The Week Ahead in Aviation: Washington Legislative Conference Caps Busy Week in Nation's Capital

February 28, 2020

Washington continues its frantic pace next week, including multiple hearings on aspects of the administration's FY 2021 budget proposal and the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak. In addition to all the activity on Capitol Hill, we hope to see you on Thursday and Friday at the AAAE/ACI-NA Washington Legislative Conference to hear from key members of Congress and senior administration officials.

Washington Legislative Conference, March 5-6

In addition to an excellent lineup of Congressional and administration officials who will speak at the Washington Legislative Conference, attendees will have the opportunity to meet with their lawmakers on Capitol Hill. We will also have a reception on Thursday to unwind after a busy day advocating for airport priorities.

The following aviation leaders from the administration and Capitol Hill are scheduled to address attendees:

FAA Administrator Steve Dickson, who will deliver a keynote luncheon address;
Associate FAA Administrator for Airports Kirk Shaffer;
TSA Chief of Staff Ryan Propis;
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chairman, Senate Aviation and Space Subcommittee;
Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT), Member, Senate Commerce Committee;
Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA), Chairman, House Aviation Subcommittee;
Rep. David Price (D-NC), Chairman, House Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee;
Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart (R-FL), Ranking Member, House Transportation Appropriations Subcommittee;
Rep. Lou Correa (D-CA), Chairman, House Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee;
Rep. John Katko (R-NY), Ranking Member, House Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Innovation Subcommittee;
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Member, House Ways and Means Committee;
Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Member, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee;
Rep. Rodney Davis (R-IL), Member, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee; and
Rep. Pete Stauber (R-MN), Member, House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

We look forward to seeing you in Washington next week!

Bipartisan House Letter on LEO Reimbursements, Exit Lane Staffing

Senior members of the House Homeland Security Committee are preparing a letter urging the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee to reject the administration's proposal to eliminate funding for TSA's Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) reimbursement grant program and to transfer exit lane staffing responsibilities from TSA to airport operators. House Transportation and Maritime Security Subcommittee Chairman Lou Correa (D-CA), Ranking Member Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), and Rep. Val Demings (D-FL) are seeking co-signers for a letter they intend to send on Friday, March 13 in support of full funding for both of these programs.

"Congress has long recognized the importance of these programs and the unbearable burden that would fall to airports without the programmatic resources," the draft letter states. A copy of the letter is available here, and there is additional information in our Action Alert sent this morning.

Request: Please contact your House members and ask them to co-sign the Correa-Lesko-Demings letter on funding for LEO reimbursements and exit lane staffing. It is critical to communicate with all members of the House of Representatives, not just those on key committees. For a list of all House members, including contact information, click here. Thank you!

Hearings Next Week

The Senate Aviation and Space Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled "From SARS to Coronavirus: Examining the Role of Global Aviation in Containing the Spread of Infectious Disease." Acting DOT Undersecretary for Policy Joel Szabat, Acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan and Dr. Nancy Messonnier, Director of CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, will testify.

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf will testify twice on Capitol Hill. On Tuesday, Wolf will appear at a hearing on the FY 2021 DHS budget proposal held by the House Homeland Security Committee. The following day, he will appear at a similar hearing before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

TSA Administrator David Pekoske will testify at a Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee hearing on the agency's FY 2021 budget request.

The House Aviation Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled "The Airline Passenger Experience: What It Is and What It Can Be."

Updates from This Week

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved a bill (H.R. 5912) that would allow airports to provide incentive payments to contractors for early completion of AIP-funded projects. Chairman Peter DeFazio (D-OR), in his statement on the legislation, again called on lawmakers to increase the federal cap on local Passenger Facility Charges. "While this bill makes strides in the right direction," DeFazio said, "I believe there is a good case for allowing the PFC, which has been frozen for nearly two decades, to be increased in order to more quickly expedite future projects with less expense and wasted money on interest to Wall Street." Video of DeFazio's remarks on the AIP legislation and the PFC can be viewed here. There is more information in our Airport Alert.

Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf testified on consecutive days before the Senate and House DHS Appropriations Subcommittee and discussed the October 1 REAL ID enforcement deadline, the government response to coronavirus and the Trusted Traveler Program restrictions for New York state residents, among other issues. Our Hearing Reports have more information on Wolf's comments at the House and Senate hearings.

Acting CBP Commissioner Mark Morgan faced questions about how many CBP officers are funded in the administration's FY 2021 budget request at a hearing before the House Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee. There is more information in our Hearing Report.

Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said at a hearing on DOT's budget request for the upcoming fiscal year that the department "absolutely" supports the FAA Contract Tower Program and that it is "very important" to rural America. See our Hearing Report for more information.

TSA notified AAAE that they are experiencing delays in awarding new agreements for LEO reimbursement grants. Our Airport Alert has more.

Please contact Adam if you have any questions or need additional information. As always, have a great weekend.