[Congressional Bills 107th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2007 Introduced in Senate (IS)]







107th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2007

   To provide economic relief to general aviation entities that have 
   suffered substantial economic injury as a result of the terrorist 
  attacks perpetrated against the United States on September 11, 2001.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 12, 2002

  Mr. Inhofe introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide economic relief to general aviation entities that have 
   suffered substantial economic injury as a result of the terrorist 
  attacks perpetrated against the United States on September 11, 2001.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``General Aviation Industry 
Reparations Act of 2002''.

 SEC. 2. GENERAL AVIATION INDUSTRY REPARATIONS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
President shall take the following actions to compensate general 
aviation entities and their employees for economic injuries incurred by 
such entities and employees as a result of the terrorist attacks on the 
United States that occurred on September 11, 2001:
            (1) Subject to such terms and conditions as the President 
        deems necessary and subject to subsection (b), issue Federal 
        credit instruments to such entities that do not, in the 
        aggregate, exceed $3,000,000,000 and provide the subsidy 
        amounts necessary for such instruments in accordance with the 
        provisions of the Federal Credit Reform Act of 1990 (2 U.S.C. 
        661 et seq.).
            (2) Compensate such entities and employees in an aggregate 
        amount equal to $2,500,000,000 for--
                    (A) direct losses incurred beginning on September 
                11, 2001, by such entities as a result of any Federal 
                ground stop order issued by the Secretary of 
                Transportation or any subsequent order which continues 
                or renews such a stoppage;
                    (B) the incremental losses incurred beginning 
                September 11, 2001, and ending December 31, 2001, by 
                such entities as a direct result of such attacks;
                    (C) the incremental losses incurred by employees of 
                an entity receiving assistance under this Act who lost 
                their jobs (other than for cause) at any time during 
                the period between September 11 and December 31, 2001, 
                as a result of such attacks; except that incremental 
                losses under this subparagraph shall be limited to--
                            (i) losses incurred, during a period of 90 
                        days beginning on the date of the job loss, as 
                        lost compensation offset by compensation paid 
                        by any other entity; and
                            (ii) the added costs to such employees, for 
                        themselves and their dependents, of health 
                        insurance premiums and medical expenses 
                        incurred, during such 90-day period, that--
                                    (I) would have been paid by health 
                                insurance coverage that was lost as a 
                                result of the job loss or as a result 
                                of other action to reduce expenses 
                                taken by the entity receiving 
                                assistance under this Act; and
                                    (II) were not paid by other 
                                insurance coverage, a government 
                                agency, or charitable gift; and
                    (D) direct losses incurred by such entities as a 
                direct result of flight restrictions for a period of 
                one week or more imposed by the Secretary of 
                Transportation before the date of enactment of this Act 
                in response to the increased security required by such 
                attacks.
    (b) Limitation on Aggregate Amount of Credit Instruments.--The 
aggregate amount of Federal credit instruments that may be issued under 
section 101(a)(1) of the Air Transportation Safety and System 
Stabilization Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 note; 115 Stat. 230) shall be 
reduced by the aggregate amount of Federal credit instruments issued 
under subsection (a)(1) of this section.
    (c) Emergency Designation.--Congress designates the amount of new 
budget authority and outlays in all fiscal years resulting from this 
Act as an emergency requirement pursuant to section 252(e) of the 
Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 
901(e)). Such amount shall be available only to the extent that a 
request, that includes designation of such amount as an emergency 
requirement as defined in such Act, is transmitted by the President to 
Congress.
    (d) Deadline for Applications.--Not later than 14 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, the President shall establish and 
publish in the Federal Register a deadline for the issuance of Federal 
credit instruments under this section and a deadline for the submission 
of applications for payments of compensation under this section.

 SEC. 3. STABILIZATION BOARD.

