NATCA Bookshelf

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS DEPARTMENT CONGRESSIONAL SCHEDULE The House and Senate are in session for the week of June 25. WHITE HOUSE RELEASES GOVERNMENT REORGANIZATION PLAN On June 21, the Trump Administration issued a proposal that would reform and reorganize the federal government. As a reminder, President Donald Trump signed a March 2017 executive order directing the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to come up with a comprehensive plan to reorganize federal departments and agencies. Here is a link to the OMB proposal, which is broad in scope and proposes changes to almost every department in the federal government. For the U.S. Department of Transportation, it includes a proposal to remove air traffic control from the government. Specifically, the air traffic control system would become a non-governmental entity and would no longer fall under the FAA's jurisdiction. Instead, it would become a nonprofit entity "similar to the Canadian system," according to the OMB Report. NATCA did not discuss or collaborate on this report with the Administration. NATCA staff is reviewing the proposal, which faces an uphill battle in Congress. It is important to know that, while some of the ideas could be accomplished through executive actions, much of the plan would require Congressional approval. The House Oversight & Government Reform Committee and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee both have jurisdiction over government reform measures. EXECUTIVE ORDERS AFFECTING FEDERAL EMPLOYEES As you know, the President issued three Executive Orders (EOs) at the end of May that affect federal employees and their unions. The orders reduce the use of union official time government-wide, reduce the time it takes to negotiate collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) and to reduce the costs contained within them, and expedite the process for removing employees from federal service in performance based adverse actions. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has advised that it will publish guidance advising agency heads how to implement these orders in the near future. NATCA Government Affairs staff is continuing to have meetings with members of Congress and their staff to gather any additional information about the timeline and substance of the OPM guidance, and educate the Hill on the negative affects the executive orders would have on the workforce. In the meantime, both Republican and Democrat members of Congress have come out in opposition to these Executive Orders. NATCA will spare no expense in fighting all attempts to undermine our CBAs, our members' rights, and our right to exist as a union. FAA REAUTHORIZATION CONTINUES TO WAIT ON SENATE ACTION The House overwhelmingly passed H.R. 4, the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018, in April by a vote of 393-13. The five-year, bipartisan bill authorizes $71 billion for the operations, F&E, and RED accounts at the FAA from Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 through FY 2023. On the Senate side, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has "started the clock" on H.R. 4, meaning that the bill can come to the Senate floor for consideration at any time. Chairman Thune of the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee hopes to get a long-term FAA reauthorization bill passed in the Senate by the end of summer, but the timeline remains uncertain. If/when H.R. 4 does come to the Senate floor for consideration, the chamber will "strike" the House language from H.R. 4 and

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