Holidays. reservations practices. Air travelers VerDate Aug<31>2005 15:18 Nov 19, 2007 Jkt 214001 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 E:\FR\FM\20NOP1.SGM 20NOP1 rmajette on PROD1PC64 with PROPOSALS 65238 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 223 / Tuesday, November 20, 2007 / Proposed Rules receive some benefit from controlled rule has served a useful purpose; (2) If there are not enough volunteers, overbooking because it allows flexibility however, in light of recommendations the airline must use non-discriminatory in making and canceling reservations as from various sources, including procedures (‘‘boarding priorities’’) in well as buying and refunding tickets. Congress and major airlines themselves, deciding who is to be bumped Overbooking makes possible a system of we are proposing to revise certain involuntarily. confirmed reservations that can almost aspects of the rule that may be outdated. (3) Most passengers who are always be honored. It allows airlines to In view of the passage of time since the involuntarily bumped are eligible for fill more seats, reducing the pressure for rule was last revised and changes in denied boarding compensation, with the higher fares, and makes it easier for commercial air travel over that time, we amount depending on the price of each people to obtain reservations on the are seeking comment on whether we passenger’s ticket and the length of his flights of their choice. On the other should increase the compensation or her delay. If the airline can arrange hand, overbooking is the major cause of maximums and extend the rule to cover alternate transportation that is oversales, and the people who are a broader range of aircraft, or whether scheduled to arrive at the passenger’s inconvenienced are not those who do we should adopt other more destination within 2 hours of the not show up for their flights, but fundamental changes to the rule. The planned arrival time of the oversold passengers who have conformed to all Department is also seeking comment on flight (4 hours on international flights), carrier rules. The current rule allocates certain other changes of lesser impact the compensation equals 100% of the the risk of denied boarding among that are under consideration. passenger’s one-way fare to his or her travelers by requiring airlines to solicit The Current Denied Boarding next stopover or final destination, with volunteers and use a boarding priority Compensation Rule a $200 maximum. If the airline cannot procedure that is not unjustly meet the 2 (or 4) hour deadline, the discriminatory. The purpose of the Department’s compensation rate doubles to 200% of In 1981, the CAB amended the denied boarding compensation rule is to the passenger’s one-way fare, with a oversales rule to exclude from the rule balance the rights of passengers holding $400 maximum. This compensation is reservations with the desirability of all operations using aircraft with 60 or in addition to the value of the allowing air carriers to minimize the fewer passenger seats. (ER–1237, 46 FR passenger’s ticket, which the passenger adverse economic effects of ‘‘no-shows’’ 42442, August 21, 1981.) At the time of can use for alternate transportation or (passengers with reservations who that proceeding, the impact of the rule have refunded if not used. cancel or change their flights at the last on carriers operating small aircraft was (4) There are several exceptions to the found to be significant.