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1. 10:58 PM - User fees (Gary L Vogt)
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Just doing a little light research on user fees.
Did you know . . . The original FAA Authorization Bill, H.R. 3539, was wri
tten and passed by a Republican House and a Republican Senate in 1996? Of co
urse, it was signed by Clinton. This bill covered all authorization for 15 y
ears. Hence, the fight last year and near shutdown of the FAA. A large porti
on of the section on user fees was found to be illegal.
Quote: "Section 273 of the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization A
ct (P.L. 104-264) authorized the collection of new user fees for foreign ove
rflights. These fees were to be charged for air traffic control services pro
vided to aircraft that neither take off from, nor land, in the United States
.
When the FAA set about writing the regulations that would establish this fee
, it went beyond the intent of Congress by also proposing a general aviation
(GA) overflight user fee. On May 19, 1997, the FAA began charging the fee f
or all foreign overflights, including those by GA aircraft, with the excepti
on of Canada-to-Canada flights.
Foreign airlines sued the FAA, claiming the FAA acted unlawfully in employin
g an expedited procedure to implement these fees, and that they violated the
anti-discrimination provisions of international aviation agreements. The co
urt made its decision on January 30, 1998. The court decided that the fees t
hemselves were not illegal, but that the value-oriented "Ramsey pricing" met
hod they had used to determine the fees did violate the law. As a result of t
he court decision, the FAA suspended the fee program." End quote
FAA authorization was reopened in Summer 2006,
Quote "For over a year, the Bush administration has claimed that the existin
g aviation tax revenues are falling short of the FAA's expenses, noting that
ticket prices are not linked to their productivity costs. They also claim t
hat the current tax-based funding system promotes an unstable operating envi
ronment for the FAA, making long-term financial planning impossible. Stating
tight budget years make continued funding from the General Fund unlikely, t
he administration proposes to implement a user-fee-based system of revenue c
ollections. The commercial airlines fully support this proposal because they
believe it will result in a reduction in their operating expenses and permi
t them to be profitable. The airlines also believe that a fee-based system w
ill give them more say in how the FAA's air traffic control system is run, p
ermitting them to bully general aviation further away from their major opera
ting airports and airspace areas.
User Fee time line
July 2006 =94 EAA launches its campaign to prevent user fees after the
Bush Administration, FAA, and airline industry unveil their plans to impose
user fees on general aviation.
June 2007 =94 U.S. Senate introduces S.B. 1300, =9CThe Aviation I
nvestment and Modernization Act of 2007,=9D a bill to authorize approp
riations for the Federal Aviation Administration for fiscal years 2008 throu
gh 2011, to improve aviation safety and capacity, to modernize the air traff
ic control system, and for other purposes. The bill includes provisions for s
ubstantial hikes in fuel excise taxes and a $25-per-flight IFR user fee for t
urbine-powered general aviation aircraft.
June 2007 =94 U.S. House of Representatives introduces H.R. 2881: The
FAA Reauthorization Act of 2007. The bill includes fuel tax increases and hi
kes in other existing fees, but no general aviation user fees.
July 2007 =94 At AirVenture Oshkosh 2007, top executives of the major g
eneral aviation organizations and several federal lawmakers meet in an open f
orum to discuss the impact of and voice their united oppositition to user fe
es.
September 2007 =94 The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2003 expires. Congre
ss extends the Act=99s revenue and spending provisions to June 30, 200
8.
September 2007 =94 U.S. House of Representatives passes H.R.2881, with
a 65% hike in aviation fuel taxes but no general aviation user fees.
September 2007 =94 S.B. 1300 stalls as Senate=99s Finance Commit
tee and Aviation Subcommittee argue over user fees.
April 2008 =94 Senate committees reach a compromise that drops the IFR
user fee from the bill but retains a 65% increase in aviation jet fuel taxe
s on business-jet operators. The bill stalls again in committee over disagre
ements on other amendments unrelated to user fees or aviation.
June 2008 =94With the FAA budget reauthorization bill stalled in the S
enate and FAA funding about to expire, Congress votes to extend the existing
FAA budget through the end of September 2008. The budget extension will kee
p the lights on at the agency; it leaves a great deal of long-term FAA progr
ams and projects in limbo because no one knows what the final FAA budget bil
l will include.
June-July 2008 =94The airline industry, the FAA, and the Bush administ
ration continue to push for GA user fees and airline-dominated control of FA
A revenues and spending. EAA and the general aviation community continue the
fight against user fees.
February 2009 =93 U.S. House of Representatives introduces H.R. 915: T
he FAA Reauthorization Act of 2009. (The 111th session of Congress convened
on January 6, 2009.) Extension granted through September 30, 2009.
Today=99s government continues to work under a continuing resolution f
or FAA funding. Eventually, Congress will have to pass a new FAA budget bil
l. No one can safely predict what compromises the FAA budget bill will cont
ain when it finally reaches president=99s desk but EAA continues to wo
rk every day to prevent the introduction of new user fees and taxes on the g
eneral aviation community." End quote
Fortunately, I've been unable to find any Senators or Congressmen in favor o
f future user fees.
Gary
Sent from my iPad
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