Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5147) to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the funding and expenditure authority of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, to amend title 49, United States Code, to extend authorizations for the airport improvement program, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 5147.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5147, the Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010. I want to thank Chairman Oberstar and Ranking Member Mica, as well as Mr. Petri for working with me to bring this bill to the floor today.

In both the 110th and 111th Congresses, the House passed comprehensive legislation to reauthorize the FAA and to provide for much-needed modernization of our aviation system. Last month, the other body passed its own FAA reauthorization bill. We look forward to the completion of a final comprehensive bill, and are in the process of working out the differences in both legislation to reconcile and bring a conference report to the floor.

However, the airport and airways trust fund will expire on April 30, 2010, and the bill before us today is needed to extend the aviation taxes and expenditure authority, and the airport improvement program contract authority until July 3, 2010.

Specifically, H.R. 5147 provides $3 billion in AIP contract authority through early July, which translates to an annualized amount of $4 billion for fiscal year 2010. This level of funding is consistent with the annual levels provided by the House and Senate reauthorization bills, as well as the fiscal year 2010 concurrent budget resolution.

These additional funds will allow airports to continue critical safety capacity enhancement projects. Additionally, the bill provides $7 billion for the FAA operations; $2.2 billion for facility and equipment programs; and $144 million for research, engineering and development programs.

When translated to yearly amounts, these AIP figures equal the funding levels passed in the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriation Act of 2010. In addition, aviation excise taxes will also be extended through July 3,

2010. These taxes are necessary to support the airport and airways trust fund, which funds a large portion of the FAA's budget. Any lapse in these taxes could drain the trust fund's balance, so it is important that we act now pending the passage of a longer-term reauthorization bill.

Aviation is too important to our Nation's economy, contributing $1.2 trillion in output and approximately 11.4 million jobs, to allow the taxes or the funding for critical aviation programs to expire. Congress must ensure that this extension passes today to ensure that our aviation system is not disrupted and continues to function safely. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, let me concur with the remarks of the ranking member of the full committee, Mr. Mica, and Mr. Petri in his statement. I do want to make it clear, though, that in this House we have done our job, both in 2007 and in 2009. The committee, and also the full House, passed the reauthorization bill; and on both occasions, in 2007 and 2009, we sent it over to the Senate and waited for the other body to act. Unfortunately, the other body did not act until recently, and as I said in my opening remarks, we are negotiating with them now to resolve our differences so that we can bring a bill to the floor in order to get it to the President.

Mr. Mica is right about the Airline Pilot and Safety Act as well. We did pass that legislation both in the committee and the House. It was a bipartisan bill. It is urgently needed. It is a part of the reauthorization process. And, again, it is my hope that we can work out our differences and quickly bring a conference report to the floor. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I thank Mr. Petri, our ranking member on the Aviation Subcommittee, for yielding me this time. I am pleased also to recognize the fine work of the current chair of the Aviation Subcommittee, Mr. Costello and our chair of the full committee, Mr. Oberstar.

I am here today, Mr. Speaker and my colleagues, and folks, you haven't tuned in here to the comedy hour. In fact, it is almost sort of a sad time. It almost seems like a bit of a sad comedy that we are back here for the 15th time extending FAA authorization, authorization for all of the policy, Federal programs that deal with aviation, the 15th time, and this is the 13th extension.

Mr. Petri is the ranking member of aviation, Mr. Costello the current chair. When I came to Congress, Mr. Oberstar was the chair of the Aviation Subcommittee and I was in the minority but a member of the committee. From 2001 to 2008, I was the chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee. In fact, in 2003, I wrote the current FAA authorization that has been extended some 13 times with the passage of this today. I know I did a great job and a thorough job, but I never intended it to last on and on. And it wasn't intended to last on and on. At that time we did a 4-year bill. We set the policies, the projects. We set all of the safety criteria for aviation in the country.

