49 U.S.C. § 47124 — Agreements for State and local operation of airport facilities

(a) Government Relief From Liability. The Secretary of Transportation must ensure that an agreement under this subchapter with a "qualified entity" (a term this section does not define), a State, or a political subdivision of a State to let that entity, State, or subdivision operate an airport facility relieves the United States Government from liability arising from, or related to, acts or omissions by the entity's, State's, or subdivision's employees while operating the airport facility.

(b) Air Traffic Control Contract Program.
(1) Contract tower program.
(A) Continuation. The Secretary must continue the low-activity "Visual Flight Rules" level I air traffic control tower contract program established under subsection (a) for towers existing on December 30, 1987, and extend the program to other towers as practicable. This section does not define "low activity," "Visual Flight Rules," or "level I."
(B) Special rule. If the Secretary determines that a tower already operating under the "Contract Tower Program" has a benefit-to-cost ratio below 1.0, the airport sponsor or the State or local government with jurisdiction over the airport does not have to pay the part of the costs that exceeds the benefit: (i) during the 1-year period after the determination; or (ii) if an appeal is requested, during the 1-year period described in subsection (d)(4)(D). This section defines "Contract Tower Program" in subsection (e), but does not define "benefit-to-cost ratio."
(C) Use of excess funds. If the Secretary finds that all or part of money made available for the program continued under this paragraph is not needed during a fiscal year, the Secretary may use the unneeded money during that fiscal year for the "Cost-share Program."

(2) General authority.
(A) In general. The Secretary may contract with a "qualified entity" (a term this section does not define) or, on a sole-source basis, with a State or political subdivision of a State to let the entity, State, or subdivision operate an airport traffic control tower classified as a level I "Visual Flight Rules" tower, if the Secretary decides that the entity, State, or subdivision can comply with this paragraph. The contract must require the entity, State, or subdivision to follow applicable safety regulations while operating the facility and applicable competition requirements when making a subcontract to perform work under the contract.
(B) Small or medium hub airports. For a contract entered into on or after the date this subparagraph was enacted to operate an airport traffic control tower at a small or medium hub airport, the contract must require the Secretary, after coordinating with the airport sponsor and the entity, State, or subdivision, and no later than 18 months after the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 was enacted, to provide enough funding to pay the wages and benefits of at least 2 air traffic controllers for each operating shift at the tower.

