Washington, D.C.—Today, Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Rick Larsen (D-WA) and Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Aviation André Carson (D-IN) released the follow statement regarding last night’s nationwide ground stop and this morning’s press conference with U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Bryan Bedford.
“Thank you to our air traffic controllers, safety technicians and all transportation workers who sprang into action to protect travelers during yesterday’s nationwide ground stop,” Ranking Members Larsen and Carson said. “This ground stop left the flying public and aviation workforce in disarray and seeking answers that the Trump administration waited hours to share. The safe travel of the flying public must always be our top priority. Our committee, on behalf of the flying public, will hold the administration accountable for what happened to make sure this chaos does not happen again.
“Let’s look at the facts. Congress approved $12.5 billion for the Department of Transportation to make necessary safety upgrades to our air traffic control system. Fifteen months later, the administration’s obligated $4.3 billion but only spent $1 billion, leaving $8 billion unobligated and $11 billion unspent. Explain to Congress, again, why they need more money?
“FAA and DOT staff will brief our staff on Monday about the additional $30 billion originally requested by the administration. We also expect to receive clear answers from FAA Administrator Bedford at our early December hearing—unless that can happen sooner.
"Heading into the next Congress, T&I Democrats are reconstituting the Oversight and Investigations staff of the Committee, and the rollout of ‘BNATCS’ will be a top priority of this new team. With holiday travel around the corner, we must avoid chaos that leads to mass, unexpected travel delays.”
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