Congress left for a week-long break with a long-term aviation policy bill still stuck in limbo, nearly three months after a top Republican pitched a bill that would privatize the nation’s air traffic control system.
But a proposal to move forward could be ready in “a few weeks,” according to those close to the negotiations.
House Transportation Committee Chairman Bill Shuster introduced legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration on Feb. 3, and his panel voted to advance the measure a week later.
The bill would reauthorize the FAA for six years and would make changes aimed at improving the safety and comfort of the flying public. It would also add new regulations overseeing drones.
But the bill has since stalled, mostly due to a provision in the measure that would spin off air traffic control services to an independent, non-profit agency. The impasse forced Congress to pass a temporary extension of FAA authorization that expires on July 15.
Shuster, R-Pa., told the Washington Examiner in a recent interview that he is far from giving up on his legislation or the privatization proposal, but provided no details about how he might redraft the proposal to gain support.
“The chairman has had ongoing discussions with both Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate about air traffic control reform,” Shuster spokesman Jim Billimoria told the Examiner. “The numerous problems he’s outlined have not been addressed or fixed in any other piece of legislation to date.”
The privatization plan has drawn bipartisan opposition in the House, including from House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., who shares jurisdiction over the bill.
The Senate, meanwhile, passed its own FAA reauthorization bill that did not include privatizing air traffic controllers.
According to a GOP aide, Shuster talked by phone Thursday with Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Chairman John Thune, R-S.D.
“Chairman Shuster said the House would need a few weeks to determine its course,” the aide said. “Chairman Thune focused on the need to pass a full reauthorization that can be signed into law instead of relying on a shorter extension.”
The two did not discuss the privatization provision, the aide said.
Republican lawmakers on the House Transportation Committee continue to support privatization. Lawmakers on the panel said they expect to see some movement now that Shuster is no longer focused on a primary challenge, which he won narrowly on April 26th.
A top proponent of privatization, Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., who is a former panel chairman, said there could be a way to compromise on privatizing the ATC that would include keeping the financing under government control and contracting oversight to an independent agency. Much of the opposition to privatization centers on the fees, he said, particularly from the general aviation industry, which fears they will have to foot additional costs.
“If we can reach a compromise with the Senate, then you can do it,” Mica said of maintaining the privatization language. “They want to maintain the financial strings.”
Mica is one of the most ardent supporters of privatizing air traffic control. He believes taking the service out from underneath the federal government will speed up long-stalled implementation of a satellite-based air traffic control system that is considered far safer than the antiquated methods now used in most air traffic control towers.
At a recent press event, Mica brought along tiny slips of paper that he said are now used as part of air traffic control communications.
“I’m not kidding, they use these little paper slips,” Mica said, holding one up for reporters to see. “We can’t continue this way. We have an opportunity here with a bold new approach, and what better way than to let the stakeholders take on this responsibility.”
Opponents of air traffic control privatization say it will be difficult for Shuster to advance the bill with the Senate unless he removes the language and he appears to be doing nothing at all at this point.
“Beyond his rhetoric,” once critic close to the matter said, “I don’t get it.”
Mica, who is one of the longest serving members on the Transportation Committee and ran the panel from 2011-2013, is far more optimistic that a compromise can happen.
“Shuster’s got his proposal, the Senate has theirs,” Mica said. “You sit down and see what you can do.”
