Congressional Impasse on Airport Legislation Continues
August 01, 2011
by Leslie Wollack
UPDATE, August 5: On Friday, the President signed a short-term extension of federal airport programs, ending the Congressional impasse that had halted construction dollars to local airports, ended authority to collect airline ticket taxes and left FAA employees and constructions workers without pay.
Congress will need to resolve the underlying issues around collective bargaining and subsidies to small airports that would otherwise not have commercial air services when they return after the August recess. The stopgap measure will allow the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to operate through Sept. 16.
As the Congressional impasse over an extension of federal airport legislation continues, funds for current and future municipal airport improvements cannot be distributed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and current revenues are going to the airlines rather than the Airport Trust Fund for the future. Construction funds for municipal airports across the country have been held up by the FAA, due to the shutdown of the government program for the first time in its history.
The House and Senate have been unable to reach agreement on another extension of federal aviation programs, which expired on July 22. Congress has passed 19 extensions since September 2009, when the initial legislation expired.
The current disagreement between the House and Senate centers around whether or not to pass a straight extension of current programs or include several policy changes, which were contained in the House-passed extension.
House Transportation Committee Chairman John Mica (R-Fla.) is insisting that the House will not adopt a clean extension of the programs. Some of these contested provisions, including labor issues, have held up agreement on the FAA bill since it expired in September 2009. New to the controversy is the House-passed phasing out of the Essential Air Services Program, which provides subsidies for small airports that would otherwise not receive commercial airline service.
For local governments this means that airport taxes included in airline tickets are no longer authorized and funds collected by airlines are not going into the Airport Trust Fund and will not be available for future airport improvement projects. The FAA also cannot release funding for current projects promised to municipal airports.
NLC supports a straight extension of the current program and opposes phasing out the Essential Air Services program.
NLC joined with the National Association of Counties (NACo) in urging Congress to adopt a short-term extension of the FAA bill without policy amendments.
“At a time when Congress is debating budget reductions, it is in no one’s interest to permit the Airport Trust Fund to lose $25-$30 million daily or to halt hundreds of capital projects at the airports our members own and operate,” said NLC Executive Director Donald J. Borut in a joint letter with NACo Executive Director Larry Naake to House and Senate leaders.
“We understand that many of the issues in the House and Senate reauthorization legislation have been resolved with only four or five major issues that still need to be addressed,” the letter stated. “A clean extension that does not include any of these unresolved issues needs to be passed by both the House and Senate in order to stop the hemorrhaging of Airport Trust Fund tax receipts and restart airports projects that will put back to work thousands of American citizens. Conferees should immediately meet to work out a final agreement after a clean extension is adopted.”
Local officials are encouraged to contact their Congressional offices and call on Congress to enact a “clean” FAA extension.