Political Quotes

“In a spirit of bipartisanship, I rise in strong support of this bipartisan bill, Mr. Speaker. This legislation responds to the pleas we all heard from families at the Subcommittee on Aviation hearings in June and then again on September 5. At our subcommittee markup the bill, as revised, reflects some of the concerns raised by the families, the airlines, and the Red Cross. Specifically, the bill requires the NTSB to designate an employee to act as a point of contact with the families within the Federal Government and as a liaison between the airline and the families. The NTSB is also directed to designate an independent, nonprofit organization; for example, the Red Cross, to address some of the emotional needs called upon by the families. H.R. 3923 sets out in some detail the responsibilities of the NTSB, the Red Cross, and the airlines. It is very important to note that the airlines will continue to be responsible for notifying the families of the death of a loved one. However, the bill also requires that the passenger list be turned over to the National Transportation Safety Board, the NTSB, and the Red Cross, if requested, so families will have someone else to turn to if the airline notification process is too slow.”