Thune and Ranking Member Nelson sent a letter to House Transportation Committee
Chairman Shuster and Ranking Member DeFazio encouraging them to take up and pass
the Sen ate FAA bill, with the clock ticking down on a July 15 deadline for action.
Chairman Shuster has yet to show any sign of abandoning his plan (H.R. 4441; the
AIRR Act), which NATCA supports. However, they have had trouble rallying support for
the idea from both Republicans and Democrats alike. As a reminder, the Senate passed
H.R. 636 earlier in April, which would reauthorize the FAA through FY17.
Possible Outcomes : A few of the possible paths forward include: 1) no long -
term FAA reauthorization legislation moves forward, so both chambers will need to pass
another FAA extension; 2) the House passes a less - controversial bill, without the air
traffic control reform proposal, and proceeds to conference that legislation with the
Senate - passed bill; or 3) Chairma n Shuster continues to push for consideration of H.R.
4441 and attempts to garner the support necessary to bring it to the House floor for a
vote.
Background : A short - term extension (H.R. 4721) is currently in place to extend
aviation programs and excise taxes through July 15. In April, the Senate passed its
version of long - term FAA reauthorization legislation, which would only reauthorize the
FAA through Fiscal Year 2017. In the House, the T&I Committee approved H.R. 4441
back in February, which includes air traffic control reform, but that legislation has yet to
come to the House floor for a vote. House Democrats are unified in their opposition
against separating ATC from government, and the Republican caucus has yet to get in
line behind the proposal wit h many members of Congress still opposed to the issue,
most notably including members on the Appropriations and Ways & Means Committees,
as well as members of the Freedom Caucus.
COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT
NATCA, FAA ANNOUNCE TENTATIVE AGREEMENT ON NEW C BA
We issued a joint press release on May 25 with the FAA. You can read it here .
Addit ionally, we have set up a page on the members side of the natca.org
website where you can find all information related to the tentative CBA, including the
member message we sent via email on May 25. Go to: 2016CBA.natca.net
TO ASK A QUESTION OF THE CONTRACT TEAM: Please send an email to
2016cbaratification@natca.net
NATCA IN WASHINGTON:
BOOK : Our 68 - page briefing book, in a format that is perfect fo r use with mobile
devices: Please click here .
PHOTOS: Complete photo album, thanks to the great work of retired member
George Petrovich and ZTL Member Jay Tilles. Please click here .
APP: Please d ownload the new NATCA in Washington app , which is also used
for other NATCA events such as CFS and Convention. Go to your respective device's
App store, type in "NAT CA" in the search function and our app will appear first. Even
though NiW 2016 is over, the app is designed to be a great resource throughout the year,
with n ews, information, and much more.
AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL ASSOCIATION (ATCA): Paul Rinaldi Named Glen A.
Gilbert Memorial Award Winner
We were thrilled to receive and spread the news last week that NATCA President
Paul Rinaldi has been selected as the 2016 recipient of the prestigious Glen A. Gilbert