(3) Cost-share program.
(A) In general. The Secretary must establish a program to contract for air traffic control services at "nonapproach control towers," as the Secretary defines that term, that do not qualify for the "Contract Tower Program."
(B) Program components. In carrying out the "Cost-share Program," the Secretary must:
(i) use for cost-benefit analyses current, actual, site-specific data; forecast estimates; or airport master plan data provided by a facility owner or operator and verified by the Secretary; and
(ii) approve only facilities willing to fund a pro rata share of the air traffic control tower's operating costs that achieves a 1-to-1 benefit-to-cost ratio, using actual site-specific contract-tower operating costs whenever there is an operating air traffic control tower or remote air traffic control tower equipment that has received "System Design Approval" from the Federal Aviation Administration, as required for eligibility under the "Contract Tower Program." This section does not define "pro rata share," "System Design Approval," or "remote air traffic control tower equipment."
(C) Priority. When selecting facilities for the "Cost-share Program," the Secretary must give priority to:
(i) air traffic control towers participating in the "Contract Tower Program" that have been told they will be terminated from that program because the Secretary determined that continuing them has a benefit-to-cost ratio below 1.0;
(ii) air traffic control towers that the Secretary determines have a benefit-to-cost ratio of at least .50;
(iii) Federal Aviation Administration air traffic control towers closed because of the air traffic controllers' strike in 1981;
(iv) air traffic control towers at airports or points where an air carrier receives compensation under this chapter's "essential air service program";
(v) air traffic control towers at airports prepared to take partial responsibility for maintenance costs;
(vi) air traffic control towers at airports with safety or operational problems related to topography, weather, runway configuration, or the mix of aircraft;
(vii) air traffic control towers at airports where the community has been operating the tower at its own expense;
(viii) air traffic control towers at airports with safety or operational problems related to the lack of an existing tower;
(ix) air traffic control towers at airports with projected commercial and military increases in aircraft or flight operations; and
(x) air traffic control towers at airports with various aircraft operations, including various commercial and military flight operations. This section does not define "essential air service program."
(D) Costs exceeding benefits. If the costs of operating an air traffic tower under the "Cost-share Program" exceed the benefits, the airport sponsor or the State or local government with jurisdiction over the airport must pay the part of the costs that exceeds the benefit, but the maximum allowable local cost share is 20 percent. Airports with air service provided under part 121 of title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, and with more than 25,000 passenger enplanements during calendar year 2014 are exempt from any cost-share requirement under this paragraph.
(E) Funding. Of the amounts appropriated under section 106(k)(1), no more than $10,350,000 for each fiscal year from 2012 through 2018 may be used for this paragraph.
(F) Use of excess funds. If the Secretary finds that all or part of the money made available under this paragraph is not needed during a fiscal year, the Secretary may use the unneeded money during that fiscal year for the "Contract Tower Program."
(G) Benefit-to-cost calculation. No later than 90 days after receiving an application for the "Contract Tower Program," the Secretary must calculate a benefit-to-cost ratio, as described in subsection (d), for the applicable air traffic control tower to select towers for participation in that program.
(H) Period for completion of an operational readiness inspection. The Secretary must give airport sponsors acting in good faith 7 years to complete an "operational readiness inspection" (a term this section does not define) after receiving a benefit-to-cost ratio for air traffic control services at an airport.

(4) Construction of air traffic control towers.
(A) Grants. The Secretary may give grants to a sponsor of:
(i) a primary airport—
(I) from amounts made available under sections 47114(c)(1) and 47114(c)(2), to construct or improve a "nonapproach control tower," as the Secretary defines that term, and to acquire and install air traffic control, communications, and related equipment for use in that tower;
(II) from those amounts, to reimburse the cost of constructing or improving such a tower incurred after October 1, 1996, if the sponsor followed sections 47107(e), 47112(b), and 47112(c) in constructing or improving it; and
(III) from those amounts, to reimburse the cost of acquiring and installing in that tower air traffic control, communications, and related equipment acquired or installed after October 1, 1996, including remote air traffic control tower equipment certified by the Federal Aviation Administration or remote air traffic control tower equipment that received "System Design Approval" from the Federal Aviation Administration; and
(ii) a public-use airport that is not a primary airport—
(I) from amounts made available under subsections (c) and (d) of section 47114, to construct or improve such a tower and to acquire and install air traffic control, communications, and related equipment for use in that tower;
(II) from amounts made available under sections 47114(c) and 47114(d)(2)(A), to reimburse the cost of constructing or improving such a tower incurred after October 1, 1996, if the sponsor followed sections 47107(e), 47112(b), and 47112(c) in constructing or improving it; and
(III) from those amounts, to reimburse the cost of acquiring and installing in that tower air traffic control, communications, and related equipment acquired or installed after October 1, 1996, including remote air traffic control tower equipment certified by the Federal Aviation Administration or remote air traffic control tower equipment that received "System Design Approval" from the Federal Aviation Administration.
(B) Eligibility. An airport sponsor is eligible for a grant under this paragraph only if:
(i) either (I) the sponsor participates in the Federal Aviation Administration's "Contract Tower Program" or "Cost-share Program"; or (II) constructing a nonapproach control tower would make the sponsor eligible to participate in one of those programs;
(ii) the sponsor certifies that it will pay at least 10 percent of the cost of the activities for which it receives assistance under this paragraph;
(iii) the Secretary affirmatively accepts the proposed contract tower into a contract-tower program under this section and certifies that the Secretary will seek future appropriations to pay the Federal Aviation Administration's cost of the contract to operate the tower constructed under this paragraph;
(iv) the sponsor certifies that it will pay its share of the cost of the contract to operate the tower constructed under this paragraph; and
(v) if the tower is constructed with amounts made available under section 47114(d)(2)(B), the Secretary certifies that (I) the Federal Aviation Administration consulted the State in which the tower will be constructed and the State supports construction of the tower as part of its State airport capital plan; and (II) the tower was selected for funding using objective criteria.

