Safety culture review

(a) In general Not later than 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the inspector general of the Department of Transportation shall initiate an audit of the safety culture and the safety management system of the Air Traffic Organization. (b) Considerations In conducting the audit under subsection (a), the inspector general shall, at a minimum, evaluate— (1) the safety management system of the Air Traffic Organization, including the functions and data sharing activities of such system at all air traffic control facilities; (2) whether such system effectively coordinated safety assurance and safety risk management activities with external stakeholders within the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Class B airspace; (3) which data analysis, safety assurance, and risk assessment processes failed to identify and mitigate the risk of potential midair collisions near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport before January 29, 2025; (4) the failure of the Air Traffic Organization to recognize external compliance verification results as indicators of systemic traffic management, volume, and flow issues at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport for which air traffic controllers were required to compensate to mitigate such issues; (5) the failure of the Air Traffic Organization to conduct annual reviews of helicopter route charts as required by FAA Order JO 7210.3EE, titled Facility Operation and Administration; (6) the failure of the Air Traffic Organization to understand and implement post-accident and post-incident drug and alcohol testing as required by Department of Transportation Order 3910.1D, titled Drug and Alcohol-Free Departmental Workplace Program; (7) whether there are fears of retaliation against persons identifying or reporting risks in accordance with the safety management system; and (8) how the Air Traffic Organization has addressed the findings and utilized the Safety Risk Management process in accordance with FAA Order 8040.4C, titled Safety Risk Management Policy (or any successor document) in the National Airspace System Helicopter Operations Helicopter Route Analysis of the FAA issued in April 2025. (c) Report of the inspector general (1) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the inspector general shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report on the audit conducted under subsection (a). (2) Recommendations The inspector general shall include in the report submitted under paragraph (1)— (A) recommendations for actions the Secretary should take with respect to the Air Traffic Organization to— (i) strengthen and adhere to the tenets of the safety management system; (ii) increase transparency in the safety management system process, including by adopting policies that provide assurances to FAA employees that the Air Traffic Organization is addressing any identified safety issues; (iii) increase data sharing and collaboration with external stakeholders; (iv) protect against retaliation; (v) encourage open, nonpunitive communication; and (vi) foster a just culture across the Air Traffic Organization; (B) recommendations for actions the Secretary may take to ensure adequate oversight over the safety management system of the Air Traffic Organization; and (C) any other recommendations the inspector general determines appropriate. (d) Response to recommendations Not later than 120 days after submission of the report required under subsection (c)— (1) the Secretary shall respond to any recommendations in such report that are directed at the Department of Transportation or FAA, respectively; and (2) the Secretary shall submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a report describing how the Secretary intends to implement such recommendations.