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WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998
(Senate - September 25, 1998)

Text of this article available as: TXT PDF [Pages S10945-S10969] WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998 The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Allard). Under the previous order, the Senate will now resume consideration of H.R. 4057, which the clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (H.R. 4057) to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes. The Senate resumed consideration of the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will now be 20 minutes for debate, equally divided between the majority and minority leaders, prior to the vote on passage. section 606 Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would like to point out to the Chairman that Section 606 contains a provision that appears to grant priority status to a single carrier at Chicago O'Hare for the return of slots previously withdrawn for international service. If it is the intention of this provision to give one carrier at O'Hare preference in slot allocation, the Senate conferees must act in conference to remove this provision. This provision appears to hand over roughly 35 slots that the dominant carrier at Chicago previously sought to obtain from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) but was twice denied. This provision would advantage a single carrier, which knew of the priority of slot withdrawal and should have planned its hub operations to take into account the effects. It strengthens a single carrier's position at O'Hare, a situation which the Congress should not legislate. As this legislation goes to conference, the Senate is relying on the conferees to ensure Congress is even-handed in these matters. Mr. McCAIN. I understand the Senator's concerns, which others have raised as well. I appreciate the Senator from Oklahoma expressing these views. death on the high seas act Mr. WYDEN. I would like to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman from Arizona, the distinguished Chairman of the Commerce Committee, concerning provisions included in the FAA reauthorization bill to reform the Death on the High Seas Act. Mr. McCAIN. I would be happy to engage the gentleman from Oregon in a colloquy. Mr. WYDEN. I thank the Chairman. As the Chairman knows, one of my constituents, John Sleavin, lost his brother and nephew and niece under tragic circumstances when their pleasure boat was run down on the high seas by a Korean freighter. The accident was especially tragic because after the collision there was no attempt by the Korean freighter to rescue the family or even to notify the authorities about the collision. Mr. Chairman, you were very gracious to me in allowing my constituent to testify before the Commerce Committee on the need to reform the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) to provide just compensation for victims like my constituent. I believe he provided compelling testimony on the need for reforming DOHSA for [[Page S10946]] maritime accidents. The FAA reauthorization bill reforms DOHSA but only for aviation accidents. I would like to ask the Chairman whether he will commit to work with me to reform DOHSA comprehensively so the reforms cover both aviation and maritime accidents. Mr. McCAIN. Yes, I am committed to work with the Senator from Oregon and other Members who have an interest in this issue to explore this issue further and to work to reform DOHSA to appropriately provide victims of maritime accidents the same rights to recover for loss of their loved ones as are provided to victims of aviation accidents. (At the request of Mr. McCAIN, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.) permimeter rule exemptions Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, the distinguished senior Senator from California, Senator Feinstein, and I would like to ask the Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation a question concerning the perimeter rule exemptions that are contained in S. 2279, the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act. Mr. McCAIN. I will be delighted to respond to questions from the Senators from California. Mrs. BOXER. We thank you. We first want to thank the members of the Commerce Committee for working so diligently to produce a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill, and for giving us the opportunity to address a provision in this bill which affects the people of our state and many of the other western states. Mrs. FEINSTEIN. The FAA reauthorization bill will provide important and necessary funding to our nation's aviation system. It is crucial that we work to pass this legislation before the end of this session. But, there is one provision in this bill that we must resolve before we can go forward. The exemptions to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Perimeter Rule has come to our attention as a section of this bill which opens the door to an array of concerns. The change in the Perimeter Rule will allow for six new daily round trip flights between Reagan National Airport and airports beyond the 1,250-mile perimeter. We have some questions as to who will be served if these exemptions are enacted by Congress. We would like to see the highest level of service provided to the most number of passengers. Do you believe that this Perimeter Rule exemption would prevent airlines from competing to provide the greatest amount of service to the most number of passengers? Mr. McCAIN. This provision included by the committee is intended to implement a process that will provide numerous domestic cities, including small and medium-sized committees, with improved service. However, the provision allows for competition for routes to larger communities. Mrs. BOXER. I ask the distinguished chairman to yield to a further question. Mr. McCAIN. I will be happy to yield. Mrs. BOXER. Specifically, would carriers be prevented from competing for routes from National Airport to Los Angeles or San Jose or other California airports under this bill? Mr. McCAIN. No. As long as carriers can demonstrate that their routes provide domestic network benefits and increase competition in multiple markets, they may compete for these non-stop routes, including select routes to California airports. Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation Improvement Act of 1998. As a member of the Commerce Aviation Subcommittee, it has been my privilege to work with Senator Ford on this and other bills to improve the quality and safety of air transportation in this country, and I believe it is a fitting tribute that we name this bill in his honor. I appreciate the assistance I received from the Senator from Kentucky and from my good friend, the Chairman, Senator McCain, in adding three amendments to this bill which I believe will help improve safety, quality and access. I will vote for this bill because on the whole, it will benefit our airports and air travelers. But I do want to make it clear that I do not support sections 606 and 607. These sections will be detrimental to commercial air service to Maine and the other markets within the perimeter rule. While I will not be offering an amendment to strike these two sections, I would encourage the conferees to seriously consider the detrimental effects these sections will have on air service. Section 606 will negatively alter the perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in a way that jeopardizes air service to Maine. It is my opinion that expanding the number of slots would clearly result in more negatives than positives. Due to the current Federal Aviation Administration guidelines on the distance required between aircraft, adding flights at National airport will require air traffic controllers to chose between staying on schedule or sacrificing safety. If more flights are added through the creation of these new slots in Section 606, the controller will have to place these flights more closely together in order to prevent delays in arrivals and departures. By decreasing the spacing of the flights in and out of Reagan National, it will create an unsafe situation by subjecting the flights to the jet wash, or turbulence, of flights in front of them. Such exposure to the jet wash, especially at take-off creates a terrible safety situation. One which will jeopardize lives of the traveling public. I am also concerned about the way that section 606 distributes the new slots are distributed. Specifically, the section gives priority consideration to air carriers who have already had slots withdrawn from them. This will result in the majority of new slots to go to one dominate carrier and further increase already overpriced business airfares. Further, this language will overturn a March 1998, Department of Transportation decision concerning the distribution of slots. I would also like to note my opposition to section 607, which modifies the perimeter rule. It is well established that the perimeter rule maintains a delicate balance between National Airport and Dulles International Airport. Under the perimeter rule, Dulles has flourished as an international gateway, and National has provided regional service to states such as Maine. I believe that in the long run, violating the perimeter rule will hurt travelers from Maine. Eroding the perimeter rule will bring long- haul flights to National--short haul flights, in turn, will be rerouted to Dulles or eliminated altogether. Ironically, violating the perimeter rule would also hurt those underserved communities the legislation is designed to assist. Modifying the perimeter rule could encourage airlines at National to substitute long-haul flights for existing service to smaller communities within the perimeter. I believe that the amendment offered by the Senator from Virginia, Mr. Robb, which I have cosponsored, will mitigate some of the potential impact of modifying the perimeter rule by making it incumbent on the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that these changes will not reduce travel options for communities served by small and medium sized airports within the perimeter and not result in meaningful increases in travel delays. I also would want to note the Dorgan-Snowe amendment that was adopted and to thank the Chairman and Ranking member for their helping in working through the language. The Dorgan-Snowe amendment would facilitate air service to under-served communities and encourage airline competition through non-discriminatory interconnection requirements by permitting the Secretary of Transportation to require major carriers to enter into agreements with new entrant air carriers which serve rural or underserved markets. This amendment will give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to require an air carrier that serves an essential airport facility, such as a major hub, and has an exclusive--almost monopolistic--agreement with another airline which serves an under- served market to enter into a joint fare or interline agreement with a new air carrier, trying to enter the underserved market so that the people living in the rural or underserved area will have a competitive alternative and not be beholden to one airline. This would allow a new airline to fly from a rural or underserved market to a hub airport which is dominated by a [[Page S10947]] major carrier and permit the traveler to continue to another market on the megacarrier without having to purchase a second ticket or worrying if their bags will be transferred to the megacarrier. I want to make it perfectly clear. States which are primarily rural or have a large number of underserved markets will benefit from this amendment. Opponents of this amendment argue that this is re- regulation. Nothing is further from the truth. Senator Dorgan and I are establishing a mechanism which will allow new entrant carriers to be able to compete with the mega air carriers. Only if the Secretary believes that underserved markets will benefit and that competition will result, will an interline agreement be sanctioned. It is interesting to note that when the commercial air carrier industry was deregulated, there were 19 domestic trunk-line and local service carriers. Of those 19, only 5 (American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, and United) airlines are still in existence. At the time of deregulation, eight of the 15 airlines controlled 80% of the market share. Today, the seven largest carriers control more than 90% of the market. Some say that this is positive result of deregulation, claiming that deregulation was designed to promote a ``survival of the fittest'' type industry and promote profitability. Unfortunately, deregulation has actually hurt the vast majority of communities in the United States and the passengers who travel from small and medium sized markets. According to a Government Accounting Office report, the full benefits of deregulation have yet to be realized because of problems with entering the markets dominated by a major airline. As a result of deregulation, consumers are actually paying far more for air travel. In fact, a doubling of an airline's market share on a particular route translates into a price