Amy Klobuchar: “I rise today to speak in support of the Federal Aviation Administration, or the FAA, Reauthorization Act of 2018. This…”

“I rise today to speak in support of the Federal Aviation Administration, or the FAA, Reauthorization Act of 2018. This bill provides needed certainty in aviation and gives the FAA authority to enhance consumer protections and passenger safety. It also maintains critical investments that will help to modernize and maintain our aviation infrastructure. This agreement is the product of bipartisan negotiations over the last several months. I am proud to serve on the Commerce Committee, which played a major role here. I thank Senator Thune and Senator Nelson for their work on this bill, and I urge my colleagues to support it. Minnesota has a long aviation tradition, from Charles Lindbergh to our Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. Two years in a row, it was ranked as the best airport in America. We manufacture jets in Duluth at Cirrus. We manufacture parachutes that go with those jets in our State. We have first-rate military training bases for aviation in Bloomington and in Duluth. We have very strong regional airports, including Duluth and Rochester, which has recently expanded its airport. It matters in our State. For too long, the aviation sector of our economy has had to rely on a series of short-term extensions. It is not good for workers, and it is not good for businesses. That is not good for travelers who use our services.…”