Ed Case: “I thank the committee for what I think is a good bill. My purpose in rising today as this bill goes forward is simply to…”

“I thank the committee for what I think is a good bill. My purpose in rising today as this bill goes forward is simply to highlight the absolute dependence on some parts of our country on air service, and thus the absolute importance of the essential air services portion of the law and of this bill, and also the necessity as we go forward of avoiding one-size-fits-all thinking when we deal with the problems of our rural communities in addressing EAS. In fact, imagine a district in which air service is truly indispensable to providing the basic necessities, to transporting residents, to providing emergency medical service, and to the survival and prosperity of our number one industry, tourism, and several other important industries based on, for example, agricultural exports. That is Hawaii today, and that is my second district, a district that has all of Hawaii other than urban Honolulu and is composed of seven inhabited islands. It is absolutely unique.”