Airport Construction Grants In Bill Could 'Support' 90,000 Jobs, Senators Say

Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation has introduced the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act. It is the same bill that passed the U.S. Senate last year, 93-0.

Senator Rockefeller

“This is a significant FAA package that will support thousands of jobs, strengthen airline safety and modernize America’s outdated air traffic control system. It will lead to a better aviation system for all Americans,” Chairman Rockefeller said in a news release. “Our aviation system is fundamental to our communities and our nation’s long-term economic growth. I am committed to getting this bill to the President’s desk this year.”

The FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act introduced in the Senate would:

• Require the FAA to develop a plan to provide runway incursion information to pilots in the cockpit, and initiate better processes for tracking and investigating operational errors.
• Require better safety oversight of foreign repair stations.
• Improve safety for helicopter emergency medical service operations by mandating that the FAA standardize dispatch procedures, and requiring the use of terrain awareness and warning systems, and flight data and cockpit voice recorders on board such helicopters.
• Strengthen the inspection of airline operations.

The measure includes several provisions to modernize the nation’s air transportation system, and to ensure that the FAA adopts the next generation of air traffic control technology in a timely and effective manner. The bill would:

• Establish clear deadlines for the adoption of existing Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) navigation and surveillance technology. For example, the bill requires the development of Required Navigation Performance (RNP) and Area Navigation (RNAV) procedures at the busiest 35 airports by 2014, and for the entire National Airspace System (NAS) by 2018.
• Direct the FAA to accelerate planned timelines for integrating Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology into the NAS.
• Create an “Air Traffic Control Modernization Oversight Board” to provide better oversight of FAA’s modernization programs.
• Establish a “Chief NextGen Officer” position at FAA to oversee implementation of all NextGen programs, and provide greater accountability over the modernization process.

Chairman Rockefeller says key provisions in the bill will strengthen the federal government’s commitment to small community air service. Specifically, he says the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act would:

• Propose a number of improvements to the Essential Air Service (EAS) program to allow communities greater flexibility in attracting desired air service, including: (1) permitting new financial incentives into contracts with EAS carriers to encourage better service; (2) allowing longer-term EAS contracts if such an arrangement is in the public interest; (3) allowing the development of incentives for large airlines to code-share on service to small communities; and (4) requiring large airlines to code-share on EAS flights in up to 10 communities.
• Establish an Office of Rural Aviation within the Department of Transportation (DOT) to focus on the development of longer-term EAS contracts.
• Extend a provision that raises the federal share for certain small airport improvement projects to 95 percent.

The online news site The Blaze reports that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said that the bill would "support" as many as 90,000 jobs, and could affect another 190,000. The language was important because it is not known how may of the jobs would be new.

The bill stalled in congress last year after lawmakers from the House and Senate were unable to agree on some key issues, including a long-simmering labor dispute between UPS and FedEx Express. Landing slot distribution at Washington's Regan National Airport were also a sticking point in the negotiations.

Congressman Mica

At the first meeting held this year by the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, incoming Chairman John Mica (R-7-FL) called FAA reauthorization a top priority, stating “The country and the committee deserve as our first objective getting an FAA bill out.” Mica noted the economic importance of aviation in the U.S., and said “a blueprint for the future” is needed for the industry. A House committee hearing on FAA reauthorization is scheduled for February 8, and the says it NBAA plans to submit comments to the committee.

NBAA President and CEO Ed Bolen welcomed the renewed emphasis in Congress on completing an FAA reauthorization package. “The general aviation community supports continued transformation to a modernized aviation system, and we are pleased that, in the coming weeks, Congress will be focused on this issue," Bolen said.

FMI: http://commerce.senate.gov, http://transportation.house.gov