Transportation

House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) lambasted the Republican FAA Reauthorization conference report on the House Floor today – particularly the absence of a prohibition of privatizing air traffic control towers, which was included in the original House and Senate bills.

WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) today released the following statement today criticizing Republicans for failing to include the privatization prohibition in the FAA Conference Report, which was in both the House and Senate passed bills:

WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) lauded the passage tonight of a Motion to Recommit the FAA Reauthorization Act to the conference committee as a clear rebuke to the Republican leadership, which fundamentally altered the legislation in conference after it passed the House 418-8 and the Senate 94-0 in June.

Nearly three months after House and Senate conferees hurriedly agreed to a four-year, $59.2 billion reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the legislation is still mired in a largely partisan dispute over privatization of airport control towers.

WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer (MD) today released the following statement in response to a press report in Aviation Daily that House Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Mica is going to remove air traffic control towers in Republican districts from the privatization list in order to buy off votes for the FAA Reauthorization Conference Report...

WASHINGTON – House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, Rep. James Oberstar (D-MN), Ranking Democrat on the House Transportation Committee, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Ranking Democrat on the Transportation Subcommittee on Aviation, John Carr, President of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, and Jeremy Yahn, an experienced Air Traffic Controller, held a press conference this afternoon in opposition to Republican attempts to privatize air traffic control and weaken air safety. The following is Rep. Hoyer’s statement as prepared for delivery:

WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- Opposition to privatizing air traffic control towers paired with a Congressional turf battle has left a bill reauthorizing the Federal Aviation Administration in trouble in the U.S. House of Representatives...

WASHINGTON, DC – House Democratic Whip Steny H. Hoyer (MD) and Transportation Committee Ranking Member Jim Oberstar (MN) meet with representatives of the airline companies today to discuss government assistance to the airline industry. Representatives DeFazio and Lipinski also participated in the meeting...