Political Quotes

“Mr. President, aviation continues to play a significant role in the American economy and in American life. The industry contributes $1.6 trillion to the economy on an annual basis and supports more than 10.6 million jobs. In 2017, 850 million passengers boarded U.S. airline flights for both domestic and international trips. Americans rely on planes to do their jobs, to catch up with far-flung friends, and to take a much needed break from work, to make it to important family events. Every few years, Congress has to pass legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration, the government agency responsible for everything from overseeing the safety of the national airspace to providing grants for critical infrastructure needs at airports. Passing that reauthorization bill gives us the opportunity to take a look at aviation as a whole and to hear from manufacturers, airport administrators, airlines, and the flying public. That is exactly what we did with the reauthorization bill that is before the Senate today. In the lead-up to this bill, we spent months conducting research, holding hearings in the Commerce Committee which I chair, and listening to the aviation community and to airline passengers. Then we took that information and used it to develop legislation that will strengthen aviation, promote economic growth, enhance transportation safety and security, and improve the flying experience for the public.…”