Senate Begins Debate Later Today
HAI President Matt Zuccaro is extremely pleased to report the long-delayed FAA Reauthorization Bill impasse has now been settled, and the U.S. Senate is slated to take up the bill later today, April 28. Under the deal, the assessment of a $25 per flight surcharge on general aviation has been dropped.
The Senate is expected to vote tonight to limit debate on a motion to proceed to legislation designed to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration and pave the way for modernization of the air traffic control system. The only thing that could gum up the cloture vote on the bill (HR 2881) scheduled for 5:30 p.m. is the rainy weather along the Eastern seaboard — which threatened to disrupt and delay air travel.
The Commerce panel approved the Senate version of the FAA bill (S 1300), while the Finance Committee handled the financing portion (S 2345). Those two measures are likely to be combined into a large substitute amendment for consideration on the Senate floor. The deal would provide as much as $290 million in new funding each year for the Airport and Airway Trust Fund to finance the NextGen system. It also would restore $5 billion to the Highway Trust Fund for fiscal 2009 to cover various shortfalls.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) will bring the bill to the floor for debate, and Republicans have indicated they will not object. The deal was reached on April 25 and is modeled on a package the Senate Finance Committee approved last year that would increase fuel taxes on general aviation to 36 cents per gallon from 21.8 cents a gallon. The compromise is a victory for HAI and the general aviation industry as we had strongly opposed the $25 surcharge plan and lobbied Congress hard and long.
The deal leaves out an increase in international ticket taxes to $16.50 a ticket from $15.10 a ticket as a concession to the airline industry. The bill will require airlines to develop contingency plans for dealing with extended tarmac delays, including how the airline will ensure that passengers receive adequate food, water, and restroom facilities. The bill also mandates airlines improve disclosure of information on chronically delayed flights on their Web sites. The bill also raises the mandatory pilot retirement age from 60 to 65 for commercial pilots.
The FAA bill is likely to be a vehicle for amendments aimed at addressing recent problems with airline inspections, passenger rights, and the proposed merger of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines to form the world’s biggest carrier. While lawmakers are unlikely to use the FAA bill to block the pending merger, there has been growing concern in Congress about potential workforce disruptions as a result of the merger. The airlines blame any possible reduction in the workforce upon the fact that oil prices have doubled over the past 12 months and helped drive five airlines into bankruptcy.
The last full FAA authorization expired at the end of September 2007 and the agency has been operating on short-term extensions since. The FAA’s current authorization expires at the end of June. The House passed its FAA authorization bill in September, and once the Senate passes a bill, differences between the two versions will need to be ironed out in a House-Senate conference committee.
While HAI is exceedingly pleased at the outcome in the Senate, much work remains to be done with respect to other provisions contained in the Senate bill. HAI members are strongly encouraged to review the information on HAI’s home page at www.rotor.com under FAA Reauthorization Bill concerning those issues and to utilize HAI’s Contact Congress link at the appropriate time. HAI will issue legislative alerts to our members.