Political Quotes

“I am pleased to support S. 1994, the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 1996. As the ranking member of the Aviation Subcommittee, I want to thank the chairman of the subcommittee, Senator McCain, for his leadership and determination in bringing this bill to the Senate floor. Mr. President, as the 104th Congress comes to a close, there are many bills which are labeled as 'must pass.' But this bill truly is a must-pass piece of legislation. The FAA reauthorization act includes provisions which reauthorize the Airport Improvement Program [AIP]. The AIP program funds hundreds of airport improvement and construction projects throughout our Nation. But the program expires on September 30. Without this reauthorization bill, the FAA would be unable to fund many worthy aviation infrastructure projects. We cannot let that happen. The FAA's forecasts for the aviation industry project tremendous growth. Those forecasts project an average increase of 3.7 percent in domestic passenger traffic by the year 2007. One of the big growth areas will most likely be in the regional and commuter industry. In 1995, regional and commuter air carriers carried 53.7 million passengers. By the year 2007, the FAA projects these same carriers to carry 96.9 million passengers--an annual growth of 5.4 percent. The tremendous growth of air traffic will place tremendous challenges on airports and airways management. That is why it is so important for the Senate to pass S.…”