[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 74 (Tuesday, May 6, 2008)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3758-S3760]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
FAA MODERNIZATION ACT
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, the FAA Modernization Act, which we are
debating in the Senate today, makes critical improvements that will
ensure our aviation system is safe and efficient. That will put us on a
path to modernizing our air traffic control system.
Now, in a short while, early this afternoon, the Senate will vote on
whether we will finish this bill and send it to conference or whether
Republicans are again going to refuse to work with us and force us to
take this bill off the Senate floor.
I hope we are going to vote to move forward this afternoon. My
colleagues on the Commerce and Finance Committees worked very hard on
this important bill because it is critical to our Nation's economy that
our aviation system work smoothly. We have some serious problems that
we need to address.
Our air travel infrastructure is aging fast. It needs to be updated.
The bill before us will help us modernize our aviation system to ensure
that it continues to be the safest in the world.
We also have to take action to help carriers deal with rising fuel
costs and, of course, to protect our passengers by reducing flight
delays and cancellations.
Unfortunately, as we speak this morning, the Senate is essentially
deadlocked. Republicans say they object to certain tax provisions, even
though this bill, I remind everyone, was supported overwhelmingly when
it was marked up in the Finance Committee. But our Republican
colleagues insist that we strip out every provision that isn't directly
linked to aviation. If that isn't done, they say they are going to
filibuster this bill and keep us from ever getting to a final vote on
it.
The majority leader has said time and again that he would welcome
amendments to the bill, but Republicans have refused. Instead of
working with us to come to an agreement on the points they oppose, they
are going to block the whole bill.
What is most unfortunate about the Republican filibuster today is
that this is a vitally important piece of legislation. Although my job
as chairman of the Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee is to
deal with appropriations, not authorizations, I can also tell you that
this FAA bill is not just a bill that would be nice to have, it is a
bill we must have.
Some of our most important aviation authorities expire at the end of
this June. That means by the end of next month, if this bill is not
enacted, the FAA will no longer have the authority to spend money out
of the Airport and Airway Trust Fund.
Every penny that has been appropriated for purchasing and
modernization at the FAA is paid for out of that fund. So if this bill
doesn't become law at the end of next month, billions of dollars in
projects at the FAA are going to grind to a halt.
[[Page S3759]]
If this bill doesn't become law, all of the employees who work on
those projects will be told to stay home because the agency would not
be able to pay them.
Mr. President, that is not all. Republican obstruction of this bill
would cost billions of dollars in capital projects at our Nation's
airports. The entire Airport Improvement Program, or AIP, would be shut
down, and billions of dollars in critical safety improvements at
airports across the country would go unspent.
Finally, our ability to collect ticket taxes from air travelers in
order to fund our trust fund will run out. That would push the FAA's
primary source of funding closer to bankruptcy.
Mr. President, these are not just small things. These programs ensure
that airplanes and airports operate safely, and nobody can argue that
safety would not be harmed if we shut down the ability of the FAA to
modernize its long-outdated radar infrastructure.
I wish to talk about one of the nonaviation provisions that the
Republicans say is a reason they are standing in the way of this
important critical piece of legislation. I want to tell you why I
believe it is critical to keep it in this legislation. The provision I
am referring to addresses an urgent problem with the highway trust
fund.
If we don't act now, the highway trust fund will go bankrupt sometime
next year. If that happens, it will put a stop to Federal road projects
across our entire country. That means bridge improvements, turn lanes,
highway widenings, and countless projects would no longer get the
Federal funding that has been promised. These are vital projects to all
of our communities. They ensure that our highways are safe. They are
essential to commerce and economic development.
It is critical to every State in our Nation and everybody who drives
on our Federal highway system that we find a way to keep this trust
fund solvent.
I have been sounding the alarm over this looming disaster for almost
2 years. We are at a point now where we have to find a fix to ensure
that we don't have to make disastrous cuts in our highway spending next
year.
