Free Veterans from Fees Act

Mr. Speaker, I rise this morning because the House must continue its work to reform and reauthorize the FAA. We have got to pass H.R. 2997, the 21st Century AIRR Act.

Thirty years ago--30 years ago--the FAA identified the need to modernize or upgrade the Nation's antiquated World War II era air traffic control system. This is a system, at the time, that used radar technology and paper strips for communications between controllers. They literally would take these paper slips and hand them from one controller to the next controller to the next controller as aircraft not only moved through the airwaves, but were moving through the airport systems.

Now, over the last 30 years, Canada, Australia, and many in the EU have changed to this GPS system. We have got countries all across the globe going to GPS, or decades ago have already switched. It is when they go through our airspace, we still use this old radar technology.

Now, during this time, we have upgraded GPS systems. We all carry around handheld devices that use GPS: the Wave app, Google app. There are many different mapping platforms that allow you to get through cities, towns, the countryside. If there is an accident, there is a delay, it allows you to get around it and move through so that we can actually have greater efficiencies on the road.

But 30 years have gone by, and today, after spending $7 billion, the FAA still uses this outdated radar technology, moving from beacon to beacon, getting passed along as you travel across the United States. And, yes, our air traffic control system still passes these little pieces of paper from one to the next to the next. Oftentimes, if you travel around, you will go through areas where you are not captured by the radar at all, while other countries continue with this GPS system.

This outdated air traffic control system negatively impacts the entire flying public. An outdated ATC means route inefficiencies, which means higher costs, which yields more congestion in our skies and sitting on our tarmacs.

I would like to see a system where you don't leave the gate to go sit on the runway until you know that you actually have a slot and are moving into the air and have a direct flight to your point. But today, you will see many airlines that will sit you out on the tarmac waiting for a slot.

More congestion is a direct factor of flight delays and canceled flights. The reforms in this bill will provide more on-time departures and arrivals and less canceled flights.

This bill is for the average flier. It doesn't matter which airline you take, we ought to have an air traffic control system that serves them all with a GPS system that allows you to get from point A to point B without the time delays.

This also has the Air Improvement Program fully funded, which actually increases the Airport Improvement Program from $3.3 billion to $4 billion. It has the ability to upgrade our airports.

Mr. Speaker, I also served my country in the Air Force for 16 years. As a veteran, I know that national security comes first. The 21st Century AIRR Act does not jeopardize the interaction between the Department of Defense and air traffic control; in fact, it strengthens it. The Federal Government retains exclusive sovereignty and control of the airspace, and the President maintains critical authority to assume control of the airspace during emergencies in times of war.

The time to bring up the bill, H.R. 3997, the 21st Century AIRR Act, is now. The public has waited way too long. We have been bypassed by other countries. If we can identify it 30 years ago that we had World War II technology, we ought to recognize it today and stop passing these little pieces of paper back and forth through our air traffic control systems.

Let's upgrade our systems, let's create efficiencies, and let's get people moving across this country in an efficient manner where they are not sitting on tarmacs waiting for flight delays.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for yielding. I also thank the chairman, as well as members on the Subcommittee on Federal Lands, especially Chairman Tom McClintock, for their unanimous support of my bipartisan bill, the Free Veterans from Fees Act. I would also like to thank my colleague, the Congresswoman from Hawaii, Tulsi Gabbard, in co-leading this bipartisan effort.

Throughout the year, veteran groups visit our national war memorials to take part in honor buses and honor flights and other commemorations that require special use permits issued by the National Park Service. The permit application requires, without exception, that a fee be submitted along with the completed permit application. Specifically, here in our Nation's Capital, The National Mall charges $120 for public gatherings and special events. The Free Veterans from Fees Act would waive the application fee associated with special use permits for any veteran demonstration or special event at war memorials on Federal land.

We have a solemn obligation to stand with our veterans. They stood for us. We must stand for them. This simple bill is about fostering a culture in which all veterans are valued for their service and sacrifice to our country. The least we can do is to make it easier for groups of veterans and their families to visit national war memorials so they can honor the contributions of our men and women in uniform.