increase of almost nine percent. Today, as a result of the lack of competition at small and medium sized markets, it is cheaper to fly from Washington, D.C. to Mexico City on an unrestricted ticket than it is to fly from Washington to Portland, Maine. Our amendment would require carriers who enter into interline and joint fare agreements with other carriers, like those which have already been proposed and implemented on a limited basis by the megacarriers, to provide these agreements on a non-discriminatory basis to carriers seeking to provide service between an underserved market and a large hub airport in which one carrier has market dominance. Open access like that proposed in this amendment is nothing new. In fact Congress, just two and one-half years ago, approved legislation with similar requirements. When Congress de-regulated the telecommunications industry, the fundamental element to promote competition in that legislation was the requirement that the incumbent carriers would be required, by law, to allow their competitors to interconnect into their network. In a situation analogous to the telecommunications market, in order to develop competition in the local market, we must impose, by law, the requirement that the dominant megacarriers, allow its competitors to interconnect into their networks. By adopting this amendment, new entrant carriers will be allowed to interconnect into the flight network of a major carrier which dominates a hub airport. In light of what has been required of other industries under the goal of promoting competition, this amendment makes sense if one wants to see a competitive airline industry. The only way to allow for competition in this environment is to impose conditions on the major carriers to cooperate with their competitors. Interline and joint fares are necessary to ensure that the dominant carriers will not kill potential competitors. Through the adoption of this amendment, much like the principle underlying the local competition in the telecommunications industry, we will be able to provide more choices, lower costs, and better service to the majority of markets across the country. permanent ban on rocky mountain national park commercial tour overflights Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, as I cast my vote in favor of final passage of the Federal Aviation Administration's Reauthorization bill, S.2279, I am pleased to bring attention to one special amendment to this bill. The amendment which my colleague Senator Allard and I offered will make the FAA's temporary ban on commercial tour overflights permanent. I have been working toward permanently banning commercial tour overflights over Rocky Mountain National Park for many years now, and am pleased to see this provision pass the Senate. As I cast my vote today, Coloradans will be one big step closer to being assured that they will be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park without the noisy disturbances of commercial tour overflights. At this time I want to thank Senator McCain, who as the Chairman of the Commerce Committee, played a critical role in getting this amendment successfully included in the FAA bill. Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, section 606 subparagraph (6) of S. 2279 will have the unintended consequences of limiting competition at Chicago's O'Hare airport. I have spoke at length with Senators Lott, McCain, and Ford regarding my concerns with this provision and understand that it may be possible to correct this problem in conference. I hope that is the case. This provision will allow those carriers who have lost landing/ takeoff slots to foreign air carriers at Chicago's O'Hare to get them back. On the surface this seems very fair; however, it will in fact unfairly favor the largest slot holder at O'Hare at the expense of other competitors and new entrants. Because the dominant carrier at O'Hare has lost the most slots, it stands to gain the most. The result will be less competition rather than more at O'Hare. Mr. President, by way of further explanation on this issue, I would like to submit for the Record a letter Senator Nickles and I sent to Senators Lott, Daschle, McCain, Hollings, Shelby, and Lautenberg describing our concerns and asking for their assistance in correcting the problem. Knowing that the managers of the bill have worked very hard to increase competition, I am certain they share my concerns regarding market domination at O'Hare. In my discussions with Senator Lott, he has assured me that he has no position on section 606 and would not object to this section being removed in conference. I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record. United States Senate, Washington, DC, September 23, 1998. Hon. Trent Lott, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Tom Daschle, Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. John McCain, Chairman, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Ernest F. Hollings, Ranking Member, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard C. Shelby, Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg, Minority Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senators: We are writing to express our strong opposition to a proposal that would increase major airline dominance at a key hub airport while at the same time reversing a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) decision and undercutting our international obligations. Specifically, a provision in Section 606 of FAA Reauthorization (S. 2279) would hand over roughly 35 slots at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to its largest slot holder, United Airlines, while restricting access at that hub to its competitors and new entrants. It is our understanding that this special interest provision is being adviced for inclusion in other pieces of ``must-pass'' legislation. Such special interest legislation benefiting one airline will no doubt lead to less competition and higher airfares. We urge you to foster greater airline competition by deleting this special interest provision from S. 2279 and preventing it from being attached to other legislation. Late last year, United petitioned FAA on just this issue and was rejected soundly. United sought priority for any future slot exemptions claiming they would replace the 35 slots withdrawn under FAA regulations and used by foreign carriers in order to meet our bilateral commitments. In a March 1998 order, FAA found that the public interest [[Page S10948]] would be best served by continuing to meet our aviation bilateral agreement commitments to international air transportation using the slots withdrawn from United and American Airlines at O'Hare, while using the slot exemptions to increase competition at that key airport. The priority by which slots were to be withdrawn was well known. United chose not to invest in better priority slots to protect its schedule and slot holdings. In rejecting United's request, FAA found: ``Since 1993 the FAA withdraws, on average, 31 air carrier slots from United, which is approximately four percent of United's domestic slot base. These slots are withdrawn based on a priority numbering system that was established by random lottery in 1986. Slots having the lowest numbers are most vulnerable to withdrawal, regardless of the slot holder. As articulated in our previous denial to United concerning this issue, United made its selection or acquisition of slots with vulnerable withdrawal priority and planned its hub operations fully knowing the effects of the rule's operations might have upon them . . . United knew, or should have known, that these slots were vulnerable in case of withdrawal.'' We applaud the Commerce Committee's efforts to fashion a bill that promotes greater airline competition aimed at producing lower airfares and improved service in all communities. Accordingly, we respectfully urge your support for striking this provision of section 606, the effect of which is directly opposite the intent of S. 2279 and other procompetitive aviation legislation. Sincerely, Jim Inhofe, Don Nickles. Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I support H.R. 4057, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act and I commend my colleagues on the bipartisan and expeditious manner in which this important legislation was adopted by the Senate. This bill will reauthorize the programs of the FAA for two years, including the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which is due to expire on September 30. The purpose of the AIP is to provide grants to fund the capital needs of the nation's commercial airports and general aviation facilities. Without this important FAA reauthorization legislation to continue the contract authority for the AIP, the FAA would not be able to distribute airport grants that are vitally important to not only the State which I am honored to represent, West Virginia, but also the entire nation. A major focus of H.R. 4057 is promoting competition and quality air service which, Mr. President, the State of West Virginia needs desperately. Since the deregulation of the airlines, West Virginia travelers have suffered from increased airfares and greatly reduced service. Consequently, the inefficiencies in the present air transportation system and the high costs have denied air passengers and air freight shippers in West Virginia reasonable access to the national and international air transportation system. Mother Nature has blessed the State of West Virginia with a beautiful but most unforgiving terrain. Steeply undulating mountains and deep gorges are punctuated by sweetly serene valleys and hollows, and West Virginia is kind to those who need to travel through the State by automobile. Yet, despite the rigorous terrain of the State, most people have to drive great distances even to catch an airplane for what is usually the first of several stops en route to their final destination. In eastern West Virginia, residents travel to either Dulles or Reagan National Airports in Virginia; in the northern reaches, residents drive to Pennsylvania or Ohio; and in the southern portion of the State, they may have to drive to North Carolina to get to a major hub. Not only is the limited availability of flights and destinations a problem for air travel originating within West Virginia, but so is the exorbitant cost of air transportation to and from the State. For example, a round trip air ticket from Reagan National Airport to Yeager Airport in Charleston can cost almost $700. That is almost $700 to travel under 400 miles-- and when you are done, you are only as far away as Washington, D.C. Leaving from Washington, $700 can take you to Europe and back! This does not make sense to most hardworking West Virginians, and it discourages other travelers from visiting to experience West Virginia's many wonders for themselves. With the advent of the 21st Century just around the corner, the West Virginia air travelers and businesses that rely on air freight will welcome this legislation. West Virginia's expected economic expansion in the 21st century will depend on its ability to compete not only in the national economy, but also in the ever-growing global economy. To successfully compete, quality, affordable, and efficient air transportation is needed to successfully round out West Virginia's increasingly modern infrastructure of highways, railways, and waterways. Mr. President, this bill, H.R. 4057, contains other necessary language to help West Virginia progress into the new millennium. Major provisions of this bill are not only the AIP program, but also the Small Communities Air Service Development Program, and slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. The Small Communities Air Service Development Program will be a four- year, $30 million, small communities grant program. Executed through the Department of Transportation, this program will encourage commercial air service to small communities all over the United States, including those in West Virginia. By providing matching funds of up to 25 percent, a consortia of local communities in West Virginia is expected to compete for the grants of $500,000 per year available per community. It was Thomas Edison who said, ``Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.'' Mr. President, this captures the way that I feel about additional slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service at Ronald Reagan National Airport. I share the concern expressed by the distinguished Senators from the State of Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding increased noise pollution in the localities surrounding Reagan National Airport. On the other hand, twelve additional slots to increase traffic between Washington and smaller, non-hub airports increases the likelihood of additional airline traffic to underserved areas like West Virginia. Improved air travel to and from States like West Virginia will be critical to my State's remaining competitive in the future and accessible in the present. Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I yield back the time. Mr. REID. Time is yielded back by this side. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time is yielded back. Mr. STEVENS. Have the yeas and nays been ordered? