Taking Hostages

Its been almost four years since the FAA has been able to engage in the kind of long-range planning most other federal agencies enjoy. Thats because the most-recent multi-year legislation authorizing its activities expired in 2007, forcing the agency into a situation where its been subject to a series of short-term extensions-21 of them so far, as of this writing-to continue operating. Most recently, the agencys offices and employees tasked with airport construction, facilities modernization, and research and development, were forced to shut down when Congress failed to renew the latest extension.

Key Takeaways:

• The FAA has been operating on a series of short-term extensions for four years due to Congress failing to pass long-term reauthorization, leading to shutdowns, employee furloughs, and significant revenue losses (e.g., from lapsed airline ticket taxes).
• Long-term FAA funding is held hostage by unrelated political disputes, specifically involving the Essential Air Service (EAS) program and airline employee union voting rules, rather than issues directly related to the agency's operations.
• The author criticizes specific lawmakers for these political "shenanigans," arguing they caused unnecessary disruption and financial cost to the nation's air transportation system.
• Separately, the article asserts that general aviation remains vibrant and innovative, despite challenges and governmental instability, as evidenced by observations from the 2011 AirVenture event.

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