[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 10973]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     WHO HAS CONTROL OVER OUR SKIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Louisiana (Mr. Abraham) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. ABRAHAM. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to bring attention to a very 
critical issue that has occurred concerning our skies and the control 
thereof.
  Our U.S. airspace is the busiest airspace in the world and, alone, is 
the safest and most successful. We have over 87,000 flights per day in 
the United States airspace. Our wonderful friends from Canada, just to 
the north, have only a mere fraction of that.
  For decades, our air traffic control has been successfully managed 
under the FAA with the oversight of Congress and the American taxpayer. 
Like any system, there is always room for improvement and 
modernization. However, there are some who think that the only way to 
get to modernization is through privatization. This could not be 
further from the truth.
  Congress will soon begin debating an FAA reauthorization bill. 
Chairman Shuster and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
have done a commendable job and worked tirelessly to craft a bill that 
brings much-needed reforms to the FAA. However, I strongly disagree 
with the idea to give control of air traffic services to a private 
corporation governed by a board made up of special interests. There are 
just too many reasons why this is a bad idea.
  Under the plan, the corporation would operate air traffic control by 
charging flyers user fees. A private corporation concerned with raising 
money from user fees will be heavily incentivized to prioritize air 
traffic services where it can raise the most money.
  This incentive would be very harmful to constituents like mine in 
rural areas who could very well see a reduction in air traffic 
services.
  Further, a private user fee model would undoubtedly reduce revenues 
to the Airport and Airway Trust Fund, as the administration's own 
budget predicts. This fund is critical for upgrades and maintenance in 
small- and medium-sized airports across the country.
  Reliable air traffic services and airport infrastructure are 
essential for rural areas to attract business, for economic growth, and 
for Americans to have access to safe and efficient travel. This plan is 
bad for rural America.
  Spinning off air traffic control to a private corporation is also a 
major liability for the American taxpayer. The administration's budget 
predicts that privatization of air traffic control would cost almost 
$46 billion over 10 years. These costs would be compounded by the fact 
that the private corporation will be required to hire all current 
Federal air traffic employees, continue to contribute to their Federal 
benefits and healthcare, and continue to collectively bargain with 
their union representatives. This is hardly privatization and hardly 
modernization.
  Even more concerning, the taxpayers would likely be on the hook if 
the corporation took on more debt than it can pay for and is unable to 
safely operate our skies.
  Yes, the bill says there is no Federal guarantee for the corporation, 
but this hasn't stopped the Federal Government from being forced to 
bail out other so-called private corporations to the tune of hundreds 
of billions of dollars such as Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
  Our airspace is a public resource and a great national treasure. 
Control over it should not be handed over to a private board with no 
oversight from Congress and, therefore, no obligation to represent the 
best interests of the citizens of the United States.

                              {time}  1215

  Modernization should continue to be our goal, and Congress can get 
there without jeopardizing control and safety of our national airspace.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues and the President to 
modernize our airspace while making sure that it remains the safest and 
most accessible in the world.

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