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas and nays have not been ordered. Mr. STEVENS. I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second. The yeas and nays were ordered. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time having been yielded back, the question is, Shall the bill, H.R. 4057, as amended, pass? The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant legislative clerk called the roll. Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Ashcroft) and the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Kempthorne) are necessarily absent. Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Hollings), the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun), and the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) are necessarily absent. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``aye.'' The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 1, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No. 288 Leg.] YEAS--92 Abraham Akaka Allard Baucus Bennett Biden Bingaman Bond Breaux Brownback Bryan Bumpers Burns Byrd Campbell Chafee Cleland Coats Cochran Collins Conrad Coverdell Craig D'Amato Daschle DeWine Dodd Domenici Dorgan Durbin Enzi Faircloth Feingold Feinstein Ford Frist Gorton Graham Gramm Grams Grassley Gregg Hagel Harkin Hatch Helms Hutchinson Hutchison Inhofe Inouye Jeffords Johnson Kennedy Kerrey Kerry Kohl Kyl Landrieu Lautenberg Leahy Levin Lieberman Lott Lugar Mack McCain McConnell Mikulski Moynihan [[Page S10949]] Murkowski Murray Nickles Reed Reid Roberts Rockefeller Roth Santorum Sarbanes Sessions Shelby Smith (NH) Smith (OR) Snowe Specter Stevens Thomas Thompson Thurmond Torricelli Warner Wyden NAYS--1 Robb NOT VOTING--7 Ashcroft Boxer Glenn Hollings Kempthorne Moseley-Braun Wellstone The bill (H.R. 4057), as amended, was passed, as follows: Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 4057) entitled ``An Act to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.'', do pass with the following amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF SECTIONS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act of 1998''. (b) Table of Sections.--The table of sections for this Act is as follows: Sec. 1. Short title; table of sections. Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS Sec. 101. Federal Aviation Administration operations. Sec. 102. Air navigation facilities and equipment. Sec. 103. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 104. Reprogramming notification requirement. Sec. 105. Airport security program. Sec. 106. Contract tower programs Sec. 107. Automated surface observation system stations. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS Sec. 201. Removal of the cap on discretionary fund. Sec. 202. Innovative use of airport grant funds. Sec. 203. Matching share. Sec. 204. Increase in apportionment for noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 205. Technical amendments. Sec. 206. Repeal of period of applicability. Sec. 207. Report on efforts to implement capacity enhancements. Sec. 208. Prioritization of discretionary projects. Sec. 209. Public notice before grant assurance requirement waived. Sec. 210. Definition of public aircraft. Sec. 211. Terminal development costs. Sec. 212. Airfield pavement conditions. Sec. 213. Discretionary grants. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW Sec. 301. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years. Sec. 302. Foreign carriers eligible for waiver under Airport Noise and Capacity Act. Sec. 303. Government and industry consortia. Sec. 304. Implementation of Article 83 Bis of the Chicago Convention. Sec. 305. Foreign aviation services authority. Sec. 306. Flexibility to perform criminal history record checks; technical amendments to Pilot Records Improvement Act. Sec. 307. Aviation insurance program amendments. Sec. 308. Technical corrections to civil penalty provisions. Sec. 309. Criminal penalty for pilots operating in air transportation without an airman's certificate. Sec. 310. Nondiscriminatory interline interconnection requirements. TITLE IV--TITLE 49 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS Sec. 401. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 106(g). Sec. 402. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 44909. TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS Sec. 501. Oversight of FAA response to year 2000 problem. Sec. 502. Cargo collision avoidance systems deadline. Sec. 503. Runway safety areas; precision approach path indicators. Sec. 504. Airplane emergency locators. Sec. 505. Counterfeit aircraft parts. Sec. 506. FAA may fine unruly passengers. Sec. 507. Higher standards for handicapped access. Sec. 508. Conveyances of United States Government land. Sec. 509. Flight operations quality assurance rules. Sec. 510. Wide area augmentation system. Sec. 511. Regulation of Alaska air guides. Sec. 512. Application of FAA regulations. Sec. 513. Human factors program. Sec. 514. Independent validation of FAA costs and allocations. Sec. 515. Whistleblower protection for FAA employees. Sec. 516. Report on modernization of oceanic ATC system. Sec. 517. Report on air transportation oversight system. Sec. 518. Recycling of EIS. Sec. 519. Protection of employees providing air safety information. Sec. 520. Improvements to air navigation facilities. Sec. 521. Denial of airport access to certain air carriers. Sec. 522. Tourism. Sec. 523. Equivalency of FAA and EU safety standards. Sec. 524. Sense of the Senate on property taxes on public-use airports. Sec. 525. Federal Aviation Administration Personnel Management System. Sec. 526. Aircraft and aviation component repair and maintenance advisory panel. Sec. 527. Report on enhanced domestic airline competition. Sec. 528. Aircraft situational display data. Sec. 529. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Charlotte-London route. Sec. 530. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Cleveland-London route. Sec. 531. Allocation of Trust Fund funding. Sec. 532. Taos Pueblo and Blue Lakes Wilderness Area demonstration project. Sec. 533. Airline marketing disclosure. Sec. 534. Certain air traffice control towers. Sec. 535. Compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act. TITLE VI--AVIATION COMPETITION PROMOTION Sec. 601. Purpose. Sec. 602. Establishment of small community aviation development program. Sec. 603. Community-carrier air service program. Sec. 604. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 605. Marketing practices. Sec. 606. Slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. Sec. 607. Exemptions to perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Sec. 608. Additional slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Sec. 609. Consumer notification of e-ticket expiration dates. Sec. 610. Joint venture agreements. Sec. 611. Regional air service incentive options. Sec. 612. GAO study of air transportation needs. TITLE VII--NATIONAL PARK OVERFLIGHTS Sec. 701. Findings. Sec. 702. Air tour management plans for national parks. Sec. 703. Advisory group. Sec. 704. Overflight fee report. Sec. 705. Prohibition of commercial air tours over the Rocky Mountain National Park. TITLE VIII--CENTENNIAL OF FLIGHT COMMEMORATION Sec. 801. Short title. Sec. 802. Findings. Sec. 803. Establishment. Sec. 804. Membership. Sec. 805. Duties. Sec. 806. Powers. Sec. 807. Staff and support services. Sec. 808. Contributions. Sec. 809. Exclusive right to name, logos, emblems, seals, and marks. Sec. 810. Reports. Sec. 811. Audit of financial transactions. Sec. 812. Advisory board. Sec. 813. Definitions. Sec. 814. Termination. Sec. 815. Authorization of appropriations. TITLE IX--EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY Sec. 901. Extension of expenditure authority. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS SEC. 101. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS. (a) In General.--Section 106(k) is amended to read as follows: ``(k) Authorization of Appropriations for Operations.-- ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for operations of the Administration $5,631,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and $5,784,000,000 for fiscal year 2000. Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1999, not more than $9,100,000 shall be used to support air safety efforts through payment of United States membership obligations, to be paid as soon as practicable. ``(2) Authorized expenditures.--Of the amounts appropriated under paragraph (1) $450,000 may be used for wildlife hazard mitigation measures and management of the wildlife strike database of the Federal Aviation Administration. ``(3) University consortium.--There are authorized to be appropriated not more than $9,100,000 for the 3 fiscal year period beginning with fiscal year 1999 to support a university consortium established to provide an air safety and security management certificate program, working cooperatively with the Federal Aviation Administration and United States air carriers. Funds authorized under this paragraph-- ``(A) may not be used for the construction of a building or other facility; and ``(B) shall be awarded on the basis of open competition.''. (b) Coordination.--The authority granted the Secretary under section 41717 of title 49, United States Code, does not affect the Secretary's authority under any other provision of law. [[Page S10950]] SEC. 102. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT. (a) In General.--Section 48101(a) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the following: ``(1) for fiscal year 1999-- ``(A) $222,800,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: en route programs; ``(B) $74,700,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: terminal programs; ``(C) $108,000,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: landing and navigational aids; ``(D) $17,790,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: research, test, and evaluation equipment and facilities programs; ``(E) $391,358,300 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: en route programs; ``(F) $492,315,500 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: terminal programs; ``(G) $38,764,400 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: flight services programs; ``(H) $50,500,000 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: other ATC facilities programs; ``(I) $162,400,000 for non-ATC facilities and equipment programs; ``(J) $14,500,000 for training and equipment facilities programs; ``(K) $280,800,000 for mission support programs; ``(L) $235,210,000 for personnel and related expenses; and ``(2) $2,189,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.''. (b) Continuation of ILS Inventory Program.--Section 44502(a)(4)(B) is amended-- (1) by striking ``fiscal years 1995 and 1996'' and inserting ``fiscal years 1999 and 2000''; and (2) by striking ``acquisition,'' and inserting ``acquisition under new or existing contracts,''. (c) Life-Cycle Cost Estimates.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish life-cycle cost estimates for any air traffic control modernization project the total life-cycle costs of which equal or exceed $50,000,000. SEC. 103. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. (a) Extension and Authorization.--Section 48103 is amended by-- (1) striking ``September 30, 1996,'' and inserting ``September 30, 1998,''; and (2) striking ``$2,280,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1997, and $4,627,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1998.'' and inserting ``$2,410,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1999 and $4,885,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2000.''. (b) Project Grant Authority.--Section 47104(c) is amended by striking ``1998,'' and inserting ``2002,''. SEC. 104. REPROGRAMMING NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. Before reprogramming any amounts appropriated under section 106(k), 48101(a), or 48103 of title 49, United States Code, for which notification of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives is required, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit a written explanation of the proposed reprogramming to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. SEC. 105. AIRPORT SECURITY PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Chapter 471 (as amended by section 202(a) of this Act) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section: ``Sec. 47136. Airport security program ``(a) General Authority.--To improve security at public airports in the United States, the Secretary of Transportation shall carry out not less than 1 project to test and evaluate innovative airport security systems and related technology. ``(b) Priority.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall give the highest priority to a request from an eligible sponsor for a grant to undertake a project that-- ``(1) evaluates and tests the benefits of innovative airport security systems or related technology, including explosives detection systems, for the purpose of improving airport and aircraft physical security and access control; and ``(2) provides testing and evaluation of airport security systems and technology in an operational, test bed environment. ``(c) Matching Share.