Airport and Airway Extension Act of 2024

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules

and pass the bill (H.R. 7454) to amend title 49, United States Code, to extend authorizations for the airport improvement program, to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend the funding and expenditure authority of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material in the Record on H.R. 7454.

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

Madam Speaker, H.R. 7454 extends the statutory authority of the Federal Aviation Administration through May 10, 2024.

The bill provides for key extensions of FAA authorities, such as the continued collection of aviation excise taxes that the safe operation of the National Airspace System is dependent upon.

Importantly, this bill also allows adequate time for the House and Senate to reconcile a final FAA bill to ensure the FAA has a long-term reauthorization.

Last July, the House did its part to provide for a long-term reauthorization of the FAA on time and ahead of schedule when we passed H.R. 3935 in overwhelming bipartisan fashion with more than 350 votes.

I commend my House colleagues for fulfilling the responsibility to ensure the FAA has the tools and resources it needs to maintain operations and safety in our National Airspace System.

The good news is that the Senate Commerce Committee has finally marked up its FAA bill, S. 1939. It is clear that enacting a long-term FAA bill remains the goal of both Chambers, and Congress is on track to do that.

In the meantime, we must act to pass another extension to keep the lights on at the FAA. As frequent flyers ourselves, I know for a fact that we all share a common goal of upholding safety in our airspace so every person who uses the system can travel and return home safely.

I plan to work expeditiously with our Senate counterparts so that this is the last short-term extension before we send a comprehensive, long-term FAA bill to the President's desk.

Failure to enact this extension is going to jeopardize aviation safety and will directly and immediately increase our national debt by more than $50 million a day.

I encourage all Members to support this bill so that we can maintain safety in the National Airspace System while we continue to work toward enacting a long-term reauthorization.

Madam Speaker, I want to take just a moment to recognize one of our Subcommittee on Aviation staffers, Christopher Senn, who will be leaving the committee this week. I thank him for his service to our country, as a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, by the way, and for his work and assistance with the committee, especially when it comes to FAA matters.

Madam Speaker, I urge support for this legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Graves), who is the chairman of the Subcommittee on Aviation.

Madam Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Westerman), the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee,

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Self).

Madam Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New York (Mr. D'Esposito).

Madam Speaker, I don't have any more speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I urge, as well, all Members to support this bill. This is a must-pass bill so we can keep our aviation system operating safely. H.R. 7454 provides for a clean extension of FAA authorities. It does not include any policy riders.

Failure to extend the FAA's authorities is going to cost the Federal Government more than $50 million a day in lost revenues.

A lapse in authorities would also prohibit the FAA from making new obligations from the aviation trust fund to fund the FAA's important safety, operational, and research functions. Enacting a long-term and comprehensive FAA bill is the goal of both the House and the Senate. I remain committed to doing just that so Congress can deliver certainty to the aviation industry and the FAA.

Madam Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. President, I submit to the Senate a budget scorekeeping report. The report, which covers fiscal year 2024, was prepared and submitted as a letter by the Congressional Budget Office pursuant to section 308(b) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974. This information assists the Senate Budget Committee in determining if budgetary points of order lie against pending legislation.

CBO's report shows the effect on spending and revenues of congressional action through April 15, 2024. Between CBO's last report on December 13, 2023, and April 15, 2024, Congress passed eight pieces of legislation with effects on direct spending or revenue. These include two appropriations bills passed in March, P.L. 118-42 and P.L. 118-47, that completed the fiscal year 2024 appropriations cycle in line with the bipartisan agreement enacted last summer.

CBO's report included three tables, tables 1, 2, and 3. Tables 1 and 2 show that current budgetary levels are within allowable amounts for budget authority and outlays. The allowable levels include an adjustment for the Senate-passed national security supplemental, P.L. 118-50, which had not yet

been enacted into law when the table was prepared. These tables also show that revenue is below the allowable amount, due to the rescissions of IRS mandatory funding in the last appropriation bill, P.L. 118-47, which reduces revenue and increases the deficit.

Table 3 shows the Senate's Pay-As-You-Go scorecard, which reflects $36.4 billion of net deficit increase, entirely due to IRS funding rescissions.

The Democratic staff of the Budget Committee prepared three addendum tables to supplement CBO's report, tables A, B, and C.

Table A compares the mandatory spending of each authorizing committee against the enforceable allocations under section 302 of the Congressional Budget Act. It shows that 11 of the 16 authorizing committees are compliant with their allocations, either because no legislation with significant budgetary costs was enacted, the legislation was deficit-neutral and qualified for an allocation adjustment that was subsequently filed, or the legislation reduced spending.

Table B updates CBO's table 1, the Senate current level report for spending and revenues, to reflect the enactment of P.L. 118-50, the national security supplemental, which was passed by the House and Senate and was signed into law by the President after CBO prepared its report.

Table C updates CBO's table 3, updating the Senate Pay-As-You-Go scorecard to reflect six bills that have passed by the House and Senate since the release of CBO's report, five of which have been signed into law by the President.

I ask unanimous consent that CBO's letter, accompanying tables, and the addendum be printed in the Record.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Graves for yielding and for his leadership on the FAA reauthorization bill and on the full committee.

