Notice2026-01914
Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB; Agency Request for Renewal of Previously Approved Collections: Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel: Reporting Requirements for Disability-Related Complaints
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Published
January 30, 2026
Issuing agencies
Transportation Department
Abstract
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended), the Department is forwarding the Information Collection Request (ICR) described below to OMB for review. DOT published a Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period soliciting comments on the following collections of information on November 28, 2025 (90 FR 54,880). DOT received four comments on the 60- day notice which are addressed below. DOT considered the comments and concluded that it will not make any changes to the information collections before it submits the ICR to OMB for review. This notice is to allow the public an additional 30 days from the date of this notice to submit comments to the recently published application to renew OMB Control Number: 2105-0551, "Reporting Requirements for Disability- Related Complaints."
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 20 (Friday, January 30, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 20 (Friday, January 30, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4178-4179]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-01914]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Office of the Secretary
[Docket ID Number: DOT-OST-2010-0054]
Notice of Submission of Proposed Information Collection to OMB;
Agency Request for Renewal of Previously Approved Collections:
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability in Air Travel: Reporting
Requirements for Disability-Related Complaints
AGENCY: Office of the Secretary (OST), Department of Transportation
(Department or DOT).
ACTION: Notice of submission to the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44
U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended), the Department is forwarding the
Information Collection Request (ICR) described below to OMB for review.
DOT published a Federal Register notice with a 60-day comment period
soliciting comments on the following collections of information on
November 28, 2025 (90 FR 54,880). DOT received four comments on the 60-
day notice which are addressed below. DOT considered the comments and
concluded that it will not make any changes to the information
collections before it submits the ICR to OMB for review. This notice is
to allow the public an additional 30 days from the date of this notice
to submit comments to the recently published application to renew OMB
Control Number: 2105-0551, ``Reporting Requirements for Disability-
Related Complaints.''
DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments regarding this
proposal. Written comments should be submitted by March 2, 2026.
ADDRESSES: Written comments and recommendations for the proposed
information collection should be sent within 30 days of publication of
this notice via <a href="http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain">www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain</a>. Find this particular
information collection by selecting ``Currently under Review--Open for
Public Comments'' or by using the search function.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John Wood, Office of Aviation Consumer
Protection, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
SE, Washington, DC 20590, Telephone Number (202) 366-9342,
<a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#eba8dcdb85849f82888eab8f849fc58c849d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="135024237d7c677a707653777c673d747c65">[email protected]</span></a> (email). Arrangements to receive this document in an
alternative format may be made by contacting the above-named
individual.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
OMB Control Number: 2105-0551.
Title: Reporting Requirements for Disability-Related Complaints.
Type of Request: Renewal of information collections.
Background: The Department's regulation 14 CFR 382.157 requires
U.S. and foreign air carriers operating to, from and within the United
States that conduct passenger-carrying service with at least one
aircraft with a designed seating capacity of more than 60 passengers
(large aircraft) to record disability-related complaints. The carriers
must also categorize these complaints according to the type of
disability and nature of complaint, prepare a summary report annually
of the complaints received during the preceding calendar year, submit
the report to the Department's Office of Aviation Consumer Protection,
and retain copies of correspondence and records of action taken on the
reported complaints for three years. Carriers are required to submit
their annual report to the Department by the last Monday in January of
each year for the complaints received during the priority calendar
year. Carriers must submit their annual report through the World Wide
Web except if the carrier can demonstrate an undue burden by doing so
and receives permission from the Department to submit it in an
alternative manner.
The Department relies on the disability-related complaint
information collections primarily to comply with 49 U.S.C. 41705(c)(3),
which requires the Secretary of Transportation to ``regularly review
all complaints received by carriers alleging discrimination on the
basis of disability'' and ``report annually to Congress on the results
of such review.'' The Department may also rely on this information to
inform policy and in enforcement matters. The Department publishes the
data collected from airlines each year, and the corresponding reports
to Congress, on its website at: <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/annual-report-disability-related-air-travel-complaints">https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/annual-report-disability-related-air-travel-complaints</a>.
The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) and its implementing
regulations, 5 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 1320, require
Federal agencies to issue two notices seeking public comment on
information collection activities before OMB may approve paperwork
packages. On November 28, 2025, DOT published a 60-day notice in the
Federal Register soliciting comment on the ICRs for which the agency
seeks OMB approval. See 90 FR 54,880.
DOT received four comments on the notice. The commenters include
the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), Paralyzed Veterans of America
(PVA)--writing on behalf of 23 disability rights organizations or
chapters--a representative of North Central Independent Living
Services, and an anonymous member of the public.
In general, the commenters agreed that the requirements for
carriers to collect and report disability-related complaints received
by carriers are necessary. The commenters urged the Department to
enhance the collection of information so that it is more useful to
individuals with disabilities and better reflects what may be
violations of the Air Carrier Access Act (ACAA). In support of this,
PVA and MDA referenced the new reporting requirement of section 545 of
the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 that requires the Department to
submit a report to Congress on consumer complaints related to
passengers with disabilities filed with DOT. PVA stated that the
information required for this new report is more specific than
information that the Department currently collects from airlines, and
that some of the required information goes beyond the current data
collection.
With regard to the Department's burden estimates, PVA and MDA
highlighted the reporting efficiencies and capabilities of the
Department's Aviation Complaint, Enforcement, and Reporting System
(ACERS), which the Department recently rolled out for air carriers to
use to submit their reports. PVA asserted that DOT's estimate of .5
hours per year for airlines to submit reports to DOT may be
overestimated due to the efficiencies ACERS provides.