--Notwithstanding section 47109, the United States Government's share of allowable project costs for a project under this section is 100 percent. ``(d) Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary may establish such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines appropriate for carrying out a project under this section, including terms and conditions relating to the form and content of a proposal for a project, project assurances, and schedule of payments. ``(e) Eligible Sponsor Defined.--In this section, the term `eligible sponsor' means a nonprofit corporation composed of a consortium of public and private persons, including a sponsor of a primary airport, with the necessary engineering and technical expertise to successfully conduct the testing and evaluation of airport and aircraft related security systems. ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--Of the amounts made available to the Secretary under section 47115 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall make available not less than $5,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for such chapter (as amended by section 202(b) of this Act) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47135 the following: ``47136. Airport security program.''. SEC. 106. CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM. There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation such sums as may be necessary to carry out the Federal Contract Tower Program under title 49, United States Code. SEC. 107. AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVATION SYSTEM STATIONS. The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall not terminate human weather observers for Automated Surface Observation System stations until-- (1) the Secretary of Transportation determines that the System provides consistent reporting of changing meteorological conditions and notifies the Congress in writing of that determination; and (2) 60 days have passed since the report was submitted to the Congress. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS SEC. 201. REMOVAL OF THE CAP ON DISCRETIONARY FUND. Section 47115(g) is amended by striking paragraph (4). SEC. 202. INNOVATIVE USE OF AIRPORT GRANT FUNDS. (a) Codification and Improvement of 1996 Program.-- Subchapter I of chapter 471 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 47135. Innovative financing techniques ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation is authorized to carry out a demonstration program under which the Secretary may approve applications under this subchapter for not more than 20 projects for which grants received under the subchapter may be used to implement innovative financing techniques. ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the demonstration program shall be to provide information on the use of innovative financing techniques for airport development projects. ``(c) Limitation--In no case shall the implementation of an innovative financing technique under this section be used in a manner giving rise to a direct or indirect guarantee of any airport debt instrument by the United States Government. ``(d) Innovative Financing Technique Defined.--In this section, the term `innovative financing technique' includes methods of financing projects that the Secretary determines may be beneficial to airport development, including-- ``(1) payment of interest; ``(2) commercial bond insurance and other credit enhancement associated with airport bonds for eligible airport development; and ``(3) flexible non-Federal matching requirements.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47134 the following: ``47135. Innovative financing techniques.''. SEC. 203. MATCHING SHARE. Section 47109(a)(2) is amended by inserting ``not more than'' before ``90 percent''. SEC. 204. INCREASE IN APPORTIONMENT FOR NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. Section 47117(e)(1)(A) is amended by striking ``31'' each time it appears and substituting ``35''. SEC. 205. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. (a) Use of Apportionments for Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.--Section 47114(d)(3) is amended to read as follows: ``(3) An amount apportioned under paragraph (2) of this subsection for airports in Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico may be made available by the Secretary for any public airport in those respective jurisdictions.''. (b) Supplemental Apportionment for Alaska.--Section 47114(e) is amended-- (1) by striking ``Alternative'' in the subsection caption and inserting ``Supplemental''; (2) in paragraph (1) by-- (A) striking ``Instead of apportioning amounts for airports in Alaska under'' and inserting ``Notwithstanding''; and (B) striking ``those airports'' and inserting ``airports in Alaska''; and (3) striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: ``(3) An amount apportioned under this subsection may be used for any public airport in Alaska.''. (c) Repeal of Apportionment Limitation on Commercial Service Airports in Alaska.--Section 47117 is amended by striking subsection (f) and redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (f) and (g), respectively. (d) Discretionary Fund Definition.-- (1) Section 47115 is amended-- (A) by striking ``25'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``12.5''; and (B) by striking the second sentence in subsection (b). (2) Section 47116 is amended-- (A) by striking ``75'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``87.5''; (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) in subsection (b) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and inserting before subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, the following: ``(1) one-seventh for grants for projects at small hub airports (as defined in section 41731 of this title); and ``(2) the remaining amounts based on the following:''. (e) Continuation of Project Funding.--Section 47108 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(e) Change in Airport Status.--If the status of a primary airport changes to a nonprimary airport at a time when a development project under a multiyear agreement under subsection (a) is not yet completed, the project shall remain eligible for funding from discretionary funds under section 47115 of this title at the funding level and under the terms provided by the agreement, subject to the availability of funds.''. [[Page S10951]] (f) Grant Eligibility for Private Reliever Airports.-- Section 47102(17)(B) is amended by-- (1) striking ``or'' at the end of clause (i) and redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and (2) inserting after clause (i) the following: ``(ii) a privately-owned airport that, as a reliever airport, received Federal aid for airport development prior to October 9, 1996, but only if the Administrator issues revised administrative guidance after July 1, 1998, for the designation of reliever airports; or''. (g) Reliever Airports Not Eligible for Letters of Intent.-- Section 47110(e)(1) is amended by striking ``or reliever''. (h) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers.--Section 40117(e)(2) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in subparagraph (B); (2) by striking ``payment.'' in subparagraph (C) and inserting ``payment; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(D) in Alaska aboard an aircraft having a seating capacity of less than 20 passengers.''. (i) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers or for Service to Airports in Isolated Communities.--Section 40117(i) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (1); (2) by striking ``transportation.'' in paragraph (2)(D) and inserting ``transportation; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(3) may permit a public agency to request that collection of a passenger facility fee be waived for-- ``(A) passengers enplaned by any class of air carrier or foreign air carrier if the number of passengers enplaned by the carriers in the class constitutes not more than one percent of the total number of passengers enplaned annually at the airport at which the fee is imposed; or ``(B) passengers enplaned on a flight to an airport-- ``(i) that has fewer than 2,500 passenger boardings each year and receives scheduled passenger service; or ``(ii) in a community which has a population of less than 10,000 and is not connected by a land highway or vehicular way to the land-connected National Highway System within a State.''. (j) Use of the Word ``gift'' and Priority for Airports in Surplus Property Disposal.-- (1) Section 47151 is amended-- (A) by striking ``give'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``convey to''; (B) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (a)(2) and inserting ``conveyance''; (C) by striking ``giving'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveying''; (D) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveyance''; and (E) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(d) Priority for Public Airports.--Except for requests from another Federal agency, a department, agency, or instrumentality of the Executive Branch of the United States Government shall give priority to a request by a public agency (as defined in section 47102 of this title) for surplus property described in subsection (a) of this section for use at a public airport.''. (2) Section 47152 is amended-- (A) by striking ``gifts'' in the section caption and inserting ``conveyances''; and (B) by striking ``gift'' in the first sentence and inserting ``conveyance''. (3) The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by striking the item relating to section 47152 and inserting the following: ``47152. Terms of conveyances.''. (4) Section 47153(a) is amended-- (A) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1) and inserting ``conveyance''; (B) by striking ``given'' in paragraph (1)(A) and inserting ``conveyed''; and (C) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1)(B) and inserting ``conveyance''. (k) Apportionment for Cargo Only Airports.--Section 47114(c)(2)(A) is amended by striking ``2.5 percent'' and inserting ``3 percent''. (l) Flexibility in Pavement Design Standards.--Section 47114(d) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(4) The Secretary may permit the use of State highway specifications for airfield pavement construction using funds made available under this subsection at nonprimary airports with runways of 5,000 feet or shorter serving aircraft that do not exceed 60,000 pounds gross weight, if the Secretary determines that-- ``(A) safety will not be negatively affected; and ``(B) the life of the pavement will not be shorter than it would be if constructed using Administration standards. An airport may not seek funds under this subchapter for runway rehabilitation or reconstruction of any such airfield pavement constructed using State highway specifications for a period of 10 years after construction is completed.''. SEC. 206. REPEAL OF PERIOD OF APPLICABILITY. Section 125 of the Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 1996 (49 U.S.C. 47114 note) is repealed. SEC. 207. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CAPACITY ENHANCEMENTS. Within 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on efforts by the Federal Aviation Administration to implement capacity enhancements and improvements, such as precision runway monitoring systems, and the time frame for implementation of such enhancements and improvements. SEC. 208. PRIORITIZATION OF DISCRETIONARY PROJECTS. Section 47120 is amended by-- (1) inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before ``In''; and (2) adding at the end thereof the following: ``(b) Discretionary Funding To Be Used for Higher Priority Projects.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall discourage airport sponsors and airports from using entitlement funds for lower priority projects by giving lower priority to discretionary projects submitted by airport sponsors and airports that have used entitlement funds for projects that have a lower priority than the projects for which discretionary funds are being requested.''. SEC. 209. PUBLIC NOTICE BEFORE GRANT ASSURANCE REQUIREMENT WAIVED. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Secretary of Transportation may not waive any assurance required under section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, that requires property to be used for aeronautical purposes unless the Secretary provides notice to the public not less than 30 days before issuing any such waiver. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary to issue a waiver of any assurance required under that section. (b) Effective Date.--This section applies to any request filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 210. DEFINITION OF PUBLIC AIRCRAFT. Section 40102(a)(37)(B)(ii) is amended-- (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of subclause (I); (2) by striking the ``States.'' in subclause (II) and inserting ``States; or''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(III) transporting persons aboard the aircraft if the aircraft is operated for the purpose of prisoner transport.''