A publication of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association
Issue link: http://natca.uberflip.com/i/738498
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE : Congress is in recess through the November elections. The House and Senate are scheduled to return on Nov . 14. A "lame duck" Congress is expected to be in session during November and December. BUSY LAME DUCK SESSION COULD BRING ANOTHER SHUTDOWN THREAT : A "lame duck Congress" describes the period between the November elections and the beginning of the new Congressional session in January. As mentioned earlier, Congress will need to pass another fundin g bill before the new deadline on Dec . 9, and the funding issue will influence the parameters of the lame duck session. The scope of a lame duck Congress also depends on which presidential nominee is elected. Besides a new spending plan, lawmakers could ad dress a host of other issues. As we get closer to the Dec . 9 deadline, it's likely that we'll hear more about the potential of a government shutdown. GA is working with members of Congress and staff to ensure they recognize the negative impact a shutdown h as on the NAS. DECEMBER SPENDING PACKAGE : Congress passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) to fund the federal government and avoid a government shutdown by the Sept . 30 deadline, which marked the end of the fiscal year. The deal (H.R. 5325) funds the governm ent until Dec . 9, meaning Congress will need to consider another funding bill when it returns for the lame duck (see below for more information on lame duck sessions of Congress). After a month - long struggle to produce the CR, there are concerns that congr essional leaders could have trouble passing another spending bill in the short period of time that they are in session. Additionally, the recent storm, Hurricane Matthew, which wreaked havoc on much of the Southeastern U.S. coastline, will trigger requests for more federal emergency aid and further complicate negotiations for the December spending package. NATCA Position : NATCA continues to advocate for a stable, predictable funding stream. GA staff will continue to meet with congressional staff during rece ss to advocate in support of the funding levels included in the House and Senate versions of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) appropriations bills. Each of those bills would provide adequate funding levels that NATCA advocated for t hroughout the appropriations process, as opposed to simply continuing current funding levels. As a reminder, a CR does not allow the FAA to plan long - term, so a funding bill that provides new authority is our preference. LEGISLATIVE BILL WATCH : Rep. Todd Rokita, R - Ind., has introduced H.R. 6278, the Promote Accountability and Government Efficiency Act, which has been referred to the Oversight and Government Reform Committee for further consideration. H.R. 6278 would make several reforms that impact feder al government employees, including due process and official time. GA staff closely monitors any legislation that would negatively impact the workforce and we will keep you updated on the status of this bill moving forward. The bill can only be acted on dur ing the lame duck session. Once the new Congress is sworn - in during January, the bill will die and need to be introduced again. More to come on this. LOOKING AHEAD TO 115TH CONGRESS : The new 115th Congress will convene at the beginning of January with a n ew President in the White House. We expect many new members of Congress will be elected to the House and Senate following the November elections, so it will be important to introduce them to NATCA's issues as early