I have the privilege of serving the many military members and veterans who live and work in western Pennsylvania. Many of these veterans come together to help their fellow veterans and their families by pooling their time, energy, and financial resources to organize bus trips.

In fact, a recent trip from western Pennsylvania happened just this past month. I had the privilege to welcome these veterans and their families to the World War II Memorial here in Washington, D.C. This honor bus was organized by a remarkable couple, Jerry and Lydian Fisher of Beaver County, who have a heart for service and a real commitment and devotion to these trips since 2006.

Veterans want to help each other, and this is proof. I consider it a privilege to meet the men and women whom Jerry and Lydian bring to Washington. On the most recent trip, we even welcomed a 100-year-old World War II veteran, Charles Wiggins from Wilkinsburg.

The men and women who are willing to die for this country should be given every opportunity to commemorate their service, the sacrifices of their fellow servicemembers, and the hardships faced by those left behind. Assessing fees from the very people these memorials were built to honor is unacceptable and unnecessary.

Our veterans were willing to stop at nothing to defend our Nation. We, as a nation, should stop at nothing to ensure our obligation to honor them is fulfilled. Our veterans deserve this legislation. It is just one more simple step to honor them.

Mr. Speaker, our veterans, our servicemembers, and their families sacrificed greatly in service to our country, with some paying the ultimate price, sacrificing all.

For those who do come home, there are often visible and invisible wounds that they carry with them for a very long time--if not for the rest of their

lives. It is our solemn responsibility as a country to stand by them, to ensure that they receive the care and the services and the respect that they have earned and that they deserve through their service.

So the fact that, today, a veteran or a Gold Star family member who wants to use a national war memorial for a special event--whether it is a vigil, a religious service, a parade, or any other kind of event--is slapped with an application fee by the National Park Service costing anywhere from $70 to over $100 is, frankly, unacceptable.

Our war memorials are often a place of healing, a place where our brothers and sisters in uniform, our fellow veterans, gather to remember those whom they served with who never made that trip home, for Gold Star family members to go and pay homage to and share new memories with their loved one that has been lost. This is a gathering place that is so important both for those who have served and those who remember and honor those who have sacrificed everything. It is unacceptable that our Nation's heroes have to pay a fee to honor our fallen brothers and sisters in this way. This legislation is necessary, and we have the opportunity to get it passed today.

I appreciate the leadership of my colleague from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus), someone who I know personally is deeply committed to serving and honoring our veterans and never forgetting the cost of war and who pays the price.

We introduced this legislation to waive the application fee for veterans and Gold Star families applying for a permit at war memorials on Federal land because this legislation honors the special bond between veterans that spans across conflicts and generations that we see displayed in this country, most prominently on Veterans Day and Memorial Day, but something that goes on throughout the year. We must continue to honor this into the future.

This simple change in this legislation will lift this financial and bureaucratic burden that our veterans face as they pay their respects, remember the lives and sacrifices of their friends, and our Gold Star family members of their loved ones.

I want to thank the men and women of the National Park Service who work to make sure that our war memorials are kept up and reflective places for healing, and I thank my colleague for his leadership and the support of the committee to bring this bill to the floor today. I urge my colleagues to support its passage.

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

Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3997 waives the special use permit application fees for veterans' demonstrations and special events at national war memorials.

I agree with my colleague. It is time that we recognize that our veterans deserve to be able to use this holy land for special events at national war memorials. This is a commonsense bill that will make it easier for veterans' groups to organize events at national memorials and other public lands.

I thank Mr. Bishop from the majority for helping us work to ensure that the bill covers Gold Star families. I thank him very much for that.

I urge my colleagues to support the passage of this bill.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Hawaii (Ms. Gabbard).

Mr. Speaker, we have no more speakers, but may I add that I agree with what Ms. Gabbard said. It is unnecessary to bill any kind of fee to our veterans or the organizations that honor them.

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

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 3997) to waive the application fee for any special use permit for veterans demonstrations and special events at war memorials on Federal land, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus), the author of this particular piece of legislation.

Mr. Speaker, this is a very good piece of legislation.

For those who have served well, to subject them to another application fee is just ridiculous. If there was ever an example of a good idea, a no-brainer piece of legislation, this is it.

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

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