    (a) Federal Credit Instruments.--
            (1) Operating plan.--An obligor seeking issuance of a 
        Federal credit instrument under section 2(a)(1) shall submit to 
        the Air Transportation Stabilization Board, established under 
        section 102(b) of the Air Transportation Safety Stabilization 
        Act (49 U.S.C. 40101 note; 115 Stat. 231), an operating plan 
        (including budget and cash flow projections) and financial plan 
        for the period of time that the instrument will be in effect. 
        Such plans shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Board 
        the ability of the obligor to continue operations as an ongoing 
        general aviation entity during and after the period of time the 
        instrument will be in effect.
            (2) Issuance.--The Board, in consultation with the Small 
        Business Administration, may enter into agreements with 1 or 
        more obligors to issue Federal credit instruments under section 
        2(a)(1) if the Board determines, in its discretion, that--
                    (A) the obligor is a general aviation entity for 
                which credit is not reasonably available at the time of 
                the transaction;
                    (B) the intended obligation by the obligor is 
                prudently incurred;
                    (C) the obligor has furnished reasonable assurance 
                that it will be able to repay all loans and other debt 
                obligations covered by the Federal credit instrument in 
                accordance with the terms of such loans and other 
                obligations;
                    (D) the obligor intends to continue to operate as a 
                general aviation entity, and the operating and 
                financial plan submitted by the obligor under paragraph 
                (1) satisfies the demonstration required by paragraph 
                (1); and
                    (E) the type of aviation services or products (or 
                both) provided by the obligor are an important part of 
                a safe, efficient, and viable general aviation system.
    (b) Terms and Limitations.--
            (1) Forms; terms and conditions.--A Federal credit 
        instrument shall be issued under section 2(a)(1) in such form 
        and on such terms and conditions and contain such covenants, 
        representations, warranties, and requirements (including 
        requirements for audits) as the Board determines appropriate. 
        The Board may issue a Federal credit instrument under section 
        2(a)(1) to pay all or part of any of the principal of and 
        interest on a loan or other debt obligation issued to the 
        obligor.
            (2) Procedures.--Not later than 14 days after the date of 
        enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Management 
        and Budget shall issue regulations setting forth procedures for 
        application and minimum requirements, which may be supplemented 
        by the Board in its discretion, for the issuance of Federal 
        credit instruments under section 2(a)(1).
    (c) Financial Protection of Government.--
            (1) In general.--To the extent feasible and practicable, 
        the Board shall ensure that the Government is compensated for 
        the risk assumed in making guarantees under this Act.
            (2) Government participation in gains.--To the extent to 
        which any participating entity accepts financial assistance, in 
        the form of accepting the proceeds of any loans guaranteed by 
        the Government under this Act, the Board is authorized to enter 
        into contracts under which the Government, contingent on the 
        financial success of the participating entity, would 
        participate in the gains of the participating entity or its 
        security holders through the use of such instruments as 
        warrants, stock options, common or preferred stock, or other 
        appropriate equity instruments.
            (3) Deposit in treasury.--All amounts collected by the 
        Government under this subsection shall be deposited in the 
        Treasury as miscellaneous receipts.

 SEC. 4. SPECIAL RULES FOR COMPENSATION.

