[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 25 (Wednesday, March 8, 2000)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1269-S1270]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  IN SUPPORT OF FAA CONFERENCE REPORT

  Mr. BRYAN Mr. President, I rise today in support of the FAA 
conference report which will be voted upon later on this afternoon and 
to discuss one particular feature of that report, the so-called 
perimeter rule. This is a rule that is both arcane and archaic. It is 
anticompetitive and unnecessary. The so-called perimeter rule is a 
rule, enacted by Congress in 1986, that precludes any flight 
originating at Washington National Airport, the region's most popular 
airline destination for the Nation's Capital, from flying nonstop more 
than 1,250 miles from the Nation's Capital. That also includes any 
inbound flights to Washington National from a point that originates 
more than 1,250 miles from the Nation's Capital.
  This perimeter rule was enacted by Congress in 1986. It might have 
had some historical justification. The origin of the rule is based upon 
an attempt to force additional air traffic into Washington's Dulles 
Airport, which is some distance from the Nation's Capital and not as 
convenient. Whatever the historical rationale may have been, I think 
anyone who has used Washington's Dulles Airport in recent years, as I 
do frequently, would testify that it is a fully operational airport 
with a multibillion-dollar expansion and much traffic.
  Today, the so-called perimeter rule is defended on the basis of noise 
control in Northern Virginia and the surrounding area. That was not its 
historical justification. Now, the effect of the so-called perimeter 
rule is to preclude direct flights, nonstop, into Washington's National 
Airport from most of the country and all of the West.
  As a historical insight, the original perimeter rule was 750 miles. 
Then, when Russell Long became chairman of the Senate Finance 
Committee, his congressional district was in New Orleans, and the 
distinguished occupant of the chair will not be surprised to learn that 
the perimeter rule had some flexibility then, and the length was 
extended so one could fly nonstop to New Orleans. And later, when, I 
believe, Jim Wright became the Speaker, his congressional district was 
the Dallas-Fort Worth area, so it was extended to 1,250 miles, its 
current length.

  My point is, there is nothing sacrosanct about this rule. It makes no 
sense in terms of safety. The Federal Aviation Administration has 
concluded there is no safety issue involved, and the GAO has repeatedly 
asserted that the effect of the rule is anticompetitive and it has the 
effect of driving prices up.
  Now, the debate in this Chamber frequently echoes back and forth 
about Government interference in the marketplace, meddling, arbitrary 
rules that restrict entry, rules that make it difficult for the private 
sector to respond to the market. I can't think of a better example of 
that than this so-called perimeter rule.
  For that reason, I am particularly pleased to support this conference 
report because one of the features in the conference report modifies 
the perimeter rule. It doesn't eliminate it in its entirety, but it 
does permit 12 slots that would be authorized to fly beyond the 1,250-
mile perimeter, and that means cities such as Las Vegas and other major 
metropolitan areas in the West will be able to compete for those 
routes.
  It also contains a provision that specifically recognizes new 
entrants into the market. Many will recall that the underlying premise 
of the deregulation of the airline industry assumed there would be a 
number of new entrants into the market. Unfortunately, by and large, 
that has not occurred. New entrants have had a particularly difficult 
time entering into this market. It is a very competitive market, and 
indeed the survivability of those new entrants has been very limited. 
So this particular provision repeals, in part, the perimeter rule to 
permit 12 flights to fly beyond the 1,250 miles and to originate from a 
distance beyond that, thereby making nonstop service to the West a 
possibility.
  It is my hope that among the communities that would be considered 
would be Las Vegas, which is rapidly

[[Page S1270]]

expanding its air service. The community's lifeblood is dependent upon 
tourist travel. A great percentage of that is airline service, and a 
direct, nonstop service flight to one of the largest metropolitan areas 
in the country, the Washington metropolitan area, would have an 
enormously powerful potential for new business for our community.
  So it is my hope that colleagues will support the conference report. 
I am not unmindful of the fact that there are controversial provisions 
in it. But the modification of the perimeter rule is an important step 
in the right direction. I salute the conferees for following the lead 
of the Senate Commerce Committee, which specifically included, at the 
request of myself and others, the modification of the perimeter rule.
  I yield the floor.

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