But what particularly burns me right now is we have a commuter aviation safety piece of legislation that we intend to incorporate in this extension. We have had it done for some time. We worked in a bipartisan fashion; and that sits idle. We sat down in a bipartisan fashion after we had a number of disastrous commuter flights, one up in New York, and our heart aches for those families who have suffered the loss of a loved one. We had a responsibility to pass that legislation; and that legislation, which is part of the extension, is still sitting today undone. But again, 15 times we have been here. This is the 13th extension. This goes on to July of a bill that I authored back in 2003 that expired in 2007.

And it couldn't come at a worse time for the economy. We need in place that policy. We need the funding formula in place. We need the ability to move and expand our airports which are our main transportation hub of today and the future.

The modernization of the air traffic control system and the provisions that we put in this to move that forward are also stalled, it's called NextGen, next-generation air traffic control. This is very sad. When you stop and think about it, 11 percent of the economy of the United States of America deals around the aviation industry. This is big business, it's big jobs, and, unfortunately it's stalled. And that's sad.

I'm not here to point fingers. The House has done due diligence. The other body continues to work on the measure. They've made some progress of late. There are some issues in here, one that's called the FedEx provision, which does expand some unionization provisions if it is passed. Quite frankly, the Senate has said that provision is not going to be accepted. Many on the House oppose this on both sides of the aisle. Let's take the controversial things, put them aside, and move forward with the bill.

Foreign repair stations. We cannot abrogate our obligations under international treaties. We can't leave planes in some foreign location without the ability to repair them. So we have to have a reasonable standard and an internationally coherent and internationally compliant way to proceed for repair stations. Those controversial provisions need to be put aside.

Move forward. People are crying out for jobs in this country, and one of the best employers that we have in this Nation is the aviation industry. It pays some of the highest salaries, and we have the potential for expanding that. When you expand aviation, you enter global markets with such ease today, but we are leaving that behind. So I am, indeed, deeply saddened that we are not at a point where we are passing this.

Now, I ask Members to support this extension, the 13th extension. This is a very embarrassing moment for the Congress, and I'm sad that our work is not done.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5147, the ``Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2010''.

H.R. 5147 ensures that aviation programs, taxes, and Airport and Airway Trust Fund expenditure authority will continue without interruption, pending completion of a long-term Federal Aviation Administration, FAA, reauthorization act.

The most recent long-term FAA reauthorization act, the Vision 100-- Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act, P.L. 108-176, expired on September 30, 2007. The House passed an FAA reauthorization bill during the 110th Congress, and again last year. I am pleased that the Senate passed its own comprehensive reauthorization bill last month, and I look forward to the passage of final legislation that will provide for the modernization of our aviation system and reauthorize the FAA over the long term.

We must ensure in the meantime that the FAA's programs and authority do not lapse.

Accordingly, H.R. 5147 is the latest short-term extension act. It ensures continuity of funding and program authority beyond April 30, 2010, when the FAA's current extension expires. H.R. 5147 provides a two-month extension of aviation programs, through July 3, 2010.

I thank my Committee colleagues--especially Ranking Member Mica, Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Costello, and Aviation Subcommittee Ranking Member Petri--as well as Ways and Means Committee Chairman Levin and Ranking Member Camp for working with me on this critical legislation.

I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 5147.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

In May of last year, the House passed H.R. 915, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. Last month, the Senate passed its own FAA reauthorization bill which the House took up, amended and passed, and sent back to the Senate. While a conference has not been called, staff from both Chambers have begun informal discussions to reconcile the two versions of bill.

This process will take time, and given that the current FAA extension expires at the end of this month, we need to again extend the FAA's taxes and authorities to allow time to get a final, conferenced FAA bill.

H.R. 5147 would extend the taxes, programs, and funding of the FAA to July 3 of this year. This bill provides just over $3 billion in airport improvement program funding; extends the war risk insurance program; and extends other authorities related to small community air service, airport and safety programs.

This bill will ensure that our national airspace system continues to operate and that the FAA continues to fund important airport projects while the Congress completes action on a final reauthorization bill.

Mr. Speaker, I would now like to yield such time as he may consume to the senior Republican on the Public Works and Transportation Subcommittee, the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mica).

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 5147, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 5147, received from the House and at the desk.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be read three times, passed, and the motion to reconsider be laid upon the table, and that any statements relating to the bill be printed in the Record, with no intervening action.