December 19, 2009
What’s at Issue
Last week, Congress passed Consolidated Appropriations legislation (H.R. 3288) that included five unfinished appropriations bills for Fiscal Year 2010 (FY10), including the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT).
Why It’s Important
Conferees agreed on $77 billion for DOT, a 5.1 percent increase over the budget request and 7.5 percent over FY09. Funding for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is also included.
Major Provisions
Department of Transportation
- $77 billion is provided for the Department of Transportation
- Office of the Secretary of Transportation
- $6 million for the Small Community Air Service Program
- $200 million is provided for the Essential Air Service
- $15.992 million for the FAA, a 3.4 percent increase over FY09.
- The bill includes $9.35 billion for operations; $3 million above the FY09 enacted level. Of that amount, $7.299 billion is provided for the Air Traffic Organization (ATO).
- The Airport and Airways Trust Fund – reduced from $5.238 billion to $4 billion. An increase was given to the general fund share of the FAA’s budget, $5.3 billion.
- RNA VIRNP procedures -within the amounts provided for the ATO, $2.8 million is included for RNA VIRNP procedures.
- Aviation Safety – $1.2 billion, $17.7 million above the request and $69.5 million above FY09, including $14 million above the budget request to increase aviation safety oversight and hire 186 additional flight standard inspectors, aircraft certification inspectors and related safety staff.
- Airport Improvement Program Grants: $3.515 billion, matching the request and the same as the previous four years.
- The bill includes $2.9 billion for FAA facilities and equipment;
- Modernizing Air Traffic Control: $2.9 billion, $11 million above the request and $194 million above FY09, including $834 million for research and capital investments for next generation air traffic control system (NextGen). This includes updating radar, navigation, communications, information processing systems, and new air traffic control facilities to increase aviation safety and efficiency.
- National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Investigators: $98.1 million, $2.7 million above the request and $7.1 million above FY09, to modernize the NTSB crash investigation laboratory and provide 14 additional investigators and technical support to respond to and investigate transportation crashes in the aviation, rail, highway, marine and pipeline sectors.
NATA Position
NATA is pleased that Congress completed appropriations legislation to essential programs of the FAA in FY10. Funding for federal aviation programs is critical to the FAA’s mission of providing a safe national aviation system.
Status
The continuing resolution that went into effect after the end of the fiscal year, September 30, 2009, was due to expire on December 31, 2009. Congress passed this important piece of legislation before adjourning until January 12, 2010.
To view the entire Consolidated Appropriations Bill, please click here.
Staff Contact: Kristen Moore
Director, Legislative Affairs
kmoore@nata.aero