Third District Congressman Adrian Smith is asking the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee to include his Small Airport Regulation Relief Act in the next Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization.
Smith’s letter outlines the consequences of pilot regulations that went into effect two years ago, including flight cancellations and subsequent funding cuts, and asks for language to be included in the upcoming FAA reauthorization to prevent disproportionate impacts on rural communities. Smith’s legislation would require the FAA to use enplanement numbers from 2012 – before the regulations took effect – when calculating anual funding for airports over the next two years under the Airport Improvement Program (AIP).
Smith says, “The growing number of cancellations is not only troublesome for travelers but also prevents many of these airports from meeting the requirements for infrastructure funding even though they have qualified in the past. My legislation would allow small airports to continue serving our rural communities by helping them obtain the resources they need.”
http://kneb.com/regional-news/smith-small-airport-relief-act-should-be-part-of-faa-reauthorization/