The Aircraft Electronics Association is one of 40 aviation groups that support U.S. congressional passage of the Aviation Funding Stability Act of 2019 (H.R. 1108), which would authorize the Federal Aviation Administration to draw from the Airport and Airway Trust Fund in the event of a government shutdown.
On. Feb. 12, a broad coalition of aviation associations sent a letter to the chairman and ranking member of the House Committee on Transportation & Infrastructure, along with the chairman and ranking member of the House Subcommittee on Aviation.
In part, the letter stated: “During the recent shutdown, air traffic controllers and other aviation safety professionals were forced to work without pay and thousands of others were furloughed. Jobs and economic growth in the industry were threatened as manufacturers, airlines and other operators, and small businesses faced disruption. The effect on the nation’s air transportation system and the workers charged with keeping the system safe was dramatic. We find this situation to be unacceptable and we want to work with Congress and the Administration to prevent this from ever happening
again.
“The legislation is designed to provide a limited, targeted way of ensuring stability for the aviation system and it does not change congressional direction or oversight in any way.
“H.R. 1108 allows FAA to carry out its mission by using the AATF, which presently has an uncommitted balance of over $6 billion. Additionally, users of the system continued to pay taxes and fees during the shutdown to fund the aviation system, but the dollars could not be accessed to support controllers, safety specialists, and other critical FAA personnel absent a legislative fix. Passengers, shippers, FAA employees, operators, businesses, pilots, airline employees and others rely on our aviation system and support its operation through payments to the Trust Fund.”
To read the letter in its entirety, click here.