Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area

<RULE> DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION <SUBAGY>Federal Aviation Administration</SUBAGY> <CFR>14 CFR Part 93</CFR> <DEPDOC>[Docket No.: FAA-2024-1669; Amdt. No. 93-104]</DEPDOC> <RIN>RIN 2120-AM01</RIN> <SUBJECT>Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area</SUBJECT> <HD SOURCE="HED">AGENCY:</HD> Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), DOT. <HD SOURCE="HED">ACTION:</HD> Final rule. <SUM> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUMMARY:</HD> This action updates five latitude/longitude points in the description of the East-West Corridor of the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area. The changes are needed to reconcile the coordinates of U.S. maritime limits described in the Valparaiso Terminal Area description with those maritime limits published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) pursuant to its statutory authority. The FAA has developed these revised coordinates using updated digital data that more precisely define maritime limits and other geophysical features used in the boundary descriptions. This action is administrative and does not make substantive changes to the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area. </SUM> <EFFDATE> <HD SOURCE="HED">DATES:</HD> Effective 0901 UTC, August 23, 2024. </EFFDATE> <FURINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:</HD> Robert Schafer, Rules and Regulations Group, Office of Policy, Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20591; telephone: (202) 267-8783. </FURINF> <SUPLINF> <HD SOURCE="HED">SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD1">I. Authority and Good Cause</HD> <HD SOURCE="HD2">A. Authority</HD> The FAA's authority to issue rules regarding aviation safety is found in title 49 of the United States Code, subtitle I, section 106 describes the authority of the FAA Administrator. Subtitle VII, Aviation Programs, describes in more detail the scope of the agency's authority. This rulemaking is promulgated under the authority described in subtitle VII, part A, subpart I, section 40103. Under that section, the FAA is charged with prescribing regulations to assign the use of the airspace necessary to ensure the safety of aircraft and the efficient use of airspace. This regulation is within the scope of that authority as it supports updating certain boundary coordinates for the special air traffic rules for aircraft operating in the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area. <HD SOURCE="HD2">B. Good Cause for Immediate Adoption</HD> Section 553(b)(B) of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) (5 U.S.C.) authorizes agencies to dispense with notice and comment procedures for rules when the agency for “good cause” finds that those procedures are “impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary to the public interest.” Under this section, an agency, upon finding good cause, may issue a final rule without seeking comment prior to the rulemaking. The FAA has no discretion to change these coordinates. Therefore, the FAA finds that notice and public comment is unnecessary. This is an amendment to reconcile the coordinates of U.S. maritime limits described in the Valparaiso Terminal Area description with those maritime limits published by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) pursuant to its statutory authority in title 33, United States Code, sections 883a-883d. This rule is an administrative reconciliation and does not affect the airspace's altitude or operating requirements. Therefore, the FAA has determined that notice and public comment are unnecessary. <HD SOURCE="HD1">II. Background and Discussion of the Final Rule</HD> The boundary coordinates and descriptions for the special air traffic rules for aircraft operating in the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area are linked to the overlying restricted area latitude/longitude coordinates. These restricted area boundary descriptions use maritime limits, such as references to the shoreline of the United States (U.S.), to identify the shape of the area ( <E T="03">e.g.,</E> “3 [nautical miles (NM)] from and parallel to the shoreline”). As such, the boundary descriptions contain latitude/longitude coordinates that were intended to intersect a line running 3 NM from and parallel to the shoreline. In 2018, following its receipt of updated digital data for maritime limits from the NOAA, the FAA published a final rule for Docket No. FAA-2018-0728 in the <E T="04">Federal Register</E> (83 FR 40967, August 17, 2018), updating the overlying restricted airspace boundary descriptions in title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 73 to align with the NOAA's digital data. In that rulemaking, the FAA explained that its use of the NOAA's more precise digital data allowed it to accurately update the U.S. maritime limit boundaries used for aeronautical charting. Prior to the update, the maritime limit boundary data used for charting were over 25 years old. In applying the updated data, the FAA found that some boundary descriptions, based on the maritime limits, did not correspond to the updated shoreline data. Consequently, there were minor differences between some special flight rules areas latitude/longitude coordinates and the overlying restricted