. SEC. 211. TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT COSTS. Section 40117 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(j) Shell of Terminal Building.--In order to enable additional air service by an air carrier with less than 50 percent of the scheduled passenger traffic at an airport, the Secretary may consider the shell of a terminal building (including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and aircraft fueling facilities adjacent to an airport terminal building to be an eligible airport-related project under subsection (a)(3)(E).''. SEC. 212. AIRFIELD PAVEMENT CONDITIONS. (a) Evaluation of Options.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall evaluate options for improving the quality of information available to the Administration on airfield pavement conditions for airports that are part of the national air transportation system, including-- (1) improving the existing runway condition information contained in the Airport Safety Data Program by reviewing and revising rating criteria and providing increased training for inspectors; (2) requiring such airports to submit pavement condition index information as part of their airport master plan or as support in applications for airport improvement grants; and (3) requiring all such airports to submit pavement condition index information on a regular basis and using this information to create a pavement condition database that could be used in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of project applications and forecasting anticipated pavement needs. (b) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall transmit a report, containing an evaluation of such options, to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 213. DISCRETIONARY GRANTS. Notwithstanding any limitation on the amount of funds that may be expended for grants for noise abatement, if any funds made available under section 48103 of title 49, United States Code, remain available at the end of the fiscal year for which those funds were made available, and are not allocated under section 47115 of that title, or under any other provision relating to the awarding of discretionary grants from unobligated funds made available under section 48103 of that title, the Secretary of Transportation may use those funds to make discretionary grants for noise abatement activities. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW SEC. 301. SEVERABLE SERVICES CONTRACTS FOR PERIODS CROSSING FISCAL YEARS. (a) Chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years ``(a) In General.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may enter into a contract for procurement of severable services for a period that begins in one fiscal year and ends in the next fiscal year if (without regard to any option to extend the period of the contract) the contract period does not exceed one year. ``(b) Obligation of Funds.--Funds made available for a fiscal year may be obligated for the total amount of a contract entered into under the authority of subsection (a) of this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years.''. SEC. 302. FOREIGN CARRIERS ELIGIBLE FOR WAIVER UNDER AIRPORT NOISE AND CAPACITY ACT. The first sentence of section 4

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All articles in Senate section

WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998
(Senate - September 25, 1998)

Text of this article available as: TXT PDF [Pages S10945-S10969] WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998 The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Allard). Under the previous order, the Senate will now resume consideration of H.R. 4057, which the clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (H.R. 4057) to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes. The Senate resumed consideration of the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will now be 20 minutes for debate, equally divided between the majority and minority leaders, prior to the vote on passage. section 606 Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would like to point out to the Chairman that Section 606 contains a provision that appears to grant priority status to a single carrier at Chicago O'Hare for the return of slots previously withdrawn for international service. If it is the intention of this provision to give one carrier at O'Hare preference in slot allocation, the Senate conferees must act in conference to remove this provision. This provision appears to hand over roughly 35 slots that the dominant carrier at Chicago previously sought to obtain from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) but was twice denied. This provision would advantage a single carrier, which knew of the priority of slot withdrawal and should have planned its hub operations to take into account the effects. It strengthens a single carrier's position at O'Hare, a situation which the Congress should not legislate. As this legislation goes to conference, the Senate is relying on the conferees to ensure Congress is even-handed in these matters. Mr. McCAIN. I understand the Senator's concerns, which others have raised as well. I appreciate the Senator from Oklahoma expressing these views. death on the high seas act Mr. WYDEN. I would like to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman from Arizona, the distinguished Chairman of the Commerce Committee, concerning provisions included in the FAA reauthorization bill to reform the Death on the High Seas Act. Mr. McCAIN. I would be happy to engage the gentleman from Oregon in a colloquy. Mr. WYDEN. I thank the Chairman. As the Chairman knows, one of my constituents, John Sleavin, lost his brother and nephew and niece under tragic circumstances when their pleasure boat was run down on the high seas by a Korean freighter. The accident was especially tragic because after the collision there was no attempt by the Korean freighter to rescue the family or even to notify the authorities about the collision. Mr. Chairman, you were very gracious to me in allowing my constituent to testify before the Commerce Committee on the need to reform the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) to provide just compensation for victims like my constituent. I believe he provided compelling testimony on the need for reforming DOHSA for [[Page S10946]] maritime accidents. The FAA reauthorization bill reforms DOHSA but only for aviation accidents. I would like to ask the Chairman whether he will commit to work with me to reform DOHSA comprehensively so the reforms cover both aviation and maritime accidents. Mr. McCAIN. Yes, I am committed to work with the Senator from Oregon and other Members who have an interest in this issue to explore this issue further and to work to reform DOHSA to appropriately provide victims of maritime accidents the same rights to recover for loss of their loved ones as are provided to victims of aviation accidents. (At the request of Mr. McCAIN, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.) permimeter rule exemptions Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, the distinguished senior Senator from California, Senator Feinstein, and I would like to ask the Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation a question concerning the perimeter rule exemptions that are contained in S. 2279, the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act. Mr. McCAIN. I will be delighted to respond to questions from the Senators from California. Mrs. BOXER. We thank you. We first want to thank the members of the Commerce Committee for working so diligently to produce a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill, and for giving us the opportunity to address a provision in this bill which affects the people of our state and many of the other western states. Mrs. FEINSTEIN. The FAA reauthorization bill will provide important and necessary funding to our nation's aviation system. It is crucial that we work to pass this legislation before the end of this session. But, there is one provision in this bill that we must resolve before we can go forward. The exemptions to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Perimeter Rule has come to our attention as a section of this bill which opens the door to an array of concerns. The change in the Perimeter Rule will allow for six new daily round trip flights between Reagan National Airport and airports beyond the 1,250-mile perimeter. We have some questions as to who will be served if these exemptions are enacted by Congress. We would like to see the highest level of service provided to the most number of passengers. Do you believe that this Perimeter Rule exemption would prevent airlines from competing to provide the greatest amount of service to the most number of passengers? Mr. McCAIN. This provision included by the committee is intended to implement a process that will provide numerous domestic cities, including small and medium-sized committees, with improved service. However, the provision allows for competition for routes to larger communities. Mrs. BOXER. I ask the distinguished chairman to yield to a further question. Mr. McCAIN. I will be happy to yield. Mrs. BOXER. Specifically, would carriers be prevented from competing for routes from National Airport to Los Angeles or San Jose or other California airports under this bill? Mr. McCAIN. No. As long as carriers can demonstrate that their routes provide domestic network benefits and increase competition in multiple markets, they may compete for these non-stop routes, including select routes to California airports. Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation Improvement Act of 1998. As a member of the Commerce Aviation Subcommittee, it has been my privilege to work with Senator Ford on this and other bills to improve the quality and safety of air transportation in this country, and I believe it is a fitting tribute that we name this bill in his honor. I appreciate the assistance I received from the Senator from Kentucky and from my good friend, the Chairman, Senator McCain, in adding three amendments to this bill which I believe will help improve safety, quality and access. I will vote for this bill because on the whole, it will benefit our airports and air travelers. But I do want to make it clear that I do not support sections 606 and 607. These sections will be detrimental to commercial air service to Maine and the other markets within the perimeter rule. While I will not be offering an amendment to strike these two sections, I would encourage the conferees to seriously consider the detrimental effects these sections will have on air service. Section 606 will negatively alter the perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in a way that jeopardizes air service to Maine. It is my opinion that expanding the number of slots would clearly result in more negatives than positives. Due to the current Federal Aviation Administration guidelines on the distance required between aircraft, adding flights at National airport will require air traffic controllers to chose between staying on schedule or sacrificing safety. If more flights are added through the creation of these new slots in Section 606, the controller will have to place these flights more closely together in order to prevent delays in arrivals and departures. By decreasing the spacing of the flights in and out of Reagan National, it will create an unsafe situation by subjecting the flights to the jet wash, or turbulence, of flights in front of them. Such exposure to the jet wash, especially at take-off creates a terrible safety situation. One which will jeopardize lives of the traveling public. I am also concerned about the way that section 606 distributes the new slots are distributed. Specifically, the section gives priority consideration to air carriers who have already had slots withdrawn from them. This will result in the majority of new slots to go to one dominate carrier and further increase already overpriced business airfares. Further, this language will overturn a March 1998, Department of Transportation decision concerning the distribution of slots. I would also like to note my opposition to section 607, which modifies the perimeter rule. It is well established that the perimeter rule maintains a delicate balance between National Airport and Dulles International Airport. Under the perimeter rule, Dulles has flourished as an international gateway, and National has provided regional service to states such as Maine. I believe that in the long run, violating the perimeter rule will hurt travelers from Maine. Eroding the perimeter rule will bring long- haul flights to National--short haul flights, in turn, will be rerouted to Dulles or eliminated altogether. Ironically, violating the perimeter rule would also hurt those underserved communities the legislation is designed to assist. Modifying the perimeter rule could encourage airlines at National to substitute long-haul flights for existing service to smaller communities within the perimeter. I believe that the amendment offered by the Senator from Virginia, Mr. Robb, which I have cosponsored, will mitigate some of the potential impact of modifying the perimeter rule by making it incumbent on