[Laws in effect as of January 16, 1996]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 16, 1996 and August 28, 1996]
[CITE: 42USC4911]
TITLE 42--THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE
CHAPTER 65-- NOISE CONTROL
Sec. 4911. Citizen suits
(a) Authority to commence suits
Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, any person
(other than the United States) may commence a civil action on his own
behalf--
(1) against any person (including (A) the United States, and (B)
any other governmental instrumentality or agency to the extent
permitted by the eleventh amendment to the Constitution) who is
alleged to be in violation of any noise control requirement (as
defined in subsection (e) \1\ of this section), or
(2) against--
(A) the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency
where there is alleged a failure of such Administrator to
perform any act or duty under this chapter which is not
discretionary with such Administrator, or
(B) the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration
where there is alleged a failure of such Administrator to
perform any act or duty under section 44715 of title 49 which is
not discretionary with such Administrator.
The district courts of the United States shall have jurisdiction,
without regard to the amount in controversy, to restrain such person
from violating such noise control requirement or to order such
Administrator to perform such act or duty, as the case may be.
(b) Notice
No action may be commenced--
(1) under subsection (a)(1) of this section--
(A) prior to sixty days after the plaintiff has given notice
of the violation (i) to the Administrator of the Environmental
Protection Agency (and to the Federal Aviation Administrator in
the case of a violation of a noise control requirement under
such section 44715 of title 49) and (ii) to any alleged violator
of such requirement, or
(B) if an Administrator has commenced and is diligently
prosecuting a civil action to require compliance with the noise
control requirement, but in any such action in a court of the
United States any person may intervene as a matter of right, or
(2) under subsection (a)(2) of this section prior to sixty days
after the plaintiff has given notice to the defendant that he will
commence such action.
Notice under this subsection shall be given in such manner as the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency shall prescribe by
regulation.
(c) Intervention
In an action under this section, the Administrator of the
Environmental Protection Agency, if not a party, may intervene as a
matter of right. In an action under this section respecting a noise
control requirement under section 44715 of title 49, the Administrator
of the Federal Aviation Administration, if not a party, may also
intervene as a matter of right.
(d) Litigation costs
The court, in issuing any final order in any action brought pursuant
to subsection (a) of this section, may award costs of litigation
(including reasonable attorney and expert witness fees) to any party,
whenever the court determines such an award is appropriate.
(e) Other common law or statutory rights of action
Nothing in this section shall restrict any right which any person
(or class of persons) may have under any statute or common law to seek
enforcement of any noise control requirement or to seek any other relief
(including relief against an Administrator).
(f) ``Noise control requirement'' defined
For purposes of this section, the term ``noise control requirement''
means paragraph (1), (2), (3), (4), or (5) of section 4909(a) of this
title, or a standard, rule, or regulation issued under section 4916 or
4917 of this title or under section 44715 of title 49.
(Pub. L. 92-574, Sec. 12, Oct. 27, 1972, 86 Stat. 1243.)
Codification
In subsecs. (a)(2)(B), (b)(1)(A), (c), and (f), ``section 44715 of
title 49'' substituted for ``section 611 of the Federal Aviation Act of
1958'' and ``such section 611'' on authority of Pub. L. 103-272,
Sec. 6(b), July 5, 1994, 108 Stat. 1378, the first section of which
enacted subtitles II, III, and V to X of Title 49, Transportation.
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 4902, 4916, 4917 of this
title.