TagSteven Taber(8)

A legal review of the FAA's new Aircraft Noise Advisory Committee (ANAC) finds that while the committee includes community representatives, aviation industry members are likely to outnumber and outvote them, limiting residents' real influence over noise policy decisions. The review also raises concerns that key technical work done in subcommittees may happen outside public view, with no requirement for minority reports when community members are overruled. The author recommends the FAA adopt clearer voting rules, guaranteed community seats on subcommittees, and routine public disclosure of meeting records and competing recommendations.

Vashon Island Fair Skies, a Washington nonprofit corporation, has filed a petition for review against the Federal Aviation Administration in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (Case No. 25-7373), docketed on November 24, 2025. The case challenges an FAA decision and is represented on the petitioner's side by attorney Steven M. Taber of Leech Tishman Nelson Hardiman, with the FAA and U.S. Department of Justice defending the agency's position. This case likely relates to aircraft noise or airspace management issues affecting Vashon Island, located near Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

Vashon Island Fair Skies (VIFS), a Washington nonprofit representing residents affected by aircraft noise, has filed a petition in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals challenging a September 2025 FAA decision approving near-term expansion projects at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. The group argues that the FAA's environmental review failed to adequately address the significant noise impacts on Vashon and Maury Islands resulting from concentrated, low-altitude flight paths introduced under the FAA's NextGen navigation program. VIFS has been actively opposing these flight path changes since 2018, when new Performance-Based Navigation procedures began routing more aircraft directly over the islands at lower altitudes.

Steven M. Taber is a Partner at Leech Tishman law firm specializing in environmental law, aviation and airport development, and related regulatory matters, with experience advising airports, municipalities, and community groups on noise and capacity issues under statutes such as the Airport Noise and Capacity Act and the Aviation Safety and Noise Abatement Act. He previously served as an attorney for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where he was involved in drafting FAA Environmental Orders 1050.1E and 5050.4B, and has counseled clients navigating FAA enforcement actions and airport modernization programs. While his profile does not reference Sea-Tac Airport specifically, his broad expertise in aviation noise policy, environmental review processes, and federal aviation regulations makes him a relevant figure in airport noise policy research.