[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10387]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  NATIONAL SECURITY AND PUBLIC SAFETY

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Poe) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to discuss national security and 
public safety for our country and who is responsible for that duty.
  Public safety, that is the first duty of government. Local security, 
local public safety goes to local cities and local law enforcement. 
National security, national public safety is the responsibility of the 
Federal Government.
  But there is an unfunded public safety mandate that is affixiating an 
already struggling industry: our airline industry. The airline industry 
is an important sector of the American economy. With increasing fuel 
costs and taxes, the industry lost $9 billion last year alone and has 
lost $32 billion since September 11, 2001. Presently, taxes and fees 
comprise 26 percent of a $200 airline ticket. The flights seem to be at 
near capacity, yet some airlines are losing money, and I want to 
mention just one reason why.
  Although the Federal Government has taken over much of the security 
for air travel after the terrorist attacks of September 11, airlines 
are still paying for national security and public safety. The airline 
industry forks over $777 million a year out of their own pockets for an 
unfunded Federal security mandate such as catering, security, security 
for checkpoints and exit lanes, and first class, or first flight cabin 
sweeps.
  Specifically, the people who load the peanuts on the airplanes, for 
example, the airlines are forced to expend $81 million, not only on 
their salaries, but the security checks on these caterers.

                              {time}  2100

  The people who match your ticket with your driver's license, and then 
mark it up with a red Crayola at checkpoints and exit lanes, airlines, 
not the government, dispense roughly $80 million on these people.
  And the first flight cabin sweep crew that inspects the plane prior 
to boarding, the people who check for bombs in the bathrooms, airlines 
pick up a $26 million tab for them.
  But perhaps the largest unfunded security mandate is the Federal Air 
Marshal Service, the one which costs the airlines $195 million every 
year. Under current law Federal air marshals are permitted to fly 
without a cost to the Federal Government or the air marshals.
  They sometime fly in pairs, and sometime sit in first class seats to 
allow them to better protect the cockpit. But they can bump off the 
plane a paying passenger as well. The Air Transportation Association 
estimates that airlines are losing $195 million a year in opportunity 
costs by losing these seats.
  Continental Airlines, a carrier based ought of Houston, Texas, part 
of my Congressional district, loses $7 to $9 million a year because 
they cannot sell the seats used by Federal marshals to the public.
  I say again, national security and public safety are the 
responsibilities of the Federal Government. If the Federal Government 
wants air marshals on our airplanes, the Federal Government should pay 
for this service.
  The Federal Government should shell out the money to pay for the 
travel of Federal air marshals, because this is a law enforcement 
expense, instead of saddling the expenditure on the airplanes.
  Mr. Speaker, we want the Federal air marshals on our planes, and 
while many of their accomplishments remain below the radar, their 
presence on thousands of domestic flights since 9/11 have helped to 
maintain the safety of our skies, but the Government should pay their 
way.
  Mr. Speaker, some may argue that it is the airline's responsibility 
to provide for some reasonable security. Well, the airplanes already 
cough up scores of dollars to comply with Federal regulations. For 
example, the Federal Airline Administration reports that full 
deployment of hardened cockpit doors meeting outlined specifications 
have been implemented on about 10,000 airliners and foreign aircraft 
flying to and from the United States.
  Who paid for most of this, Mr. Speaker? The airlines, because the 
Government, our Government told them to.
  Still, airlines face additional expenditures in the name of safety. 
Video monitors and other devices to alert pilots of cabin activity as 
well as guns in the cockpit are just a few of the other efforts being 
undertaken by the industry, all of which, Mr. Speaker, cost money.
  If the Government does not offer financial assistance to implement 
these technologies, who will? Once again, it is the airlines. When will 
we be substantially decreasing the hundreds of millions of dollars they 
incur in unfunded Federal security mandates?
  Mr. Speaker, we must bring some relief to these carriers by reducing 
these unfunded mandates that they are expected to pay.
  I urge my colleagues to help preserve this vital industry and start 
imploring our Government to pay for the security of this Nation.
  When you are spending taxpayer money for bridges that go nowhere, 
funding fish hatcheries and wasting precious dollars on foreign give-
away programs, we must be responsible to the country by securing the 
air. That is the first duty of government.
  Mr. Speaker, when the next airline files for bankruptcy, we will all 
bemoan the tragic news, but unless we change our policy the Federal 
Government will be responsible for putting an institution, the airline 
industry, on the road of economic ruin, and then we will ask the 
question what happened to the airlines in our skies.

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