Very early in this Congress, both Chairman Baucus and Ranking Member
Grassley committed in writing to myself and my ranking member, Senator
Bond, that they would make this fix that is now contained in this bill.
I ask unanimous consent that the letter to Senator Bond and myself be
printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Finance,
Washington, DC, January 25, 2007.
Hon. Patty Murray,
Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, the
Judiciary, Housing and Urban Development, and Related
Agencies, Washington, DC.
Hon. Christopher Bond,
Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury, the
Judiciary, Housing and Urban Development, and Related
Agencies, Washington, DC.
Dear Senators Murray and Bond: Meeting the funding
obligations laid out in SAFETEA-LU is of vital importance to
our nation's transportation system. According to the recent
CBO projections, the Highway Trust Fund shows a shortfall of
several billion dollars in fiscal year 2009, the last year of
SAFETEA-LU. The Senate Finance Committee is dedicated to
finding the necessary revenues to keep the Highway Trust Fund
whole for the life of the current authorization. We are
actively working on several options to accomplish this task.
We appreciate this opportunity to share our commitment to
meeting the nation's transportation needs.
Sincerely yours,
Max Baucus,
Chairman.
Charles E. Grassley,
Ranking Member.
Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, in the tax portion of the aviation bill,
Chairman Baucus and Senator Grassley are keeping their word. This
provision in this bill authorizes that there will be enough money to
continue highway projects under SAFETEA-LU--the Federal transportation
planning bill.
As I said, this addresses an urgent need. If the highway trust fund
provision is stripped from this bill, my subcommittee could be required
to cut highway spending for 2009 by $14 billion just to keep the trust
fund out of bankruptcy next year. That will represent a cut of more
than one-third in a single year.
I think all of our colleagues should know exactly what is being put
at risk if the highway trust fund provisions were to be stripped out of
this bill.
I ask unanimous consent that a table that has been prepared by the
Federal Highway Administration be printed in the Record.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in
the Record, as follows:
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION--FEDERAL HIGHWAY ADMINISTRATION--COMPARISION OF DISTRIBUTION OF OBLIGATION
LIMITATION
[Scenario 1: Obligation Limitation Distribution for FY 2008 Based on Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2008.
Scenario 2: Obligation Limitation Distribution for FY 2009 Based on Obligation Limitation of $27.2 Billion]
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total obligation limitation
State -------------------------------------------------------
Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Difference
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Alabama................................................. 652,726,547 454,824,733 (197,901,814)
Alaska.................................................. 282,066,711 213,461,360 (68,605,351)
Arizona................................................. 645,075,344 423,184,887 (221,890,457)
Arkansas................................................ 408,704,023 286,719,068 (121,984,955)
California.............................................. 3,027,693,941 2,162,914,748 (864,779,193)
Colorado................................................ 439,113,155 305,442,339 (133,670,816)
Connecticut............................................. 448,398,704 298,155,051 (150,243,653)
Delaware................................................ 128,377,882 89,408,810 (38,969,072)
Dist. of Col............................................ 131,278,091 89,055,744 (42,222,347)
Florida................................................. 1,646,926,789 1,102,615,868 (544,310,921)
Georgia................................................. 1,189,444,266 808,957,462 (380,486,804)
Hawaii.................................................. 138,186,609 92,455,082 (45,731,527)
Idaho................................................... 240,341,940 168,827,927 (71,514,013)
Illinois................................................ 1,116,883,893 783,330,484 (333,553,409)
Indiana................................................. 837,221,544 581,195,810 (256,025,734)
Iowa.................................................... 376,023,626 242,857,239 (133,166,387)
Kansas.................................................. 331,623,187 223,029,846 (108,593,341)
Kentucky................................................ 563,101,468 388,477,945 (174,623,523)
Louisiana............................................... 525,533,278 351,623,950 (173,909,328)
Maine................................................... 145,807,693 101,473,221 (44,334,472)