the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that these changes will not reduce travel options for communities served by small and medium sized airports within the perimeter and not result in meaningful increases in travel delays. I also would want to note the Dorgan-Snowe amendment that was adopted and to thank the Chairman and Ranking member for their helping in working through the language. The Dorgan-Snowe amendment would facilitate air service to under-served communities and encourage airline competition through non-discriminatory interconnection requirements by permitting the Secretary of Transportation to require major carriers to enter into agreements with new entrant air carriers which serve rural or underserved markets. This amendment will give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to require an air carrier that serves an essential airport facility, such as a major hub, and has an exclusive--almost monopolistic--agreement with another airline which serves an under- served market to enter into a joint fare or interline agreement with a new air carrier, trying to enter the underserved market so that the people living in the rural or underserved area will have a competitive alternative and not be beholden to one airline. This would allow a new airline to fly from a rural or underserved market to a hub airport which is dominated by a [[Page S10947]] major carrier and permit the traveler to continue to another market on the megacarrier without having to purchase a second ticket or worrying if their bags will be transferred to the megacarrier. I want to make it perfectly clear. States which are primarily rural or have a large number of underserved markets will benefit from this amendment. Opponents of this amendment argue that this is re- regulation. Nothing is further from the truth. Senator Dorgan and I are establishing a mechanism which will allow new entrant carriers to be able to compete with the mega air carriers. Only if the Secretary believes that underserved markets will benefit and that competition will result, will an interline agreement be sanctioned. It is interesting to note that when the commercial air carrier industry was deregulated, there were 19 domestic trunk-line and local service carriers. Of those 19, only 5 (American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, and United) airlines are still in existence. At the time of deregulation, eight of the 15 airlines controlled 80% of the market share. Today, the seven largest carriers control more than 90% of the market. Some say that this is positive result of deregulation, claiming that deregulation was designed to promote a ``survival of the fittest'' type industry and promote profitability. Unfortunately, deregulation has actually hurt the vast majority of communities in the United States and the passengers who travel from small and medium sized markets. According to a Government Accounting Office report, the full benefits of deregulation have yet to be realized because of problems with entering the markets dominated by a major airline. As a result of deregulation, consumers are actually paying far more for air travel. In fact, a doubling of an airline's market share on a particular route translates into a price increase of almost nine percent. Today, as a result of the lack of competition at small and medium sized markets, it is cheaper to fly from Washington, D.C. to Mexico City on an unrestricted ticket than it is to fly from Washington to Portland, Maine. Our amendment would require carriers who enter into interline and joint fare agreements with other carriers, like those which have already been proposed and implemented on a limited basis by the megacarriers, to provide these agreements on a non-discriminatory basis to carriers seeking to provide service between an underserved market and a large hub airport in which one carrier has market dominance. Open access like that proposed in this amendment is nothing new. In fact Congress, just two and one-half years ago, approved legislation with similar requirements. When Congress de-regulated the telecommunications industry, the fundamental element to promote competition in that legislation was the requirement that the incumbent carriers would be required, by law, to allow their competitors to interconnect into their network. In a situation analogous to the telecommunications market, in order to develop competition in the local market, we must impose, by law, the requirement that the dominant megacarriers, allow its competitors to interconnect into their networks. By adopting this amendment, new entrant carriers will be allowed to interconnect into the flight network of a major carrier which dominates a hub airport. In light of what has been required of other industries under the goal of promoting competition, this amendment makes sense if one wants to see a competitive airline industry. The only way to allow for competition in this environment is to impose conditions on the major carriers to cooperate with their competitors. Interline and joint fares are necessary to ensure that the dominant carriers will not kill potential competitors. Through the adoption of this amendment, much like the principle underlying the local competition in the telecommunications industry, we will be able to provide more choices, lower costs, and better service to the majority of markets across the country. permanent ban on rocky mountain national park commercial tour overflights Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, as I cast my vote in favor of final passage of the Federal Aviation Administration's Reauthorization bill, S.2279, I am pleased to bring attention to one special amendment to this bill. The amendment which my colleague Senator Allard and I offered will make the FAA's temporary ban on commercial tour overflights permanent. I have been working toward permanently banning commercial tour overflights over Rocky Mountain National Park for many years now, and am pleased to see this provision pass the Senate. As I cast my vote today, Coloradans will be one big step closer to being assured that they will be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park without the noisy disturbances of commercial tour overflights. At this time I want to thank Senator McCain, who as the Chairman of the Commerce Committee, played a critical role in getting this amendment successfully included in the FAA bill. Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, section 606 subparagraph (6) of S. 2279 will have the unintended consequences of limiting competition at Chicago's O'Hare airport. I have spoke at length with Senators Lott, McCain, and Ford regarding my concerns with this provision and understand that it may be possible to correct this problem in conference. I hope that is the case. This provision will allow those carriers who have lost landing/ takeoff slots to foreign air carriers at Chicago's O'Hare to get them back. On the surface this seems very fair; however, it will in fact unfairly favor the largest slot holder at O'Hare at the expense of other competitors and new entrants. Because the dominant carrier at O'Hare has lost the most slots, it stands to gain the most. The result will be less competition rather than more at O'Hare. Mr. President, by way of further explanation on this issue, I would like to submit for the Record a letter Senator Nickles and I sent to Senators Lott, Daschle, McCain, Hollings, Shelby, and Lautenberg describing our concerns and asking for their assistance in correcting the problem. Knowing that the managers of the bill have worked very hard to increase competition, I am certain they share my concerns regarding market domination at O'Hare. In my discussions with Senator Lott, he has assured me that he has no position on section 606 and would not object to this section being removed in conference. I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record. United States Senate, Washington, DC, September 23, 1998. Hon. Trent Lott, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Tom Daschle, Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. John McCain, Chairman, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Ernest F. Hollings, Ranking Member, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard C. Shelby, Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg, Minority Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senators: We are writing to express our strong opposition to a proposal that would increase major airline dominance at a key hub airport while at the same time reversing a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) decision and undercutting our international obligations. Specifically, a provision in Section 606 of FAA Reauthorization (S. 2279) would hand over roughly 35 slots at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to its largest slot holder, United Airlines, while restricting access at that hub to its competitors and new entrants. It is our understanding that this special interest provision is being adviced for inclusion in other pieces of ``must-pass'' legislation. Such special interest legislation benefiting one airline will no doubt lead to less competition and higher airfares. We urge you to foster greater airline competition by deleting this special interest provision from S. 2279 and preventing it from being attached to other legislation. Late last year, United petitioned FAA on just this issue and was rejected soundly. United sought priority for any future slot exemptions claiming they would replace the 35 slots withdrawn under FAA regulations and used by foreign carriers in order to meet our bilateral commitments. In a March 1998 order, FAA found that the public interest [[Page S10948]] would be best served by continuing to meet our aviation bilateral agreement commitments to international air transportation using the slots withdrawn from United and American Airlines at O'Hare, while using the slot exemptions to increase competition at that key airport. The priority by which slots were to be withdrawn was well known. United chose not to invest in better priority slots to protect its schedule and slot holdings. In rejecting United's request, FAA found: ``Since 1993 the FAA withdraws, on average, 31 air carrier slots from United, which is approximately four percent of United's domestic slot base. These slots are withdrawn based on a priority numbering system that was established by random lottery in 1986. Slots having the lowest numbers are most vulnerable to withdrawal, regardless of the slot holder. As articulated in our previous denial to United concerning this issue, United made its selection or acquisition of slots with vulnerable withdrawal priority and planned its hub operations fully knowing the effects of the rule's operations might have upon them . . . United knew, or should have known, that these slots were vulnerable in case of withdrawal.'' We applaud the Commerce Committee's efforts to fashion a bill that promotes greater airline competition aimed at producing lower airfares and improved service in all communities. Accordingly, we respectfully urge your support for striking this provision of section 606, the effect of which is directly opposite the intent of S. 2279 and other procompetitive aviation legislation. Sincerely, Jim Inhofe, Don Nickles. Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I support H.R. 4057, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act and I commend my colleagues on the bipartisan and expeditious manner in which this important legislation was adopted by the Senate. This bill will reauthorize the programs of the FAA for two years, including the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which is due to expire on September 30. The purpose of the AIP is to provide grants to fund the capital needs of the nation's commercial airports and general aviation facilities. Without this important FAA reauthorization legislation to continue the contract authority for the AIP, the FAA would not be able to distribute airport grants that are vitally important to not only the State which I am honored to represent, West Virginia, but also the entire nation. A major focus of H.R. 4057 is promoting competition and quality air service which, Mr. President, the State of West Virginia needs desperately. Since the deregulation of the airlines, West Virginia travelers have suffered from increased airfares and greatly reduced service. Consequently, the inefficiencies in the present air transportation system and the high costs have denied air passengers and air freight shippers in West Virginia reasonable access to the national and international air transportation system. Mother Nature has blessed the State of West Virginia with a beautiful but most unforgiving terrain. Steeply undulating mountains and deep gorges are punctuated by sweetly serene valleys and hollows, and West Virginia is kind to those who need to travel through the State by automobile. Yet, despite the rigorous terrain of the State, most people have to drive great distances even to catch an airplane for what is usually the first of several stops en route to their final destination. In eastern West Virginia, residents travel to either Dulles or Reagan National Airports in Virginia; in the northern reaches, residents drive to Pennsylvania or Ohio; and in the southern portion of the State, they may have to drive to North Carolina to get to a major hub. Not only is the limited availability of flights and destinations a problem for air travel originating within West Virginia, but so is the exorbitant cost of air transportation to and from the State. For example, a round trip air ticket from Reagan National Airport to Yeager Airport in Charleston can cost almost $700. That is almost $700 to travel under 400 miles-- and when you are done, you are only as far away as Washington, D.C. Leaving from Washington, $700 can take you to Europe and back! This does not make sense to most hardworking West Virginians, and it discourages other travelers from visiting to experience West Virginia's many wonders for themselves. With the advent of the 21st Century just around the corner, the West Virginia air travelers and businesses that rely on air freight will welcome this legislation. West Virginia's expected economic expansion in the 21st century will depend on its ability to compete not only in the national economy, but also in the ever-growing global economy. To successfully compete, quality, affordable, and efficient air transportation is needed to successfully round out West Virginia's increasingly modern infrastructure of highways, railways, and waterways. Mr. President, this bill, H.R. 4057, contains other necessary language to help West Virginia progress into the new millennium. Major provisions of this bill are not only the AIP program, but also the Small Communities Air Service Development Program, and slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. The Small Communities Air Service Development Program will be a four- year, $30 million, small communities grant program. Executed through the Department of Transportation, this program will encourage commercial air service to small communities all over the United States, including those in West Virginia. By providing matching funds of up to 25 percent, a consortia of local communities in West Virginia is expected to compete for the grants of $500,000 per year available per community. It was Thomas Edison who said, ``Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.'' Mr. President, this captures the way that I feel about additional slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service at Ronald Reagan National Airport. I share the concern expressed by the distinguished Senators from the State of Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding increased noise pollution in the localities surrounding Reagan National Airport. On the other hand, twelve additional slots to increase traffic between Washington and smaller, non-hub airports increases the likelihood of additional airline traffic to underserved areas like West Virginia. Improved air travel to and from States like West Virginia will be critical to my State's remaining competitive in the future and accessible in the present. Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I yield back the time. Mr. REID. Time is yielded back by this side. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time is yielded back. Mr. STEVENS. Have the yeas and nays been ordered? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas and nays have not been ordered. Mr. STEVENS. I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second. The yeas and nays were ordered. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time having been yielded back, the question is, Shall the bill, H.R. 4057, as amended, pass? The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant legislative clerk called the roll. Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Ashcroft) and the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Kempthorne) are necessarily absent. Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Hollings), the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun), and the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) are necessarily absent. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``aye.'' The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 1, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No. 288 Leg.] YEAS--92 Abraham Akaka Allard Baucus Bennett Biden Bingaman Bond Breaux Brownback Bryan Bumpers Burns Byrd Campbell Chafee Cleland Coats Cochran Collins Conrad Coverdell Craig D'Amato Daschle DeWine Dodd Domenici Dorgan Durbin Enzi Faircloth Feingold Feinstein Ford Frist Gorton Graham Gramm Grams Grassley Gregg Hagel Harkin Hatch Helms Hutchinson Hutchison Inhofe Inouye Jeffords Johnson Kennedy Kerrey Kerry Kohl Kyl Landrieu Lautenberg Leahy Levin Lieberman Lott Lugar Mack McCain McConnell Mikulski Moynihan [[Page S10949]] Murkowski Murray Nickles Reed Reid Roberts Rockefeller Roth Santorum Sarbanes Sessions Shelby Smith (NH) Smith (OR) Snowe Specter Stevens Thomas Thompson Thurmond Torricelli Warner Wyden NAYS--1 Robb NOT VOTING--7 Ashcroft Boxer Glenn Hollings Kempthorne Moseley-Braun Wellstone The bill (H.R. 4057), as amended, was passed, as follows: Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 4057) entitled ``An Act to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.'', do pass with the following amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF SECTIONS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act of 1998''. (b) Table of Sections.--The table of sections for this Act is as follows: Sec. 1. Short title; table of sections. Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS Sec. 101. Federal Aviation Administration operations. Sec. 102. Air navigation facilities and equipment. Sec. 103. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 104. Reprogramming notification requirement. Sec. 105. Airport security program. Sec. 106. Contract tower programs Sec. 107. Automated surface observation system stations. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS Sec. 201. Removal of the cap on discretionary fund. Sec. 202. Innovative use of airport grant funds. Sec. 203. Matching share. Sec. 204. Increase in apportionment for noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 205. Technical amendments. Sec. 206. Repeal of period of applicability. Sec. 207. Report on efforts to implement capacity enhancements. Sec. 208. Prioritization of discretionary projects. Sec. 209. Public notice before grant assurance requirement waived. Sec. 210. Definition of public aircraft. Sec. 211. Terminal development costs. Sec. 212. Airfield pavement conditions. Sec. 213. Discretionary grants. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW Sec. 301. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years. Sec. 302. Foreign carriers eligible for waiver under Airport Noise and Capacity Act. Sec. 303. Government and industry consortia. Sec. 304. Implementation of Article 83 Bis of the Chicago Convention. Sec. 305. Foreign aviation services authority. Sec. 306. Flexibility to perform criminal history record checks; technical amendments to Pilot Records Improvement Act. Sec. 307. Aviation insurance program amendments. Sec. 308. Technical corrections to civil penalty provisions. Sec. 309. Criminal penalty for pilots operating in air transportation without an airman's certificate. Sec. 310. Nondiscriminatory interline interconnection requirements. TITLE IV--TITLE 49 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS Sec. 401. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 106(g). Sec. 402. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 44909. TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS Sec. 501. Oversight of FAA response to year 2000 problem. Sec. 502. Cargo collision avoidance systems deadline. Sec. 503. Runway safety areas; precision approach path indicators. Sec. 504. Airplane emergency locators. Sec. 505. Counterfeit aircraft parts. Sec. 506. FAA may fine unruly passengers. Sec. 507. Higher standards for handicapped access. Sec. 508. Conveyances of United States Government land. Sec. 509. Flight operations quality assurance rules. Sec. 510. Wide area augmentation system. Sec. 511. Regulation of Alaska air guides. Sec. 512. Application of FAA regulations. Sec. 513. Human factors program. Sec. 514. Independent validation of FAA costs and allocations. Sec. 515. Whistleblower protection for FAA employees. Sec. 516. Report on modernization of oceanic ATC system. Sec. 517. Report on air transportation oversight system. Sec. 518. Recycling of EIS. Sec. 519. Protection of employees providing air safety information. Sec. 520. Improvements to air navigation facilities. Sec. 521. Denial of airport access to certain air carriers. Sec. 522. Tourism. Sec. 523. Equivalency of FAA and EU safety standards. Sec. 524. Sense of the Senate on property taxes on public-use airports. Sec. 525. Federal Aviation Administration Personnel Management System. Sec. 526. Aircraft and aviation component repair and maintenance advisory panel. Sec. 527. Report on enhanced domestic airline competition. Sec. 528. Aircraft situational display data. Sec. 529. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Charlotte-London route. Sec. 530. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Cleveland-London route. Sec. 531. Allocation of Trust Fund funding. Sec. 532. Taos Pueblo and Blue Lakes Wilderness Area demonstration project. Sec. 533. Airline marketing disclosure. Sec. 534. Certain air traffice control towers. Sec. 535. Compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act. TITLE VI--AVIATION COMPETITION PROMOTION Sec. 601. Purpose. Sec. 602. Establishment of small community aviation development program. Sec. 603. Community-carrier air service program. Sec. 604. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 605. Marketing practices. Sec. 606. Slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. Sec. 607. Exemptions to perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Sec. 608. Additional slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Sec. 609. Consumer notification of e-ticket expiration dates. Sec. 610. Joint venture agreements. Sec. 611. Regional air service incentive options. Sec. 612. GAO study of air transportation needs. TITLE VII--NATIONAL PARK OVERFLIGHTS Sec. 701. Findings. Sec. 702. Air tour management plans for national parks. Sec. 703. Advisory group. Sec. 704. Overflight fee report. Sec. 705. Prohibition of commercial air tours over the Rocky Mountain National Park. TITLE VIII--CENTENNIAL OF FLIGHT COMMEMORATION Sec. 801. Short title. Sec. 802. Findings. Sec. 803. Establishment. Sec. 804. Membership. Sec. 805. Duties. Sec. 806. Powers. Sec. 807. Staff and support services. Sec. 808. Contributions. Sec. 809. Exclusive right to name, logos, emblems, seals, and marks. Sec. 810. Reports. Sec. 811. Audit of financial transactions. Sec. 812. Advisory board. Sec. 813. Definitions. Sec. 814. Termination. Sec. 815. Authorization of appropriations. TITLE IX--EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY Sec. 901. Extension of expenditure authority. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS SEC. 101. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS. (a) In General.--Section 106(k) is amended to read as follows: ``(k) Authorization of Appropriations for Operations.-- ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for operations of the Administration $5,631,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and $5,784,000,000 for fiscal year 2000. Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1999, not more than $9,100,000 shall be used to support air safety efforts through payment of United States membership obligations, to be paid as soon as practicable. ``(2) Authorized expenditures.--Of the amounts appropriated under paragraph (1) $450,000 may be used for wildlife hazard mitigation measures and management of the wildlife strike database of the Federal Aviation Administration. ``(3) University consortium.--There are authorized to be appropriated not more than $9,100,000 for the 3 fiscal year period beginning with fiscal year 1999 to support a university consortium established to provide an air safety and security management certificate program, working cooperatively with the Federal Aviation Administration and United States air carriers. Funds authorized under this paragraph-- ``(A) may not be used for the construction of a building or other facility; and ``(B) shall be awarded on the basis of open competition.''. (b) Coordination.--The authority granted the Secretary under section 41717 of title 49, United States Code, does not affect the Secretary's authority under any other provision of law. [[Page S10950]] SEC. 102. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT. (a) In General.