Thomas E. Petri: “Mr. Speaker, as was pointed out, in May, the House passed H.R. 915, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. In March of…”

“Mr. Speaker, as was pointed out, in May, the House passed H.R. 915, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. In March of this year, the Senate passed its own FAA reauthorization bill. The House took that up, amended it, passed it, and sent it back to the Senate. Since then, we have been in formal discussions to reconcile the two bills. While these discussions have led to tentative agreements on nearly all of the provisions, a few controversial issues have prevented the House and Senate from reaching a final agreement. Therefore, with the FAA's authorities set to expire at the end of the calendar year, we again find it necessary to consider another extension. Like the 16 earlier extensions over the past 3 years, the bill before us would provide a short-term extension of the taxes, programs, and funding of the FAA, this time through the end of March 2011. It is unfortunate that this Congress has not been able to reach final agreement on a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill. However, in order to ensure the safe operation of the National Airspace System while Congress continues to debate a full reauthorization package, I certainly support passage of today's extension and urge my colleagues to do the same.”