House and Senate Pass FAA Extension, March 2009 New Deadline for Reauthorization

On Sept. 23, both houses of Congress passed a six month extension of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) through March 31, 2009. The current extension was set to expire on Sept. 30. The bill (H.R. 6984) maintains funding for the agency and its programs and extends the current aviation excise tax. President Bush is expected to sign the legislation.

The extension was necessary after the Senate stonewalled the House reauthorization bill (H.R. 2881) that passed the chamber last year. That bill contained several damaging provisions damaging for the aviation maintenance industry. While the Senate debated its own reauthorization bill, which included a particularly dangerous amendment from Senator Claire McCaskill (D-MO), it was blocked by Republican opposition and no further action was taken.

The extension until the end of March provides ARSA members valuable time to ensure that the next FAA reauthorization bill does not contain provisions negatively targeting the maintenance community. With a new Congress and new president set to take office in January, ARSA will hit the ground running as the debate crescendos approaching March 31. A major push by ARSA membership will be necessary to thwart efforts by select interest groups aimed at undermining the maintenance industry, both domestically and abroad.

The text of the extension is available here.

A synopsis of the bill is available here.

More information on how you can help protect your industry in the next FAA reauthorization may be found at www.ARSAAction.org.