airspace. This rulemaking action amends 14 CFR part 93 to similarly update the East-West Corridor of the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area, to ensure that the published boundaries match the actual relation to both the U.S. shoreline and overlying restricted airspace to maintain aeronautical chart accuracy and consistency. Specifically, this action amends 14 CFR part 93 by updating the coordinates of five points in the description of the East-West Corridor of the Valparaiso, Florida, Terminal Area. The points under § 93.81(b) are amended as follows: <GPOTABLE COLS="3" OPTS="L2,tp0,i1" CDEF="s100,xl100,r100"> <TTITLE> </TTITLE> <CHED H="1">Location</CHED> <CHED H="1">Original points</CHED> <CHED H="1">New points</CHED> <ROW> <ENT I="01">§ 93.81(b)(1)</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°22′47″ N, long. 86°51′30″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°22′47″ N, long. 86°51′30″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°23′46″ N, long. 86°38′15″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°23′46″ N, long. 86°38′15″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°20′51″ N, long. 86°38′50″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°20′47″ N, long. 86°38′51″ W *</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′31″ N, long. 86°51′30″W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′45″ N, long. 86°51′30″ W *</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">§ 93.81(b)(2)</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°38′12″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°38′12″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°25′00″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°25′00″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°22′26″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°22′26″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′46″ N, long. 86°23′45″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′46″ N, long. 86°23′45″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°20′51″ N, long. 86°38′50″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°20′47″ N, long. 86°38′51″ W *</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°23′46″ N, long. 86°38′15″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°23′46″ N, long. 86°38′15″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="01">§ 93.81(b)(3)</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°22′26″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°25′01″ N, long. 86°22′26″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°22′01″ N, long. 86°08′00″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°22′01″ N, long. 86°08′00″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′16″ N, long. 85°56′00″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′16″ N, long. 85°56′00″ W</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°11′01″ N, long. 85°56′00″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°11′08″ N, long. 85°56′00″ W *</ENT> </ROW> <ROW> <ENT I="22"> </ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′46″ N, long. 86°23′45″ W</ENT> <ENT>lat. 30°19′41″ N, long. 86°23′46″ W *</ENT> </ROW> <TNOTE>* Indicates those points revised in this final rule.</TNOTE> </GPOTABLE> <HD SOURCE="HD1">III. Regulatory Notices and Analyses</HD> Federal agencies consider impacts of regulatory actions under a variety of Executive orders and other requirements. First, Executive Order 12866 and Executive Order 13563, as amended by Executive Order 14094 (“Modernizing Regulatory Review”), direct that each Federal agency shall propose or adopt a regulation only upon a reasoned determination that the benefits of the intended regulation justify the costs. Second, the Regulatory Flexibility Act of 1980 (Pub. L. 96-354) requires agencies to analyze the economic impact of regulatory changes on small entities. Third, the Trade Agreements Act (Pub. L. 96-39) prohibits agencies from setting standards that create unnecessary obstacles to the foreign commerce of the United States. Fourth, the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-4) requires agencies to prepare a written assessment of the costs, benefits, and other effects of proposed or final rules that include a Federal mandate that may result in the expenditure by State, local, and Tribal governments, in the aggregate, or by the private sector, of $100 million or more (adjusted annually for inflation) in any one year. The current threshold after adjustment for inflation is $183 million using the most current (2023) Implicit Price Deflator for the Gross Domestic Product. This portion of the preamble summarizes the FAA's analysis of the economic impacts of this rule. In conducting these analyses, the FAA has determined this final rule has benefits that justify its costs. This rule is not a significant regulatory action, as defined in section 3(f) of Executive Order 12866 as amended by Executive Order 14094. As 5 U.S.C. 553 does not require notice and comment for this final rule, 5 U.S.C. 603 and 604 do not require regulatory flexibility analyses regarding impacts on small entities. This rule will not create unnecessary obstacles to ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ Preview showing 10k of 21k characters. Full document text is stored and available for version comparison. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━