    (a) Limitation on Amount of Compensation.--
            (1) Documentation.--Subject to subsection (b), the amount 
        of compensation payable under section 2(a)(2) to a general 
        aviation entity may not exceed the amount of losses described 
        in such section that such entity demonstrates to the 
        satisfaction of the President, using sworn financial statements 
        or other appropriate data, that such entity incurred.
            (2) Audits.--The Secretary of Transportation and the 
        Comptroller General of the United States may audit statements 
        referred to in paragraph (1) and may request any information 
        that the Secretary and the Comptroller General deem necessary 
        to conduct such audit.
    (b) Priority.--The President shall give priority for compensation 
under section 2(a)(2) to a general aviation entity--
            (1) based on the length of time that the entity has been 
        unable to operate as a result of the terrorist attacks on the 
        United States that occurred on September 11, 2001; and
            (2) if the entity is a small business concern (as defined 
        under section 3 of the Small Business Administration Act (15 
        U.S.C. 632(a))).
    (c) Amount of Compensation.--In order to ensure that compensation 
provided under section 2(a)(2) is distributed equitably among general 
aviation entities that have substantiated losses described in section 
2(a)(2), the President may provide compensation under section 2(a)(2) 
to a general aviation entity that is an amount less than the amount of 
losses incurred by the entity and substantiated by the entity as losses 
for which compensation may be made under section 2(a)(2).
    (d) Payments.--The President may provide compensation under section 
2(a)(2) to general aviation entities in 1 or more payments up to the 
amount authorized by this Act.
    (e) Employee Protection.--If the President provides compensation to 
a general aviation entity under sub- paragraph (A) or (B) of section 
2(a)(2), the President must also provide compensation to its employees 
under subparagraph (C) of such section. The President shall develop 
procedures to ensure that an application by a general aviation entity 
for compensation includes complete information about losses of 
employees of such entity.

 SEC. 5. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN EMPLOYEE COMPENSATION.

    (a) In General.--The President may only issue a Federal credit 
instrument, or provide compensation, under section 2(a) to a general 
aviation entity after the entity enters into a legally binding 
agreement with the President that, during the 2-year period beginning 
on the date of enactment of this Act, no officer or employee of the 
entity whose total compensation exceeded $300,000 in calendar year 2000 
(other than an employee whose compensation is determined through an 
existing collective bargaining agreement entered into prior to such 
date of enactment)--
            (1) will receive from the entity total compensation which 
        exceeds, during any 12 consecutive months of such 2-year 
        period, the total compensation received by the officer or 
        employee from the entity in calendar year 2000; and
            (2) will receive from the entity severance pay or other 
        benefits upon termination of employment with the entity which 
        exceeds twice the maximum total compensation received by the 
        officer or employee from the entity in calendar year 2000.
    (b) Total Compensation Defined.--In this section, the term ``total 
compensation'' includes salary, bonuses, awards of stock, and other 
financial benefits provided by a general aviation entity to an officer 
or employee of the entity.

 SEC. 6. DOMESTIC INSURANCE AND REIMBURSEMENT OF INSURANCE COSTS.

    Section 44302 of title 49, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in each of subsections (b), (c), and (d) by inserting 
        ``or general aviation entity (as defined in section 3 of the 
        General Aviation Industry Reparations Act of 2002)'' after 
        ``air carrier''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(4) by inserting ``and general 
        aviation entities'' after ``air carriers''.

 SEC. 7. REPORT.

    Not later than the 180th day following the date of enactment of 
this Act, the President shall transmit to the Committee on 
Transportation and Infrastructure, the Committee on Appropriations, and 
the Committee on the Budget of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Committee on 
Appropriations, and the Committee on the Budget of the Senate a report 
on the amount of assistance provided under this Act to each general 
aviation entity and the financial status of such entity.

 SEC. 8. HEALTH INSURANCE.

