House, Senate Accord Clears Path for Massive FAA Bill

Congress passed the sweeping five-year FAA reauthorization bill last month, putting in place long-term funding for the agency and closing the door, at least for the time being, on efforts to fundamentally restructure the nation’s air traffic control (ATC) organization.

Passage of the Aviation, Transportation Safety, and Disaster Recovery Reforms and Reauthorization (H.R.302) culminated a four-plus-year process that involved six short-term extensions, several versions of the bill, hundreds of meetings on Capitol Hill, dozens of hearings, and one of the most contentious debates surrounding the future of the ATC organization.

Ultimately that process led to the announcement in the early hours of September 22 that the House and Senate had reached agreement on bipartisan legislation. And that legislation subsequently passed the House in late September by a 398-23 vote and the Senate in early October by 93-6, further drawing broad support from most corners of the industry.

Senate Commerce Committee chairman John Thune (R-South Dakota) praised its passage, noting it is the longest FAA authorization to be adopted since the 1980s and adding it represents "our collective effort" and bipartisan negotiation. “In creating new protections and enhancements for the flying public, this bill creates five years of stable policy direction for the aviation community,” Thune added.

House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee chairman Bill Shuster (R-Pennsylvania), who shepherded the bill through the House, agreed, saying, “Not only does it provide FAA programs with stability and certainty for the next five years, its numerous reforms will allow America’s aviation industry to continue to safely innovate, thrive, and lead.”

The bill provides for long-term funding for the FAA—up to $96.7 billion through 2023—and touches upon numerous issues of importance to the industry, from certification and regulation to the enabling of the future of supersonic travel and the facilitating of an emergence of a range of new electrical and autonomous systems.

H.R.302 combines several bills in addition to the massive FAA reauthorization, including the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018, a three-year Transportation Security Administration reauthorization, and a four-year National Transportation Safety Board reauthorization. It also encompasses sports medicine licensing, the BUILD Act, a Syria assessment, emerging threats, and supplemental disaster relief.

Reforms Outlined

Along with keeping the FAA authorized through 2023, the nearly 1,200-page bill contains numerous provisions of importance to the business and general aviation community.

While keeping airport funding levels stable at $3.35 billion, the bill would increase the FAA’s authorized facilities and equipment funding levels by $370 million over the five-year period and provide more than $1 billion in additional authorized funding for the FAA’s operations.

Long-sought after reforms of the FAA’s certification and regulatory processes are included in the bill. These included a streamlining of the certification processes and the creation of a Safety Oversight and Certification Advisory Committee to collaborate with industry on the certification processes and to establish clear performance objectives. Reforms further would improve training for FAA inspectors and engineering and increase the ability to use delegated certification authorizations. The measures further are designed to address delays in foreign certifications.

On the supersonic front, the legislation calls on the FAA to work with industry to develop an “appropriate regulatory framework and timeline for permitting the safe and efficient operation of civil supersonic aircraft within U.S. airspace.” Further, the FAA would be required to address certification of supersonic aircraft, as well as special flight authorizations.

Other measures would seek to improve Part 135 safety data and establish an aviation rulemaking committee to strengthen Part 135 pilot and flight attendant rest and duty rules. A mandatory review of reports of illegal charter flights is also included in the bill.

As far as flight-sharing, the bill includes the compromise provision that directs the FAA to develop clear guidance on when flight and cost sharing would be appropriate and further would seek a Government Accountability Office study on federal policy. However, the bill stops short of changing definitions of a pilot or of commercial operations to accommodate such activity, as sought by flight-sharing advocates.

Also, the FAA would be required to develop a plan to address potential ADS-B compliance by the 2020 mandate. Cybersecurity is addressed in measures calling on the FAA to consider avionics security mandates, as well as review its own cybersecurity plan.

H.R.302 directs the creation of a task force to come up with recommendations to ease the regulatory burdens and costs and improve safety for aircraft operated under Part 91. The aircraft registry would also be shielded from temporary federal funding lapses.

Among the myriad reports required is a review of the burdens imposed by temporary flight restrictions and recommendations for easing those burdens. The bill further eliminates air traffic services fee at events such as the annual EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

FAA organizational and civil registry reforms are addressed, as well as progress updates of NextGen and airspace modernization. A pilot project would be created to provide preferential air traffic services for aircraft with certain equipment that accommodates NextGen. Mandatory use of the New York North Shore Helicopter Route would come under review, as would the possibility of a Stage 3 aircraft phaseout.

H.R.302 seeks to strengthen pilot legal protections through an expansion of the Pilot’s Bill of Rights, as well as improvements in Notam updates.

A number of measures were included designed to facilitate safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems, as well as to address the future of the aviation workforce. Commercial airline customer service directives range from a directive for minimum pitch and width requirements for passenger seats to a prohibition of involuntary bumping of passengers already boarded.

Industry Support

But perhaps most important is what is missing from the bill: the proposal to carve the ATC organization out of the U.S. FAA and into an independent, user-funded entity. It was Shuster’s willingness to drop his proposal for the independent ATC that opened the door for passage.

“This bill will provide a stable path forward for the FAA without controversial proposals to privatize our nation's ATC system,” said NBAA president and CEO Ed Bolen, hailing its passage.

In a letter to members Bolen had added, “The entire general aviation community should be extremely proud of its efforts to oppose the so-called ATC privatization plan…Through tens of thousands of letters and phone calls to Congress, the voice of general aviation was heard loud and clear on Capitol Hill, leading to this victory.”

Bolen’s support was strongly echoed by other members of the business and general aviation community.

“[The National Air Transportation Association] believes passage of this legislation will bring the industry and the FAA one step closer to financial stability and modernization of our nation’s air transportation system,” added Gary Dempsey, the newly appointed president of the association. “The legislation includes many provisions, sought by NATA, that benefit general aviation businesses across the country…Congressional transportation leaders heard our collective voice and rejected poison pills, including attempts to promote illegal flight sharing, that will negatively impact the industry for years to come.”

General Aviation Manufacturers Association Pete Bunce praised the bipartisan leadership in both the House and Senate authorizing committees and pointed to many of the beneficial provisions, particularly on the certification regulatory reform front, but also those intended to help address workforce issues and to ensure full implementation of the Part 23 rewrite.

“This reauthorization bill provides significant improvements for general aviation and the helicopter industry specifically,” added Matt Zuccaro, HAI president and CEO. “The helicopter industry faces a severe pilot and mechanic shortage, and this bill provides important solutions to help address this critical industry issue. Additionally, the bill addresses needed reform to FAA regulations pertaining to training programs at aviation maintenance technician schools.” He further praised measures that provide “needed clarity on the safe integration of unmanned aircraft systems.”

As for repair stations, Aeronautical Repair Station Association executive v-p Christian Klein called the bill's passage an “historic achievement for Congress,” adding it “puts the agency on the path to more-effectively regulate a growing industry. Just as important, it’s a major piece of workforce legislation.”

But not everyone was as pleased with the legislation: “It’s shameful that Congress is trying to resurrect these incredibly dirty planes so rich people can get to business meetings and vacations faster,” said Clare Lakewood, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Supersonics are a needless extravagance that will supersize the aviation industry’s already hefty contribution to the climate crisis.”