03-04-2000

TRANSPORTATION: FAA Legislation No Longer Grounded

It took almost six months, but House and Senate negotiators on legislation
to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration appear finally to have
reached a deal on what had been an intractable budgetary issue. Senate
Budget Committee Chairman Pete V. Domenici, R-N.M., and House
Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bud Shuster, R-Pa.,
agreed in principle to give the FAA and its programs $40 billion between
2001 and 2003. Although this amount is a significant increase in aviation
spending, the deal is something of a setback for Shuster, especially
considering his successful effort in boosting highway spending in 1998.
Shuster lost his battle to take the federal Airport and Airway Trust Fund
"off-budget" and to secure a guaranteed contribution for
aviation programs from the general fund. "He wanted a general-fund
contribution. He capitulated, so we're pretty happy," said Amy Call,
a spokeswoman for the Senate Budget Committee. But a Shuster aide said
that his boss is pleased with the settlement, because it mandates that
appropriators have to spend the money coming in to the aviation trust fund
on aviation.


Mark Murray/National Journal

National Journal