Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Bill Will Help Economy

June 14, 2012 – Arent Fox Senior Policy Advisor, former US Sen. Byron Dorgan, and Government Relations Director James Hunter’s article analyzing the recently passed Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization and Reform Act and the legislation’s impact on the economy has been published in the Bloomberg BNA Daily Report for Executives.

The FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act will help businesses by transforming the US air traffic control system to a satellite-based system through the Federal Aviation Administration’s NextGen program, bolstering the aerospace manufacturing sector, and authorizing multiyear funding and user-fee derived revenue to support the national transportation system.

Sen. Dorgan and Mr. Hunter write:

Congress scored a rare and underreported bipartisan victory earlier this year when it passed legislation to reauthorize programs and set funding levels for the Federal Aviation Administration through 2015.

Policy disagreements and partisan politics had delayed the bill since 2007, but, its passage is a notable achievement in a Congress that has struggled to pass significant bipartisan legislation.

There are several reasons whys the FAA bill is important to the business community. … Our air transportation system is outdated and inefficient, which increases the cost of traveling and transporting goods. It is estimated that air traffic delays now cost the economy more than $40 billion annually.

To read the article in its entirety, please click here.

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