[[Page 4179]]
To minimize burden associated with the collections, PVA suggested that
carriers utilize check boxes for established complaint categories on
their complaint forms and make complaint forms easier to find on the
carriers' websites, so passengers do not have to call the carrier about
their complaint, which could increase the burden.
The anonymous commenter suggested that the Air Carrier Access Act
Advisory Committee participate in any discussions on changes to the
reporting requirement and provide recommendations for improvement. That
commenter also urged the Department to ensure that the report and its
web page are accessible with ACAA and Americans with Disabilities Act
(ADA) requirements.
After reviewing all the comments, DOT has determined that no
changes are necessary to the ICR prior to submission to OMB for review.
DOT's annual reports are comprised of data that airlines are currently
required to report under 14 CFR part 382. As such, any enhancements to
these reporting requirements, including those suggested by the
commenters, would be more appropriately addressed through rulemaking.
The Department agrees with PVA and MDA that ACERS offers carriers
enhanced reporting efficiencies. However, for the purposes of seeking
renewal of these ICRs, DOT will retain its burden estimate of .5 hours.
This estimate accounts for all reporting carriers and includes a
reasonable estimate of time carriers will need to conduct the due
diligence required to prepare and submit an accurate report. With
respect to publishing accessible content on its web pages, DOT remains
committed to ensuring that content posted on its website, including
reports, is accessible to individuals with disabilities to federal
accessibility standards.
The Department announces that these information collection
activities have been re-evaluated and certified under 5 CFR 1320.5(a)
and is forwarding to OMB for review and approval pursuant to 5 CFR
1320.12(c). Before OMB decides whether to approve these proposed
collections of information, it must provide 30 days for public comment.
44 U.S.C. 3507(b); 5 CFR 1320.12(d). Federal law requires OMB to
approve or disapprove paperwork packages between 30 and 60 days after
the 30-day notice is published. 44 U.S.C. 3507(b)-(c); 5 CFR
1320.12(d); see also 60 FR 44,983 (Aug. 29, 1995). Therefore,
respondents should submit their respective comments to OMB within 30
days of publication to best ensure their full consideration. 5 CFR
1320.12(c); see also 60 FR 44,983 (Aug. 29, 1995).
For each information collection, the title, a description of the
respondents, and an estimate of the annual recordkeeping and periodic
reporting burden are set forth below.
(1) Requirement to record and categorize complaints received.
Respondents: U.S. air carriers and foreign air carriers operating
to and from the United States that conduct passenger-carrying service
with at least one large aircraft.
Number of Respondents: 170 (the total number of respondents that
reported for Calendar Year (CY) 2023).\1\
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\1\ Disability-related complaints data for CY 2023 were the most
recent data available to the Department as of the time of the
Department's estimates to support this request for renewal.
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Frequency: 49,082 complaints per year total for all respondents,
which represents the number of complaints received by all respondents
combined during CY 2023 (0-9,717 complaints is the range of the lowest
number of complaints and the highest number of complaints received by
any respondent during CY 2023).
Estimated Burden on Respondents: .25 hours on each respondent to
categorize and record each complaint.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 12,270.5 hours for all respondents
(time to record and categorize each complaint (.25 hours) multiplied by
the total number of complaints received during CY 2023 (49,082)). On
average, the estimated annual burden per respondent is a range of 0-
2,429.25 hours per carrier.
(2) Requirement to prepare and submit annual report.
Carriers will generally submit their reports electronically through
ACERS or another means approved by the Department.
Respondents: U.S. air carriers and foreign air carriers operating
to and from the United States that conduct passenger-carrying service
with at least one large aircraft.
Number of Respondents: 170 (the total number of respondents that
reported for CY 2023).
Frequency: 1 report to DOT per year for each respondent.
Estimated Burden on Respondents: 0.5 hours a year for each
respondent to report to DOT.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 85 hours for all respondents (time
to report (0.5 hours) multiplied by 170, the total number of
respondents).
(3) Requirement to retain correspondences and records of action
taken on all disability-related complaints.
Respondents: U.S. air carriers and foreign air carriers operating
to and from the United States that conduct passenger-carrying service
with at least one large aircraft.
Number of Respondents: 170 (the total number of respondents that
reported for CY2023).
Frequency: 49,082 complaints per year total for all respondents,
which represents the number of complaints received by all respondents
combined during CY 2023 (0-9,717 complaints is the range of the lowest
number of complaints and the highest number of complaints received by
any respondent during CY 2023).
Estimated Burden on Respondents: 0.083 (repeating) hours per
complaint (the time it takes for a respondent to retain or save the
correspondences and records of action taken on a single disability-
related complaint).
Estimated Total Annual Burden: 4,090.17 hours (time it takes for a
respondent to retain or save the correspondences and records of action
taken on a single disability-related complaints (0.083 (repeating)
hours) multiplied by the total number of complaints received during CY
2023 (49,082)).
Comments Invited
Comments are invited on: (a) Whether the collection of information
is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the
Department, including whether the information will have practical
utility; (b) the accuracy of the Department's estimate of the burden of
the proposed information collection; (c) ways to enhance the quality,
utility and clarity of the information to be collected; and (d) ways to
minimize the burden of the collection of information on respondents.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C. chapter
35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.26, 1.27, 1.48; DOT Order 1351.29A.
Issued in Washington, DC, on January 28, 2026.
Livaughn Chapman, Jr.,
Deputy Assistant General Counsel.
[FR Doc. 2026-01914 Filed 1-29-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-9X-P
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