Vision 100-Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act-Conference Report-Resumed

VISION 100-CENTURY OF AVIATION REAUTHORIZATION ACT-CONFERENCE REPORT-RESUMED

Mrs. MURRAY. Mr. President, I oppose the motion to close debate on the FAA reauthorization bill.

While I strongly support the bill's authorized funding for infrastructure and operations for our Nation's aviation system, I am troubled that this bill still gives the Administration too much leeway to privatize our Nation's air traffic control, ATC, system.

We know this administration is eager to privatize government jobs even when it costs more money and does not improve productivity. We also know that air traffic control involves special considerations like safety, cost and flight delays.

That's why both the House and Senate passed amendments to the FAA bill to explicitly limit the administration's ability to privatize FAA-controlled towers. I voted for the Lautenberg Amendment in June, and it passed the Senate 56-41.

You would have thought that the White House would recognize that it was on the wrong side of this bipartisan issue. But instead of accepting this reality, the White House pressured the members of the conference committee to remove the limiting language during the first conference. Regrettably, a majority on the conference committee followed the White House's request.

In its place, the conferees added new language that goes even further in supporting privatization. That new language would allow 69 of current FAA controlled towers to be eligible for privatization. Eleven of those towers are among the 50 busiest in the nation, including Boeing Field in Seattle.

The conferees then presented that proposal, only to realize that it faced strong opposition in both Houses of Congress.

The conferees were forced to take their first report back for further deliberation. Their second conference report, which is before us today, dropped the expanded privatization provision. However, it did not reinstate the initial language that both
chambers supported, which would explicitly limit the administration's ability to privatize our air traffic control system.

Given the administration's disregard for congressional intent, I believe that this limiting language is critical.

As ranking Member of the Transportation, Treasury and General Government Appropriations Subcommittee, I have supported some privatization of ATC, but only at low-traffic airports that would otherwise not have a tower.

This is not just a process or philosophical issue but raises questions about benefits, safety and cost. The countries that have privatized their ATC systems-Canada, Australia and the U.K.-have seen increased flight delays and-in the case of Great Britain-an increase in "near misses" that could result in accidents. In addition, this private control requires more resources than government-run systems.

It is important to note that the Lautenberg amendment would have allowed the government to continue to provide private air traffic control to smaller airports.

Senator Rockefeller has offered a simple 6-month extension of AIR-21, which will allow us to reexamine this issue and put together a package that reflects the will of Congress and the people.

I urge my colleagues to oppose this conference report.