CAA: GA News, "At last: FAA Funding agreement reached on the Hill"

["Stephen Irwin" <stepheni@cwnet.com>]

Friday, March 17, 2000

At last: FAA Funding agreement reached on the Hill
GA News


Congressional leaders have reached an agreement paving the way for adoption
of AIR 21 (Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century), and as
this issue went to press a vote on the bill, and its passage, was expected
within days. AIR 21 was supposed to be the legislative centerpiece of last
year’s “Year of Aviation” on Capitol Hill, but the House and Senate were
unable to compromise on its terms.

The agreement calls for $40 billion in spending over three years for airport
improvements and system upgrades, $33.3 billion to come from the Airport and
Airways Trust Fund, and $6.7 billion from general funds.

The dispensing of Trust Fund dollars has long been a contentious issue.
Collected from aviation excise taxes on fuel, passengers and cargo, it is
carried on the government books in the general budget, without a
corresponding obligation to spend, and thus makes the nation’s finances
appear healthier. Aviation interests have long sought to have the Fund taken
“off budget,” which Congress and presidents alike have been reluctant to do.
Under the compromise agreement, the Trust Fund will remain in the general
budget, but the amount of the funds spent on aviation will increase
substantially. Currently, about $12 billion is in the fund. In 1999, $1.6
billion of it was spent on AIP (Airport Improvement Program) projects, and
in each of the two previous years, $1.2 billion in AIP funding was allotted
from the fund.

Supporters of the legislation have reacted positively to the negotiated
terms.

“This compromise I think will be good for general aviation, it’s a
compromise that will do good for airports across the board, and it’s a
compromise that will get the money flowing,” said NASAO (National
Association of State Aviation Officials) president and CEO Henry Ogrodzinski
shortly before the final agreement was reached. NASAO was one of the
spectrum of aviation groups actively involved in lobbying for passage,
including AOPA, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and
the National Air Transportation Association (NATA).

Pressure to deal with the funding issue has grown as current and anticipated
effects of congressional inaction became apparent. A recent study conducted
by NASAO and AASHTO (American Association of State Highway and
Transportation Officials) found that in the absence of FAA funding, $1.2
billion in needed airport improvement projects were on hold, and projects
totaling $425 million could be canceled. The National Governors’
Association, meeting in D.C. in February, lobbied members of Congress for
passage, and at the end of the month, Governor Edward Shafer (R-North
Dakota) and Paul Patton (D-Kentucky) testified before the House in support
of the bill.

GA airports, unlike commercial service airports, are almost totally
dependent on AIP funds to maintain and improve facilities, and should see
significant improvements once the money starts flowing. In the interim,
commercial air travelers will likely be the first to notice changes: To help
fund the increased spending, passenger facility charges will rise to $4.50
from $3 per ticket. Also, the number of landing slots will be increased at
Chicago’s O’Hare and Washington National in Washington, D.C. In addition to
airport projects, the money will be spent on upgrading ATC (Air Traffic
Control) and other systems.

“It’s good for all of aviation, and especially good for general aviation,”
concluded NASAO’s Ogrodzinski, regarding the long-awaited funding
reauthorization.

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