GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT
CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE
The House and Senate are in session from March 25 through April 12, and then will recess for
the last two full weeks of April.
T&I MARK-UP OF H.R. 1108
NATCA strongly supports H.R. 1108, the Aviation Funding Stability Act, which would protect the
FAA from future government shutdowns. The NLC, NATCA activists, and GA staff have been
aggressively working to encourage members of Congress to sign on as co-sponsors to this
important legislation. The legislation faces hurdles and political challenges, especially among
members of the House Appropriations Committee and the House Ways & Means Committee.
Despite that, the legislation has garnered 134 bipartisan co-sponsors so far.
T&I Mark-Up: The House Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) Committee marked up
this legislation and passed it by unanimous consent on Wednesday, March 27. H.R.
1108 has also been referred to the House Ways & Means Committee. Read NATCA's
press release
Background: If enacted, this legislation would ensure that the aviation system continues
to fully operate, without interruption, in the event of a government shutdown. H.R. 1108
was introduced by Reps. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), Chairman of the House T&I
Committee, and Rick Larsen (D-Wash.), Chairman of the Aviation Subcommittee. The
lead Republican on the legislation is Rep. Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio), a senior member of the
House T&I Committee. This legislation was introduced following the 35-day government
shutdown that wreaked havoc on the National Airspace System and its workforce.
FAA FUNDING STATUS: The FAA is currently funded until the end of this fiscal year, through
Sept. 30, 2019. House and Senate Appropriations Committees are beginning work on the Fiscal
Year (FY) 2020 appropriations cycle. NATCA Government Affairs staff is advocating for full
funding for the FAA in our relevant Congressional appropriations bills in the House and Senate
(the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bills, "THUD"). House
Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) has vowed that the House will pass all appropriations bills
by June 30.
Trump Budget Proposal: The White House officially sent the FY 2020 budget proposal
to Congress on March 11. On Wednesday, March 27, Department of Transportation
Secretary Elaine Chao testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee on
President Donald Trump's budget request for DOT. As a reminder, this is simply a
request for funding levels; it is non-binding and Congress, which regularly dismisses the
President's budget proposal, still needs to work through the appropriations process.
NATCA will continue to adamantly oppose attacks on federal employees, and advocate
for policy positions and funding levels that support our membership.
Sequestration Cuts: This will be a tough year for federal spending. In February 2018,
Congress passed a two-year budget agreement that removes domestic spending caps
and prevents automatic cuts known as "sequestration" until next fiscal year. This means
that Congress must act this year to raise the budget caps or risk cutting spending in FY
2020, which begins Oct. 1. However, the White House has signaled that it may oppose
any congressional deal to raise budget caps this year, especially when it comes to non-
defense spending. As a reminder, sequestration was originally enacted as a way to cut
