Rep. Mark Takano Applauds Passage of Bill to Facilitate Transfer of Ontario International Airport to Local Control

Statement

Rep. Mark Takano (D-Calif.) released the following statement after the House passed H.R. 4369, a bill to facilitate the transfer of the Ontario International Airport to local control from the City of Los Angeles. "I applaud the House for taking this important step to support the transfer of the Ontario International Airport to local control.

"While the number of flights offered at Ontario Airport has decreased, the demand for those flights has not. The result is that an estimated 2 million passengers every year are forced to drive to Los Angeles or other regional airports due to the lack of flights and connections offered at Ontario. Our region is losing up to 8,000 and $400 million dollars in yearly business activity.

"As the Inland Empire continues to grow in population, the Ontario International Airport can be a vital economic resource to our region with the potential to serve 30 million passengers annually. Today's bipartisan legislation will make that possible."

Rep. Mark Takano was an original cosponsor of the H.R. 4369, which was introduced by Rep. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) He was joined by California Reps. Aguilar, Cook, Napolitano, Royce, Ruiz, and Torres.

Source