    (a) Health Insurance Agreement.--The President may only issue a 
Federal credit instrument to a general aviation entity under section 
2(a)(1) if the entity has entered into a legally binding agreement with 
the President to provide--
            (1) for payment of costs attributable to providing health 
        insurance coverage as described in subsections (b) and (c); and
            (2) for maintenance of current health benefit and 
        contribution levels as described in subsection (d).
    (b) Payment of Health Insurance Coverage for Former Employees Who 
Lose Coverage.--Under the agreement under subsection (a) and subject to 
subsection (e), the entity shall pay the costs attributable to 
providing health insurance coverage for a former employee (and the 
employee's dependents) if the former employee--
            (1) was provided health insurance coverage on September 11, 
        2001, by the entity; and
            (2) lost his or her job, after September 11, 2001, and 
        before the date the entity is issued a Federal credit 
        instrument under section 2(a)(1), as a result of the terrorist 
        attacks on the United States that occurred on September 11, 
        2001.
    (c) Payment of Health Insurance Coverage for Current Employees Who 
Lose Coverage.--Under the agreement under subsection (a) and subject to 
subsection (e), the entity shall pay the costs attributable to 
providing health insurance coverage for an employee (and the employee's 
dependents) if the employee--
            (1) was provided health insurance coverage on September 11, 
        2001, by the entity;
            (2) lost such coverage, after September 11, 2001, and 
        before the date the entity is issued a Federal credit 
        instrument under section 2(a)(1), by reason of the entity's 
        response to economic conditions arising out of the terrorist 
        attacks on the United States that occurred on September 11, 
        2001; and
            (3) is employed by such entity on the date of issuance of 
        such instrument.
    (d) Maintenance of Current Benefit Levels for Currently Insured 
Employees.--Under the agreement under subsection (a) and subject to 
subsection (e), the entity shall not reduce the amount of health 
benefits or employer contribution made for health insurance coverage 
for employees employed by the entity as of the date the entity is 
issued a Federal credit instrument under section 2(a)(1) below the 
level of such benefits and contributions in effect on February 27, 
2002.
    (e) Limitations.--The obligation of a general aviation entity--
            (1) under subsections (b), (c), and (d) shall be limited to 
        a period of 6 months beginning on the date the entity is issued 
        a Federal credit instrument under section 2(a)(1);
            (2) under subsections (b) and (c) shall not apply to an 
        employee who lost a job for cause; and
            (3) under subsection (b) shall not apply to an employee 
        after the date that the employee is first employed on a full-
        time, nonseasonal basis after the date of the job loss referred 
        to in subsection (b).
    (f) Health Insurance Coverage Defined.--For purposes of this 
section and section 2, the term ``health insurance coverage'' has the 
meaning given such term in subsection (b)(1) of section 733 of the 
Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1191b) and 
includes coverage under a group health plan (as defined in subsection 
(a)(1) of such section).

SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Federal credit instrument.--The term ``Federal credit 
        instrument'' means any guarantee or other pledge by the Air 
        Transportation Stabilization Board issued under section 2(a)(1) 
        of this Act to pledge the full faith and credit of the United 
        States to pay all or part of any of the principal of and 
        interest on a loan or other debt obligation issued by an 
        obligor and funded by a lender.
            (2) General aviation entity.--The term ``general aviation 
        entity'' means any person (other than an air carrier or foreign 
        air carrier) that--
                    (A) operates nonmilitary aircraft under part 91 of 
                title 14, Code of Federal Regulations, for the purpose 
                of conducting its primary business;
                    (B) manufactures nonmilitary aircraft with a 
                maximum seating capacity of fewer than 20 passengers or 
                aircraft parts to be used in such aircraft;
                    (C) provides services necessary for nonmilitary 
                operations under such part 91; or
                    (D) operates an airport, other than a primary 
                airport (as such terms are defined in section 40102 of 
                title 49, United States Code), that--
                            (i) is listed in the national plan of 
                        integrated airport systems developed by the 
                        Federal Aviation Administration under section 
                        47103 of such title; or
                            (ii) is normally open to the public, is 
                        located within the confines of enhanced class B 
                        airspace (as defined by the Federal Aviation 
                        Administration in Notice to Airmen FDC 1/0618), 
                        and was closed as a result of an order issued 
                        by the Federal Aviation Administration in the 
                        period beginning September 11, 2001, and ending 
                        January 1, 2002, and remained closed as a 
                        result of that order on January 1, 2002.
        Such term includes fixed-based operators, flight schools, 
        manufacturers of general aviation aircraft and products, 
        persons engaged in nonscheduled aviation enterprises, and 
        general aviation independent contractors.
            (3) Incremental loss.--The term ``incremental loss'' does 
        not include any loss that the President determines would have 
        been incurred if the terrorist attacks on the United States 
        that occurred on September 11, 2001, had not occurred.
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