Maryland................................................ 526,801,824 351,819,107 (174,982,717)
Massachusetts........................................... 563,444,067 365,897,655 (197,546,412)
Michigan................................................ 949,589,055 722,171,474 (227,417,581)
Minnesota............................................... 516,029,374 391,306,319 (124,723,055)
Mississippi............................................. 386,729,693 267,581,968 (119,147,725)
Missouri................................................ 762,557,035 530,486,038 (232,070,997)
Montana................................................. 307,593,579 218,174,703 (89,418,876)
Nebraska................................................ 241,810,163 163,744,876 (78,065,287)
Nevada.................................................. 235,089,219 145,744,407 (89,344,812)
New Hampshire........................................... 148,716,449 100,205,953 (48,510,496)
New Jersey.............................................. 869,636,446 582,846,004 (286,790,442)
New Mexico.............................................. 302,478,979 217,029,410 (85,449,569)
New York................................................ 1,520,182,342 990,367,322 (529,815,020)
North Carolina.......................................... 926,525,517 651,798,430 (274,727,087)
North Dakota............................................ 202,565,774 139,213,152 (63,352,622)
Ohio.................................................... 1,166,229,708 840,803,111 (325,426,597)
Oklahoma................................................ 503,342,513 342,367,319 (160,975,194)
Oregon.................................................. 377,426,038 255,186,729 (122,239,309)
Pennsylvania............................................ 1,505,915,429 992,854,989 (513,060,440)
Rhode Island............................................ 169,131,952 109,296,597 (59,835,355)
South Carolina.......................................... 533,174,501 362,727,197 (170,447,304)
[[Page S3760]]
South Dakota............................................ 212,627,616 151,170,837 (61,456,779)
Tennessee............................................... 705,609,706 488,908,923 (216,700,783)
Texas................................................... 2,676,992,892 1,855,034,583 (821,958,309)
Utah.................................................... 234,081,641 160,420,055 (73,661,586)
Vermont................................................. 136,260,491 96,554,996 (39,705,495)
Virginia................................................ 856,744,956 600,370,965 (256,373,991)
Washington.............................................. 572,683,600 380,729,769 (191,953,831)
West Virginia........................................... 352,622,384 244,799,450 (107,822,934)
Wisconsin............................................... 625,583,865 444,299,449 (181,284,416)
Wyoming................................................. 210,639,995 153,148,013 (57,491,982)
-------------------------------------------------------
Subtotal............................................ 32,573,345,494 22,485,071,374 (10,088,274,120)
Allocated Programs...................................... 4,127,089,170 1,909,255,590 (2,217,833,580)
High Priority Projects.................................. 2,740,953,600 1,922,227,200 (818,726,400)
Projects of National & Regional Significance............ 410,949,000 230,558,400 (180,390,600)
National Corridor Infrastructure Improvement Program.... 449,988,000 252,460,800 (197,527,200)
Transportation Projects................................. 590,259,516 331,158,586 (259,100,930)
Bridge (Sec. 144(g)).................................... 92,400,000 64,800,000 (27,600,000)
Transfer to Sections 154 & 164.......................... 231,066,579 4,468,050 (226,598,529)
-------------------------------------------------------
Total............................................. 41,216,051,359 27,200,000,000 (14,016,051,359)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mrs. MURRAY. The agency's table shows all of us the amount of money
each and every State will see cut next year if the highway trust fund
were not fixed and if we are required to fix it through the
appropriations process for 2009. No State will be spared. Look up your
own State. Texas will lose $822 million. Kentucky will lose $175
million. Minnesota will lose $125 million. Maine would lose $44
million. The list goes on. Look up your State and learn what is at risk
if we don't vote to move this bill forward and solve this problem.
I remind my colleagues that the provisions in this bill do not fix
the trust fund on the long-term basis. The fix that is in this bill
will only be sufficient to keep the highway trust fund in the black
through 2009. But cutting this provision would not just mean States
would lose the ability to make urgent road improvements, it would also
mean a loss of a half million jobs across our Nation.