This summer, under the leadership of Chairman Sam Graves, Ranking Member Larsen, Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Garret Graves, and Subcommittee Ranking Member Cohen, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee did our job. We crafted a strong and bipartisan reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration.

It passed unanimously through committee and with overwhelming bipartisan support on this very floor. The Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act is a comprehensive, commonsense bill that Members of this Chamber can be proud of. The historic legislation ensures that we continue to improve safety, encourage innovation, and ensure that the United States remains the gold standard in aviation.

However, since its passage, as has been mentioned, 7 months ago, we have had to vote on two extensions for the FAA reauthorization, and now we are facing a vote on a third because of the Senate's inaction on this important legislation.

Aviation safety impacts every single American, and each day that goes by without Senate passage and the President's signature, the enactment of key safety measures and improved framework for innovation is delayed.

During the development of this bill, we all worked hard in good faith for good policy. I fought for safety provisions that will directly benefit the airports in my district in El Dorado, Hot Springs, Texarkana, and Mena, such as requiring that the FAA implement tower marking rules that protect the general aviation community, especially agricultural aircraft, and ensuring that planes going in and out of Mena Airport have stable radio communication.

These are nonpartisan, good issues, and they are just an example of things all across the country.

While it is unfortunate that we are faced with a third extension to provide ample time for this critical legislation to make it across the finish line, we must pass this additional extension. I urge my colleagues in the Senate to swiftly pass the FAA legislation and the President to sign it into law so the United States can continue its role as the global leader in aviation safety and innovation.

With all this being said about how we can't get things done in the House, we have got something done in the House, and we just need our Senate partners and the White House to come along.

Madam Speaker, I thank Chairman Graves and Ranking Member Larsen for putting this extension on the floor to give us more time to work towards a final FAA reauthorization.

Aviation is a $32 billion industry in my home State of Arizona, and growing every day. Our airports are economic engines supporting thousands of jobs. A lapse in the FAA's authorization would be devastating, and today's short-term extension is necessary.

But a long-term, 5-year extension--one that updates Federal policies to meet our current challenges--is essential to ensure the U.S. remains the gold standard in aviation safety.

The House did our job--more than 6 months ago.

On the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, we worked in a bipartisan way to craft a strong, forward-looking FAA reauthorization that improves aircraft and runway safety and invests in our aviation infrastructure and workforce--especially our air traffic controllers.

Over the last year, there have been several near-miss incidents at Sky Harbor in Phoenix--one of the busiest airports in the world. I met with air traffic controllers there last week. They're over-worked and understaffed.

And Phoenix-Mesa Gateway, one of the fastest-growing commercial airports in the country, just opened a brand-new $28 million terminal to keep up with passenger demand. But staffing shortages at their air traffic control tower have forced the airport to reduce operations at the tower by four hours each day.

The House's FAA reauthorization improves recruitment and retention of controllers, and sets up a pilot program to convert towers staffed by private companies, like Gateway, to be staffed by FAA controllers.

The bill we passed also takes meaningful steps--many I was proud to lead on--to improve the flying experience for passengers with disabilities.

My ADAPT Act, WHEELChairs on Airplanes Act, and MOBILE Act were included in the House-passed bill, so that passengers with mobility issues can have proper accommodations . . . from boarding to seating and everything in between.

Now I'm glad to see movement in the Senate on a companion reauthorization bill. I know I speak for many of my colleagues when I say we're eager to send a final FAA reauthorization to the President's desk as soon as possible. Our economy, and the safety of the flying public, depends on that.

In the meantime, I encourage my colleagues to vote yes on a short- term FAA extension through May 10th--hopefully our last.

Madam Speaker, I want to add my voice of strong support to this legislation.

There is no question what we have seen in the aviation industry, these near misses, these runway incursions, and safety issues all across the aviation system.

As both Ranking Member Larsen and Chairman Graves noted, the House did its business. We came together on a bipartisan basis and passed legislation in July by a vote of 351-69. That legislation addresses everything from general aviation, a topic that I know our chairman cares much about and knows a lot about, to topics like new entrants and new aviation technologies. It focuses on safety, and it ensures, Madam Speaker, that this entire legislation focuses ultimately on the passenger experience, making sure that air travelers from all across the United States have a great experience with new technology whenever they enter the airports and whenever they enter the airplanes.

None of those benefits are going to be realized unless and until we pass a long-term authorization bill. This is the last temporary extension we are going to do. This is a clean extension until May 10. If we don't do this, it will cause the Federal Government to incur debt, because we won't be able to collect the user fees that go along with aviation travel.

It is absolutely critical that this clean, bipartisan extension be enacted. It is absolutely critical that we stay on track with bipartisan, bicameral negotiations on the FAA bill, now that the Senate has finally--and I commend them--passed this bill out of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee in the United States Senate.

I thank Chairman Graves for his leadership, Ranking Member Larsen and my friend Steve Cohen for working together on this to make sure that we can continue a united front and realize all these gains in the aviation sector as a result of the House aviation bill.

I also add my regret to the loss of Chris Senn to the Subcommittee on Aviation. He is overcredentialed, overeducated, and often awes us with his knowledge of drones and other technology. It is going to be a big loss to the committee, but I appreciate his service.