(c) Safety Audits. The Secretary must establish uniform standards and requirements for regular safety assessments of air traffic control towers receiving funding under this section.

(d) Criteria To Evaluate Participants.
(1) Timing of evaluations.
(A) Towers participating in cost-share program. For an air traffic control tower operated under the "Cost-share Program," the Secretary must calculate a benefit-to-cost ratio for the tower every year.
(B) Towers participating in contract tower program. For an air traffic control tower operated under the "Contract Tower Program," after the date this subsection was enacted, the Secretary may not calculate a benefit-to-cost ratio for the tower unless the Secretary determines that annual aircraft traffic at the airport where the tower is located decreased (i) by more than 25 percent from the previous year or (ii) by more than 55 percent cumulatively during the preceding 3-year period.
(2) Costs to be considered. When establishing a benefit-to-cost ratio under this section for an air traffic control tower, the Secretary may consider only:
(A) the Federal Aviation Administration's actual cost of wages and benefits for personnel working at the tower;
(B) the Federal Aviation Administration's actual telecommunications costs directly associated with the tower;
(C) the Federal Aviation Administration's cost of purchasing and installing air traffic control equipment that would not have been purchased or installed except because the tower operated;
(D) the Federal Aviation Administration's actual travel costs for maintaining air traffic control equipment owned by the Administration that would not be maintained except because the tower operated; and
(E) other actual Federal Aviation Administration costs directly associated with the tower that would not be incurred except because the tower operated, excluding costs for noncontract-tower-related personnel and equipment even if the personnel or equipment is located in the contract tower building.
(3) Other criteria to be considered. When establishing a benefit-to-cost ratio under this section for an air traffic control tower, the Secretary must add a 10-percentage-point margin of error to the benefit-to-cost determination to recognize and account for direct and indirect economic and other benefits not included in the criteria the Secretary used to calculate the ratio.
(4) Review of cost-benefit determinations. When issuing a benefit-to-cost ratio determination under this section for an air traffic control tower at an airport, the Secretary must:
(A) give the airport, or the State or local government with jurisdiction over the airport, at least 90 days after receiving the determination to request an appeal and submit updated or additional data supporting the appeal;
(B) after receiving an appeal request under subparagraph (A), (i) send the updated or additional data to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration and (ii) give the Administrator no more than 90 days to review the data and respond to the Secretary based on that review;
(C) after receiving the Administrator's response under subparagraph (B), (i) give the airport, State, or local government that requested the appeal at least 30 days to review the response and (ii) take no further action on the appeal during those 30 days; and
(D) if, after the appeal procedures are complete, the Secretary requires the tower to move into the "Cost-share Program," not require a cost-share payment from the airport, State, or local government for 1 year after the last day of the 30-day period in subparagraph (C).

(e) Definitions. In this section:
(1) "Contract Tower Program" means the level I air traffic control tower contract program established under subsection (a) and continued under subsection (b)(1).
(2) "Cost-share Program" means the cost-share program established under subsection (b)(3).

