NATCA Bookshelf

GLOSSARY Administrative Furlough A discretionary ("save money" or "non-emergency") furlough. It involves the placing of an employee in a temporary non-duty, non-pay status because of lack of work or funds, or for other non-disciplinary reasons. It is a planned event designed to absorb reductions necessitated by downsizing, reduced funding, lack of work, or any other event that requires the agency to save money. This kind of furlough is "non-emergency" in that the agency has sufficient time to reduce spending and therefore give adequate notification of its specific furlough plan and how many furlough days or hours will be required for each affected employee. (See also Shutdown Furlough) Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF) The FAA is funded primarily by the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (Trust Fund or AATF) which receives revenues from a series of excise taxes paid by users of the NAS, and by the General Fund. The Airport and Airway Revenue Act of 1970 created the Trust Fund to provide a dedicated source of funding for the aviation system independent of the General Fund. Air Traffic Controllers Hiring Act of 2015 (H.R. 1964) Legislation introduced by Rep. Randy Hultgren (R-IL-14) that would direct the Administrator of the FAA to revise certain hiring practices for air traffic controllers. NATCA worked very closely with Rep. Hultgren on drafting this legislation, and we support it because it would improve the hiring process. Air Traffic Organization (ATO) The operational arm of the FAA. The ATO is responsible for providing safe and efficient air navigation services to 30.2 million square miles of airspace. This represents more than 17 percent of the world's airspace and includes all of the United States and large portions of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the Gulf of Mexico. Airport Improvement Program (AIP) The Airport Improvement Program provides grants to public agencies — and, in some cases, to private owners and entities — for the planning and development of public-use airports that are included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS). AIP is authorized as part of the FAA's authorizing legislation and it is appropriated as Grants-in-Aid to airports. Anti-Official Time Amendment (Gingrey) If it had been enacted, this amendment (previously sponsored by former Rep. Phil Gingrey of Georgia) would have eliminated official time for federal employees, including those at the FAA. The amendment would have eliminated the ability of air traffic controllers to work collaboratively with the FAA in informal meetings and workgroups to resolve issues in a cooperative fashion. While Rep. Gingrey is no longer in office, we continue to see similar versions of this amendment introduced in Congress. Recently, Georgia Rep. Jody Hice introduced an amendment to eliminate official time at the Veterans Administration, which was defeated. Appropriations bill A legislative bill that authorizes the government to spend money. It is a bill that sets money aside for specific spending. Budget Control Act of 2011 Signed into law by President Obama on August 2, 2011, the law established a budget mechanism that authorized $1.2 trillion in spending cuts, with an additional $1.2 trillion in cuts to be determined by a bipartisan group of senators and representatives known as the "Super Commiee." When the Super Commiee failed to reach an agreement, across-the- board spending cuts known as "sequestration" were implemented. 52 NiW Today n i w . n a t c a . n e t

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