James Oberstar: “This has been, all through the hearing process, an open and inclusive process that we conducted in the best tradition of…”

“This has been, all through the hearing process, an open and inclusive process that we conducted in the best tradition of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. We appreciate the participation of the members on the Republican side. Mr. Mica has given a considerable amount of his time from all the other issues that we have to deal with in committee. The gentleman from Wisconsin has been a quick learner and a very astute participant in both the hearings and the markup process. And the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Costello) has really put his arms around the subject of aviation, mastered the issues, and brought forth an extraordinary piece of legislation that will serve aviation well and serve the Nation well out into the future. Yes, we have disagreement principally on two issues, and we have been open and candid about that right from the outset. We have worked cooperatively, bipartisanly to try to resolve the air traffic controller issue. Both parties seemed irreconcilable. We have created a process in this legislation by which the air traffic controller issue can be resolved with an arbitration process. And I think that's in the best interest of the Nation.”