Political Quotes

“I rise in support of this Airport Improvement Reauthorization Act. I thank the chairman and the ranking member for crafting thoughtful and responsive legislation that will help revitalize the Federal Aviation Administration while reauthorizing Federal aviation programs, but I am concerned about provisions in the Senate bill that take us a step back and would bring controversy and invite opposition to this important legislation by increasing the number of flights to the four slot-controlled airports. In the case of Washington National Airport, the Senate legislation would add an additional 24 slots to this congested airport and lift the perimeter rule, permitting half of those slots to fly beyond the current 1,250-mile perimeter restriction. A change in the perimeter rule would result in a cutback in locations currently served by National within the perimeter and adversely affect the development of the Washington area's three commercial airports. Over time, short-range service to cities that generate less than $20 million in revenue would be displaced and the number of transcontinental flights operating out of Dulles, which has plenty of room for expansion, would decline. Thus, the substantial investment made at both National and Dulles by the taxpayers, the Federal Aviation Administration and the aviation community would become substantially devalued.”