Washington, D.C.– Continuing their ‘my way or the runway’ shotgun approach, House Republican leaders refuse to end the senseless shutdown of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which has jeopardized nearly 90,000 American jobs, furloughed 3,600 engineers, safety analysts, and aviation experts, and has cost nearly $200 million in lost revenue.
Every Democrat on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee joined together on Tuesday to introduce the “Aviation Jobs and Safety Act of 2011” (H.R. 2644), a clean FAA extension bill that would authorize the aviation programs through the end of Fiscal Year 2011 (September 30, 2011).
A clean extension is supported by the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Republican Leader of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, and a wide group of organizations, but House Republicans refuse to move the process forward.
Statements and Letters in Support of
H.R. 2644, the “Aviation Jobs and Safety Act of 2011”
and a Clean Federal Aviation Administration Extension Bill
Executive Office of the President:
“The Administration strongly supports passage of a clean extension of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) programs, as the Congress has done 20 times without controversy, in order to allow bipartisan, bicameral negotiations to continue on a full reauthorization.” [July 20, 2011]
Statement of Administration Policy
Executive Office of the President
U.S. Department of Transportation:
“I am making a simple and straightforward request to Congress: pass a clean FAA bill and immediately put thousands of FAA employees, construction workers, planners and engineers across America to work. In these tough economic times, we can ill afford to lay off hard-working Americans whose families depend on them.” [July 26, 2011]
The Honorable Ray LaHood
Secretary of Transportation
U.S. Department of Transportation
Republican Leader
Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation:
“Honestly, the House needs to send a clean extension… I happen to agree with much of what the House wants to do, but not in this way… I hope that the House will send us a clean extension so that there will not be another weekend of disruption and people can get on with their projects.” [July 27, 2011]
Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
Ranking Member
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
U.S. Senate
National Association of State Aviation Officials:
“We implore you to offer a ‘clean’ extension for AIP/FAA reauthorization.” [July 22, 2011]
Henry M. Ogrodzinski
President and Chief Executive Officer
National Association of State Aviation Officials
National Association of Counties and
National League of Cities:
“On behalf of the county and city elected officials represented by the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National League of Cities (NLC), we strongly urge you to pass a clean extension of the FAA reauthorization legislation.” [July 27, 2011]
Larry E. Naake
Executive Director
National Association of Counties
Donald Borut
Executive Director
National League of Cities
U.S. Conference of Mayors:
“We urge Washington to reconsider and act now on a simple extension of FAA’s programs and authorities as they have done so many times before.” [July 25, 2011]
Tom Cochran
Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director
U.S. Conference of Mayors
Airports Council International-North America:
“The airport industry is deeply concerned as we are now on the sixth day of the FAA shutdown and newspapers across the country, in communities both large and small, are filled with articles about stop work orders that have left construction sites empty, having a huge impact on the construction sector. . . . We urge you to please pass a clean extension of the FAA to ensure the system keeps operating while you work out the remaining policy differences between the House and Senate versions of the FAA reauthorization bill.” [July 28, 2011]
Greg Principato
President
Airports Council International-North America
American Association of Airport Executives:
“Please act with dispatch to provide the FAA with the necessary authority to obligate the remaining AIP funds for FY11 as the Senate bill, S. 1387 [a clean FAA extension], does, along with continuing the authority to collect aviation excise taxes.” [July 21, 2011]
Charles Barclay
President
American Association of Airport Executives
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
National Air Traffic Controllers Association and
Professional Aviation Safety Specialists:
“On behalf of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) and Professional Aviation Safety Specialists (PASS), which together represent over 30,000 Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) employees, we are writing to urge you to immediately pass a clean extension of funding and expenditure authority for the FAA.” [July 22, 2011]
Gerald W. McEntee
President
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
Paul Rinaldi
President
National Air Traffic Controllers Association
Tom Brantley
President
Professional Aviation Safety Specialists
Laborers’ International Union of North America:
“Congress needs to pass a quick, clean extension that gets these projects going and puts people back to work.” [July 26, 2011]
Terry O’Sullivan
General President
Laborers’ International Union of North America
California Airports Council:
“The California Airports Council (CAC), the state association of California’s 30 commercial airports, urges the Congress to pass a clean extension of the FAA Reauthorization bill . . . to the end of this fiscal year.” [July 27, 2011]
Alan L. Murphy
President
California Airports Council
City of Houston:
“On behalf of the Houston Airport System and the entire Houston region, I urge you to support the clean extension bill just introduced by Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Ranking Member Rahall and Aviation Subcommittee Ranking Member Costello (the Aviation Jobs and Safety Act of 2011), and to work with the leadership to return the FAA to full operations immediately. . . . Action on a clean extension bill is truly urgent, and we earnestly seek your support in ensuring its prompt passage.” [July 26, 2011]
Mario C. Diaz
Director of Aviation
Houston Airport System
City of Houston
-30-