Senate Clears FAA Extension

March 7, 2024

The Senate cleared a bill by unanimous consent to extend Federal Aviation Administration programs and excise taxes through May 10. The measure will give lawmakers another two months to iron out the differences between the House and Senate versions of the FAA reauthorization bill.
 
Coupled with the first two short-term extensions, the latest stop-gap measure (H.R. 7454) will provide the FAA with slightly more than seven months of authorized funding in Fiscal Year 2024. That translates into more than $2 billion for AIP. We expect that the FAA will make an announcement soon on how it plans to begin distributing the initial round of AIP funding. 
 
The House approved the short-term extension late last month. So, the Senate action clears the way for the President to sign the bill into law before the current FAA extension expires tomorrow. When the House considered the measure, Aviation Subcommittee Chair Garrett Graves (R-LA) said 'this is the last temporary extension we're going to do.'
 
On a separate matter, the House yesterday approved a six-bill spending package that includes funds for the Department of Transportation and the FAA for the remainder of FY24. The Senate needs to approve the measure before midnight tomorrow to avoid a partial government shutdown.