(f) Improving Controller Situational Awareness.
(1) In general. No later than 1 year after this subsection was enacted, the Secretary must allow air traffic controllers at towers operated under the "Contract Tower Program" to use approved advanced equipment and technologies to improve operational situational awareness, including "Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System" radar displays, "Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast," "Flight Data Input/Output," and "Automatic Terminal Information System." This section does not define these equipment and technology terms.
(2) Installation and maintenance. No later than 2 years after this subsection was enacted, the Secretary must allow airports to: (A) obtain a "Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System" or equivalent through the Federal Aviation Administration and install and maintain it using Administration services; or (B) buy such a system or equivalent and install and maintain it using services directly from an original equipment manufacturer.
(3) Requirements. To help integrate the equipment and technology described in paragraph (1), the Secretary:
(A) must establish minimum performance and technical standards that ensure their safe use, including commercial radar displays able to show primary and secondary radar targets, for controllers in contract towers to improve situational awareness;
(B) must identify approved vendors for the equipment and technology to the maximum extent practicable;
(C) must, in consultation with contract-tower operators, establish an appropriate training program to periodically train air traffic controllers employed by those operators so the equipment and technology described in paragraph (1) are properly and efficiently integrated into and used in contract-tower operations;
(D) may add "Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System" equipment or an equivalent system to the minimum equipment needed for Federal contract towers to perform their functions, as applicable; and
(E) must require technology, systems, or equipment procured under this subsection to be procured with non-Federal funds, except funds made available under a grant issued under section 47124(b)(4).

(g) Liability Insurance.
(1) In general. No later than 18 months after this subsection was enacted, the Secretary must consult aviation-industry experts, including air traffic control contractors and aviation-insurance professionals, to determine adequate liability limits for the "Contract Tower Program."
(2) Interim steps. No later than 6 months after this subsection was enacted, and until the Secretary determines liability limits under paragraph (1), the Secretary must require air traffic control contractors to have excess liability insurance, as the Secretary determines, to ensure continuity of that coverage if a major accident occurs.
(3) Briefing. No later than 24 months after this subsection was enacted, the Secretary must brief the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate on the findings, conclusions, and actions taken and planned to carry out this subsection.

(h) Milestones for Design Approval of Remote Towers.
(1) In general. No later than 180 days after this subsection was enacted, the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration must create a program and publish milestones for achieving system design and operational approval for a "remote tower system." This section does not define that term.
(2) Requirements. In carrying out paragraph (1), the Administrator must:
(A) rely on support from the Federal Aviation Administration's Office of Airports and Air Traffic Organization, including the Air Traffic Services Service Unit and the Technical Operations Service Unit;
(B) consult relevant stakeholders, as the Administrator decides appropriate;
(C) establish requirements for system design and operational approval of remote towers, including (i) visual siting processes and requirements for electro-optical sensors, (ii) datalink-latency requirements, (iii) visual-presentation design requirements for monitors displaying sensor and camera feeds, and (iv) other wireless-telecommunications infrastructure requirements needed to operate such towers;
(D) use a safety-risk-management-panel process to address safety issues involving a remote tower;
(E) if a remote tower is intended for installation at a non-towered airport, assess its safety benefits against the lack of an existing tower;
(F) allow surface-surveillance technology, either by itself or integrated into the visual-automation platform, as a situational-awareness tool;
(G) establish contingency-operation protocols and procedures for remote-tower technology failures and malfunctions; and
(H) support active testing, by the William J. Hughes Technical Center, of a remote tower system that has achieved system design approval at an airport that has installed remote-tower infrastructure supporting that system.
(3) System design approval and evaluation process. No later than December 31, 2024, the Administrator must expand the system design approval and evaluation process for a digital or remote tower system to at least 3 airports where a digital or remote tower will be installed or operated, at airports not located at the William J. Hughes Technical Center, using the criteria under section 161 of the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (49 U.S.C. 47104 note), to the extent that the Administrator has willing technology providers and airports interested in installing and operating those towers.
(4) Preservation of existing design approvals. Nothing in this subsection may be interpreted to invalidate system design approval activity carried out by the William J. Hughes Technical Center before this subsection was enacted.
(5) Prioritization for remote tower certification. In carrying out the program established under paragraph (1), the Administrator must prioritize system design and operational approval for a remote tower system at:
(A) airports without a permanent air traffic control tower when the application is made;
(B) airports that would provide air service to small and rural communities; or
(C) airports newly accepted into the "Contract Tower Program" as of the date this subsection was enacted.