49 U.S.C. § 44710 — Revocations of airman certificates for controlled substance violations
submitted 32 years ago by Pub. L. 103-272 to r/title-49-TRANSPORTATION · 784 words · no verdicts yet
The FAA Administrator must revoke certain airman certificates after specified controlled-substance convictions or activities involving aircraft. The section provides notice, appeals, acquittal-based reissuance, and law-enforcement waivers.
(a) “Controlled substance” has the meaning given in section 102 of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 (21 U.S.C. 802).
(b) (1) After an individual is convicted under United States or State law relating to a controlled substance—excluding simple possession—of an offense punishable by death or more than one year in prison, the Administrator must revoke the individual’s section 44703 airman certificate if an aircraft was used to commit or help commit the offense and the individual was an airman or was on the aircraft in connection with it. (2) The Administrator must revoke such a certificate if the individual knowingly carried out an activity punishable under such a law by death or more than one year in prison, an aircraft was used to carry out or help the activity, and the individual was an airman or was on the aircraft in connection with the activity. (3) Under paragraph (1), the Administrator may not decide whether the airman violated the controlled-substance law.
(c) Before revoking, the Administrator must tell the holder the charges or reasons and give the holder an opportunity to answer and be heard.
(d) The individual may appeal to the Board. After notice and a hearing on the record, the Board must affirm or reverse; it is not bound by the Administrator’s factual findings. Filing an appeal stays the revocation unless the Administrator tells the Board immediate effectiveness is required for safety; then the order remains effective and the Board must decide within 60 days. The individual, or the Administrator if the Board order significantly harms administration of this part, may seek judicial review under section 46110. The Administrator must be a party, and supported Board factual findings are conclusive.
(e) (1) The Administrator may not revoke, and the Board may not affirm, a revocation under (b)(2) based on the described activity if the holder is acquitted of all related controlled-substance charges in an indictment or information arising from it. (2) If the Administrator revoked under this section for that activity, the Administrator must reissue the certificate if the individual otherwise meets section 44703 requirements and is later acquitted of all related charges or the conviction underlying a (b)(1) revocation is reversed.
(f) The Administrator may waive the revocation requirement if a United States or State law-enforcement official requests the waiver and the Administrator decides it will help law-enforcement efforts.
In this section, “controlled substance” has the same meaning given that term in section 102 of the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970 (21 U.S.C. 802).
The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall issue an order revoking an airman certificate issued an individual under section 44703 of this title after the individual is convicted, under a law of the United States or a State related to a controlled substance (except a law related to simple possession of a controlled substance), of an offense punishable by death or imprisonment for more than one year if the Administrator finds that—
an aircraft was used to commit, or facilitate the commission of, the offense; and
the individual served as an airman, or was on the aircraft, in connection with committing, or facilitating the commission of, the offense.
The Administrator shall issue an order revoking an airman certificate issued an individual under section 44703 of this title if the Administrator finds that—
the individual knowingly carried out an activity punishable, under a law of the United States or a State related to a controlled substance (except a law related to simple possession of a controlled substance), by death or imprisonment for more than one year;
an aircraft was used to carry out or facilitate the activity; and
the individual served as an airman, or was on the aircraft, in connection with carrying out, or facilitating the carrying out of, the activity.
The Administrator has no authority under paragraph (1) of this subsection to review whether an airman violated a law of the United States or a State related to a controlled substance.
Before the Administrator revokes a certificate under subsection (b) of this section, the Administrator must—
advise the holder of the certificate of the charges or reasons on which the Administrator relies for the proposed revocation; and
provide the holder of the certificate an opportunity to answer the charges and be heard why the certificate should not be revoked.
An individual whose certificate is revoked by the Administrator under subsection (b) of this section may appeal the revocation order to the National Transportation Safety Board. The Board shall affirm or reverse the order after providing notice and an opportunity for a hearing on the record. When conducting the hearing, the Board is not bound by findings of fact of the Administrator.
When an individual files an appeal with the Board under this subsection, the order of the Administrator revoking the certificate is stayed. However, if the Administrator advises the Board that safety in air transportation or air commerce requires the immediate effectiveness of the order—
the order remains effective; and
the Board shall make a final disposition of the appeal not later than 60 days after the Administrator so advises the Board.
An individual substantially affected by an order of the Board under this subsection, or the Administrator when the Administrator decides that an order of the Board will have a significant adverse effect on carrying out this part, may obtain judicial review of the order under section 46110 of this title. The Administrator shall be made a party to the judicial review proceedings. Findings of fact of the Board are conclusive if supported by substantial evidence.
The Administrator may not revoke, and the Board may not affirm a revocation of, an airman certificate under subsection (b)(2) of this section on the basis of an activity described in subsection (b)(2)(A) if the holder of the certificate is acquitted of all charges related to a controlled substance in an indictment or information arising from the activity.
If the Administrator has revoked an airman certificate under this section because of an activity described in subsection (b)(2)(A) of this section, the Administrator shall reissue a certificate to the individual if—
the individual otherwise satisfies the requirements for a certificate under section 44703 of this title; and
the individual subsequently is acquitted of all charges related to a controlled substance in an indictment or information arising from the activity; or
the conviction on which a revocation under subsection (b)(1) of this section is based is reversed.
The Administrator may waive the requirement of subsection (b) of this section that an airman certificate of an individual be revoked if—
a law enforcement official of the United States Government or of a State requests a waiver; and
the Administrator decides that the waiver will facilitate law enforcement efforts.
Source credit: (Pub. L. 103–272, § 1(e), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 1191; Pub. L. 112–153, § 2(c)(3), Aug. 3, 2012, 126 Stat. 1161.)
- 1994Enacted · Pub. L. 103-272 · 108 Stat. 1191
- 2012Amended · Pub. L. 112-153 · 126 Stat. 1161
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 103-272 on 1994-07-05.
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