[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 159 (Thursday, November 11, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2384]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


        HOUSE/SENATE AT IMPASSE ON AVIATION REAUTHORIZATION BILL

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. BUD SHUSTER

                            of pennsylvania

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 11, 1999

  Mr. SHUSTER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to apprise my colleagues of a 
statement I issued last night in reference to the House/Senate 
conference committee's efforts to reauthorize the Federal Aviation 
Administration.

         Statement of Chairman Bud Shuster on Aviation Impasse

       The nation is hurtling towards aviation gridlock and 
     potential disaster in the sky. Our aviation system is in 
     trouble. Too many flights are delayed. Service is not as good 
     as it should be. And as the technology leader of the world, 
     we have second-rate air traffic control equipment.
       It is against this backdrop that I must reject the Senate 
     proposal to cut aviation spending.
       While the Senate claims that they are unlocking the 
     Aviation Trust Fund, just the opposite is true. The Senate 
     proposal actually spends about $3 billion less over the next 
     three years than the trust fund takes in in revenues during 
     that same period.
       To make matters even worse, the Senate proposal actually 
     reduces Aviation Trust Fund spending below current baseline 
     levels.
       I am also dismayed that the Senate is insistent on 
     eliminating the general fund contribution to aviation which 
     has been in place for the last 25 years. This general fund 
     share reflects security and safety investments, as well as 
     military usage of the air traffic control system.
       The Senate proposal simply fails to recognize the growing 
     needs in aviation, such as the projected one billion people 
     that will be flying annually just a few years from now.
       The House tried to find common ground. We were willing to 
     accept a TEA 21-type firewall in lieu of off-budget. But the 
     Senate would not agree. We proposed to guarantee trust fund 
     spending with a point-of-order in lieu of a firewall. But the 
     Senate still would not agree.
       I question our priorities when in these times of trillion 
     dollar budget surpluses, with air travelers investing 
     billions more into the Aviation Trust Fund, we cannot find 
     the commitment to make our aviation system safe and 
     competitive.
       The Senate proposal also says the flying public cannot use 
     the money they have invested in the Aviation Trust Fund to 
     make their skies safer. According to today's numbers, that is 
     $11 billion in trust fund cash balances and the $1 billion in 
     annual interest earnings. The flying public dutifully 
     deposited the money and they deserve to see it invested 
     properly. Under the Senate proposal, the trust fund balances 
     would grow by over $3 billion over the next three years.
       Worshipping at the altar of fiscal short-sightedness will 
     carry a high price when our aviation system becomes 
     hopelessly congested. If we do not make investments that are 
     necessary we risk the destruction of one of the economic 
     engines that keeps our economy roaring.
       I hope we have not let this historic opportunity slip 
     through our fingers. I hope we can find a workable compromise 
     and I hope we can give the American people the safe and 
     competitive aviation system they deserve. But I cannot accept 
     a proposal that makes little changes to a system that is in 
     desperate need of change.
       I continue to oppose further short-term extensions of 
     selected aviation programs. This band-aid approach can only 
     delay the significant investments that the flying public has 
     paid for and deserves.
       I pledge that I will renew my efforts next year to unlock 
     the Aviation Trust Fund and fulfill our commitment to make 
     our skies as safe as they can be.