Many of my colleagues have talked about the terrible impact felt in
the construction sector by the recent economic slowdown. Some have
called for economic stimulus proposals to get the sector back on its
feet.
I have to say, stripping the highway trust provision out of this bill
will have the exact opposite effect. It will mean layoffs at a time
when our economy badly needs help. So I hope our colleagues take that
into consideration when we vote this afternoon on whether to move
forward on this bill.
In addition, I hope my colleagues remember that earlier this year we
learned some disturbing news about the FAA's handling of safety
inspections at Southwest Airlines. We learned that the FAA had not
reviewed Southwest's system for complying with certain agency safety
directives since 1999. That revelation caused a great deal of concern
about the FAA's safety inspections across the country, with very good
reason. Those inspections are important because they help our airlines
and the FAA discover potential problems and address them before there
is a tragedy.
But when Congress began looking into the problem, we found it was
much more extensive. Last month, at a hearing with the Acting FAA
Administrator, Robert Sturgell, and the Department of Transportation
inspector general, I learned for well over 5 years the FAA had not
examined whether Southwest was using the right safety systems for
certain maintenance requirements.
Now, you can imagine I was concerned to hear about that. So I asked
him how many other airlines had missed safety inspections. Mr. Sturgell
could not answer me. Well, I asked him to get it back to me. I finally
received an answer. The FAA now tells us it has failed to perform
dozens of mandatory inspections at seven other major air carriers.
In fact, the FAA now says it has missed more than 100 of these
required safety inspections at major airlines. Mr. Sturgell said that
part of the reason might be ``inadequate resources.'' Well, I am not
sure how that could be. I have been working, along with my colleagues,
to increase funding for FAA inspections for the last 7 years--in fact
and this is true of my appropriations subcommittee, whether I have been
chairman or my Republican colleagues have been chairman, for the last 4
years. We have provided more funding for more safety inspectors than
the FAA has ever requested of us. So this is a funding issue? The FAA
hasn't been honest about the true needs of its agency.
Now, I know Congress has been doing its part to build the inspection
workforce without the benefit of a request from the FAA, and as a
result, we have hundreds more inspectors across the country than the
FAA has ever requested. Either way, I have serious concerns because the
agency has insisted that the airlines must be the ones to guarantee the
safety of their operations, and it is said that FAA inspectors are best
used to ensure that the airlines have assistance to do the job. Now we
are being told that the FAA is years behind in inspecting those very
systems.
The lesson from the Southwest debacle is that these safety
inspections matter. They are one of the best indicators of whether an
airline has its act together when it comes to maintenance and safety
compliance. Clearly, the FAA needs to bring more focus and leadership
to meeting its own self-imposed deadlines, and we will be looking for
quarterly reports and answers on this as we move forward.
So with all of these safety concerns as a backdrop, this afternoon we
are now facing a filibuster from our Republican colleagues who want to
bring down the FAA safety authorization bill. We have a bill before us
that clearly offers us a chance to make a difference for safety, for
our airlines, for our passengers, for our highways, and for our
economy. We are talking about a bill that ensures the safety of our air
travel. This is a critically important bill and, by the way, until
recently a bipartisan one. But now we are hearing that the Republicans
want to wage their 68th filibuster on a bill that is important to all
of us.
We have the ability to move forward. I urge our Republican colleagues
to work with us and to not obstruct this bill this afternoon because
anyone who has stood in an endless line at an airport or had their
flight canceled or wanted to have important highway improvements done
is counting on us to do the job. So I urge my colleagues to negotiate
instead of blocking progress, and I hope they will work with us to do
this quickly as we move to the bill today.
Mr. President, I thank you, and I yield the floor.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator from Maryland is
recognized.
Mr. CARDIN. Mr. President, first I wish to thank Senator Murray for
her comments. I couldn't agree with her more. I know the people of
Maryland are very much concerned about the FAA reauthorization bill and
getting it done. Passenger safety is critically important to the people
of Maryland and this Nation. Modernizing our air system is very
important. I thank Senator Murray for the comments she made.
____________________