S.Amdt. 3785

SA 3785. Mr. WARNER (for himself and Mr. Kaine) submitted an
amendment intended to be proposed to amendment SA 3679 proposed by Mr.
McConnell (for Mr. Thune (for himself and Mr. Nelson)) to the bill H.R.
636, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to permanently extend
increased expensing limitations, and for other purposes; which was
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

On page 238, after line 23, add the following:

SEC. 2507. USE OF FEDERAL FACILITIES FOR AVIATION TESTING.

(a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
(1) Wallops Flight Facility is an important Federal
research and test site that supports the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (referred to in this section as
``NASA'' and other Federal and non-Federal entities through
the conduct of hazardous rocket and aviation-based missions,
including the launch and recovery of experimental space
vehicles and aircraft being developed for NASA, the
Department of Defense, and private industry.
(2) The designation of restricted airspace provides the
Wallops Flight Facility with critical capability to safely
conduct the missions described in paragraph (1) by protecting
public and private aircraft from the hazards associated with
such missions.
(3) Although Wallops Flight Facility has been working with
the Federal Aviation Administration to extend its restricted
airspace in order to meet the national needs of its programs
for more than 5 years, and has been in a formal application
process for more than 2 years, Federal Aviation
Administration officials have not yet approved such an
extension.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the Sense of Congress that--
(1) it is in the public interest to make full use of
Federal facilities, including facilities operated by NASA, to
support aviation testing and operations;
(2) Federal regulations governing the use of restricted
airspace to support the activities described in paragraph (1)
should be continually reviewed to ensure that such
regulations support such activities; and

[[Page S2057]]

(3) it is imperative that updates and changes sought by
Federal agencies to support hazardous rocket and aviation-
based missions are evaluated and resolved by the Federal
Aviation Administration as expeditiously as possible.
(c) Rulemaking.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of the Federal
Aviation Administration, after considering the interagency
and public comments received over the course of the review
described in subsection (a)(3), shall issue a rule regarding
the requested extension of restricted airspace surrounding
Wallops Flight Facility.
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