49 U.S.C. § 1113 : US Code - Section 1113: Administrative

Search 49 U.S.C. § 1113 : US Code - Section 1113: Administrative

(a) General Authority. - (1) The National Transportation Safety
Board, and when authorized by it, a member of the Board, an
administrative law judge employed by or assigned to the Board, or
an officer or employee designated by the Chairman of the Board, may
conduct hearings to carry out this chapter, administer oaths, and
require, by subpena or otherwise, necessary witnesses and evidence.
(2) A witness or evidence in a hearing under paragraph (1) of
this subsection may be summoned or required to be produced from any
place in the United States to the designated place of the hearing.
A witness summoned under this subsection is entitled to the same
fee and mileage the witness would have been paid in a court of the
United States.
(3) A subpena shall be issued under the signature of the Chairman
or the Chairman's delegate but may be served by any person
designated by the Chairman.
(4) If a person disobeys a subpena, order, or inspection notice
of the Board, the Board may bring a civil action in a district
court of the United States to enforce the subpena, order, or
notice. An action under this paragraph may be brought in the
judicial district in which the person against whom the action is
brought resides, is found, or does business. The court may punish a
failure to obey an order of the court to comply with the subpena,
order, or notice as a contempt of court.
(b) Additional Powers. - (1) The Board may -
(A) procure the temporary or intermittent services of experts
or consultants under section 3109 of title 5;
(B) make agreements and other transactions necessary to carry
out this chapter without regard to section 3709 of the Revised
Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5);
(C) use, when appropriate, available services, equipment,
personnel, and facilities of a department, agency, or
instrumentality of the United States Government on a reimbursable
or other basis;
(D) confer with employees and use services, records, and
facilities of State and local governmental authorities;
(E) appoint advisory committees composed of qualified private
citizens and officials of the Government and State and local
governments as appropriate;
(F) accept voluntary and uncompensated services notwithstanding
another law;
(G) accept gifts of money and other property;
(H) make contracts with nonprofit entities to carry out studies
related to duties and powers of the Board; and
(I) negotiate and enter into agreements with individuals and
private entities and departments, agencies, and instrumentalities
of the Government, State and local governments, and governments
of foreign countries for the provision of facilities, accident-
related and technical services or training in accident
investigation theory and techniques, and require that such
entities provide appropriate consideration for the reasonable
costs of any facilities, goods, services, or training provided by
the Board.
(2) The Board shall deposit in the Treasury amounts received
under paragraph (1)(I) of this subsection to be credited as
offsetting collections to the appropriation of the Board. The Board
shall maintain an annual record of collections received under
paragraph (1)(I) of this subsection.
(c) Submission of Certain Copies to Congress. - When the Board
submits to the President or the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget a budget estimate, budget request,
supplemental budget estimate, other budget information, a
legislative recommendation, prepared testimony for congressional
hearings, or comments on legislation, the Board must submit a copy
to Congress at the same time. An officer, department, agency, or
instrumentality of the Government may not require the Board to
submit the estimate, request, information, recommendation,
testimony, or comments to another officer, department, agency, or
instrumentality of the Government for approval, comment, or review
before being submitted to Congress.
(d) Liaison Committees. - The Chairman may determine the number
of committees that are appropriate to maintain effective liaison
with other departments, agencies, and instrumentalities of the
Government, State and local governmental authorities, and
independent standard-setting authorities that carry out programs
and activities related to transportation safety. The Board may
designate representatives to serve on or assist those committees.
(e) Inquiries. - The Board, or an officer or employee of the
Board designated by the Chairman, may conduct an inquiry to obtain
information related to transportation safety after publishing
notice of the inquiry in the Federal Register. The Board or
designated officer or employee may require by order a department,
agency, or instrumentality of the Government, a State or local
governmental authority, or a person transporting individuals or
property in commerce to submit to the Board a written report and
answers to requests and questions related to a duty or power of the
Board. The Board may prescribe the time within which the report and
answers must be given to the Board or to the designated officer or
employee. Copies of the report and answers shall be made available
for public inspection.
(f) Regulations. - The Board may prescribe regulations to carry
out this chapter.
(g) Overtime Pay. -
(1) In general. - Subject to the requirements of this section
and notwithstanding paragraphs (1) and (2) of section 5542(a) of
title 5, for an employee of the Board whose basic pay is at a
rate which equals or exceeds the minimum rate of basic pay for GS-
10 of the General Schedule, the Board may establish an overtime
hourly rate of pay for the employee with respect to work
performed at the scene of an accident (including travel to or
from the scene) and other work that is critical to an accident
investigation in an amount equal to one and one-half times the
hourly rate of basic pay of the employee. All of such amount
shall be considered to be premium pay.
(2) Limitation on overtime pay to an employee. - An employee of
the Board may not receive overtime pay under paragraph (1), for
work performed in a calendar year, in an amount that exceeds 15
percent of the annual rate of basic pay of the employee for such
calendar year.
(3) Limitation on total amount of overtime pay. - The Board may
not make overtime payments under paragraph (1) for work performed
in any fiscal year in a total amount that exceeds 1.5 percent of
the amount appropriated to carry out this chapter for that fiscal
year.
(4) Basic pay defined. - In this subsection, the term "basic
pay" includes any applicable locality-based comparability payment
under section 5304 of title 5 (or similar provision of law) and
any special rate of pay under section 5305 of title 5 (or similar
provision of law).
(5) Annual report. - Not later than January 31, 2002, and
annually thereafter, the Board shall transmit to the Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee a report identifying
the total amount of overtime payments made under this subsection
in the preceding fiscal year, and the number of employees whose
overtime pay under this subsection was limited in that fiscal
year as a result of the 15 percent limit established by paragraph
(2).