Statement by Congresswoman Mazie Hirono on Passage of the Federal Aviation Administration Modernization and Reform Act of 2012

Statement

Today the House passed by a vote of 248-169 a four year renewal of the Federal Aviation Administration. The final bill contained a key amendment introduced by Congresswoman Mazie K. Hirono, a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which will provide an estimated $6 million more a year to help fix and modernize Hawaii's busiest airports and create jobs. Congresswoman Hirono released the following statement on her vote in support of the bill:

"Today we moved forward on investments to make our skies safer, create jobs while improving our airports and help our communities, like Kalaupapa, stay connected to the world through essential air service. I'm also thankful to see included an amendment I authored that will bring an estimated $6 million more a year to help fix and modernize our busiest airports in Hawaii without penalizing our residents with heavy fees. The bill also gives consumers a voice by creating a new federal hotline to report and investigate air travel complaints, and airlines will now be required to have an emergency contingency plan so people are treated fairly when unexpected delays occur.

"But it's with deep disappointment that I say politics also made its way into this bill. There are disturbing provisions included that are designed to make it harder for workers to vote to join a union. I don't support these provisions and will work to see them changed."

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