--Section 48101(a) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the following: ``(1) for fiscal year 1999-- ``(A) $222,800,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: en route programs; ``(B) $74,700,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: terminal programs; ``(C) $108,000,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: landing and navigational aids; ``(D) $17,790,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: research, test, and evaluation equipment and facilities programs; ``(E) $391,358,300 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: en route programs; ``(F) $492,315,500 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: terminal programs; ``(G) $38,764,400 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: flight services programs; ``(H) $50,500,000 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: other ATC facilities programs; ``(I) $162,400,000 for non-ATC facilities and equipment programs; ``(J) $14,500,000 for training and equipment facilities programs; ``(K) $280,800,000 for mission support programs; ``(L) $235,210,000 for personnel and related expenses; and ``(2) $2,189,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.''. (b) Continuation of ILS Inventory Program.--Section 44502(a)(4)(B) is amended-- (1) by striking ``fiscal years 1995 and 1996'' and inserting ``fiscal years 1999 and 2000''; and (2) by striking ``acquisition,'' and inserting ``acquisition under new or existing contracts,''. (c) Life-Cycle Cost Estimates.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish life-cycle cost estimates for any air traffic control modernization project the total life-cycle costs of which equal or exceed $50,000,000. SEC. 103. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. (a) Extension and Authorization.--Section 48103 is amended by-- (1) striking ``September 30, 1996,'' and inserting ``September 30, 1998,''; and (2) striking ``$2,280,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1997, and $4,627,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1998.'' and inserting ``$2,410,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1999 and $4,885,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2000.''. (b) Project Grant Authority.--Section 47104(c) is amended by striking ``1998,'' and inserting ``2002,''. SEC. 104. REPROGRAMMING NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. Before reprogramming any amounts appropriated under section 106(k), 48101(a), or 48103 of title 49, United States Code, for which notification of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives is required, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit a written explanation of the proposed reprogramming to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. SEC. 105. AIRPORT SECURITY PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Chapter 471 (as amended by section 202(a) of this Act) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section: ``Sec. 47136. Airport security program ``(a) General Authority.--To improve security at public airports in the United States, the Secretary of Transportation shall carry out not less than 1 project to test and evaluate innovative airport security systems and related technology. ``(b) Priority.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall give the highest priority to a request from an eligible sponsor for a grant to undertake a project that-- ``(1) evaluates and tests the benefits of innovative airport security systems or related technology, including explosives detection systems, for the purpose of improving airport and aircraft physical security and access control; and ``(2) provides testing and evaluation of airport security systems and technology in an operational, test bed environment. ``(c) Matching Share.--Notwithstanding section 47109, the United States Government's share of allowable project costs for a project under this section is 100 percent. ``(d) Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary may establish such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines appropriate for carrying out a project under this section, including terms and conditions relating to the form and content of a proposal for a project, project assurances, and schedule of payments. ``(e) Eligible Sponsor Defined.--In this section, the term `eligible sponsor' means a nonprofit corporation composed of a consortium of public and private persons, including a sponsor of a primary airport, with the necessary engineering and technical expertise to successfully conduct the testing and evaluation of airport and aircraft related security systems. ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--Of the amounts made available to the Secretary under section 47115 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall make available not less than $5,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for such chapter (as amended by section 202(b) of this Act) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47135 the following: ``47136. Airport security program.''. SEC. 106. CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM. There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation such sums as may be necessary to carry out the Federal Contract Tower Program under title 49, United States Code. SEC. 107. AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVATION SYSTEM STATIONS. The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall not terminate human weather observers for Automated Surface Observation System stations until-- (1) the Secretary of Transportation determines that the System provides consistent reporting of changing meteorological conditions and notifies the Congress in writing of that determination; and (2) 60 days have passed since the report was submitted to the Congress. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS SEC. 201. REMOVAL OF THE CAP ON DISCRETIONARY FUND. Section 47115(g) is amended by striking paragraph (4). SEC. 202. INNOVATIVE USE OF AIRPORT GRANT FUNDS. (a) Codification and Improvement of 1996 Program.-- Subchapter I of chapter 471 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 47135. Innovative financing techniques ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation is authorized to carry out a demonstration program under which the Secretary may approve applications under this subchapter for not more than 20 projects for which grants received under the subchapter may be used to implement innovative financing techniques. ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the demonstration program shall be to provide information on the use of innovative financing techniques for airport development projects. ``(c) Limitation--In no case shall the implementation of an innovative financing technique under this section be used in a manner giving rise to a direct or indirect guarantee of any airport debt instrument by the United States Government. ``(d) Innovative Financing Technique Defined.--In this section, the term `innovative financing technique' includes methods of financing projects that the Secretary determines may be beneficial to airport development, including-- ``(1) payment of interest; ``(2) commercial bond insurance and other credit enhancement associated with airport bonds for eligible airport development; and ``(3) flexible non-Federal matching requirements.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47134 the following: ``47135. Innovative financing techniques.''. SEC. 203. MATCHING SHARE. Section 47109(a)(2) is amended by inserting ``not more than'' before ``90 percent''. SEC. 204. INCREASE IN APPORTIONMENT FOR NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. Section 47117(e)(1)(A) is amended by striking ``31'' each time it appears and substituting ``35''. SEC. 205. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. (a) Use of Apportionments for Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.--Section 47114(d)(3) is amended to read as follows: ``(3) An amount apportioned under paragraph (2) of this subsection for airports in Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico may be made available by the Secretary for any public airport in those respective jurisdictions.''. (b) Supplemental Apportionment for Alaska.--Section 47114(e) is amended-- (1) by striking ``Alternative'' in the subsection caption and inserting ``Supplemental''; (2) in paragraph (1) by-- (A) striking ``Instead of apportioning amounts for airports in Alaska under'' and inserting ``Notwithstanding''; and (B) striking ``those airports'' and inserting ``airports in Alaska''; and (3) striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: ``(3) An amount apportioned under this subsection may be used for any public airport in Alaska.''. (c) Repeal of Apportionment Limitation on Commercial Service Airports in Alaska.--Section 47117 is amended by striking subsection (f) and redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (f) and (g), respectively. (d) Discretionary Fund Definition.-- (1) Section 47115 is amended-- (A) by striking ``25'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``12.5''; and (B) by striking the second sentence in subsection (b). (2) Section 47116 is amended-- (A) by striking ``75'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``87.5''; (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) in subsection (b) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and inserting before subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, the following: ``(1) one-seventh for grants for projects at small hub airports (as defined in section 41731 of this title); and ``(2) the remaining amounts based on the following:''. (e) Continuation of Project Funding.--Section 47108 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(e) Change in Airport Status.--If the status of a primary airport changes to a nonprimary airport at a time when a development project under a multiyear agreement under subsection (a) is not yet completed, the project shall remain eligible for funding from discretionary funds under section 47115 of this title at the funding level and under the terms provided by the agreement, subject to the availability of funds.''. [[Page S10951]] (f) Grant Eligibility for Private Reliever Airports.-- Section 47102(17)(B) is amended by-- (1) striking ``or'' at the end of clause (i) and redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and (2) inserting after clause (i) the following: ``(ii) a privately-owned airport that, as a reliever airport, received Federal aid for airport development prior to October 9, 1996, but only if the Administrator issues revised administrative guidance after July 1, 1998, for the designation of reliever airports; or''. (g) Reliever Airports Not Eligible for Letters of Intent.-- Section 47110(e)(1) is amended by striking ``or reliever''. (h) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers.--Section 40117(e)(2) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in subparagraph (B); (2) by striking ``payment.'' in subparagraph (C) and inserting ``payment; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(D) in Alaska aboard an aircraft having a seating capacity of less than 20 passengers.''. (i) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers or for Service to Airports in Isolated Communities.--Section 40117(i) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (1); (2) by striking ``transportation.'' in paragraph (2)(D) and inserting ``transportation; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(3) may permit a public agency to request that collection of a passenger facility fee be waived for-- ``(A) passengers enplaned by any class of air carrier or foreign air carrier if the number of passengers enplaned by the carriers in the class constitutes not more than one percent of the total number of passengers enplaned annually at the airport at which the fee is imposed; or ``(B) passengers enplaned on a flight to an airport-- ``(i) that has fewer than 2,500 passenger boardings each year and receives scheduled passenger service; or ``(ii) in a community which has a population of less than 10,000 and is not connected by a land highway or vehicular way to the land-connected National Highway System within a State.''. (j) Use of the Word ``gift'' and Priority for Airports in Surplus Property Disposal.-- (1) Section 47151 is amended-- (A) by striking ``give'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``convey to''; (B) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (a)(2) and inserting ``conveyance''; (C) by striking ``giving'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveying''; (D) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveyance''; and (E) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(d) Priority for Public Airports.--Except for requests from another Federal agency, a department, agency, or instrumentality of the Executive Branch of the United States Government shall give priority to a request by a public agency (as defined in section 47102 of this title) for surplus property described in subsection (a) of this section for use at a public airport.''. (2) Section 47152 is amended-- (A) by striking ``gifts'' in the section caption and inserting ``conveyances''; and (B) by striking ``gift'' in the first sentence and inserting ``conveyance''. (3) The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by striking the item relating to section 47152 and inserting the following: ``47152. Terms of conveyances.''. (4) Section 47153(a) is amended-- (A) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1) and inserting ``conveyance''; (B) by striking ``given'' in paragraph (1)(A) and inserting ``conveyed''; and (C) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1)(B) and inserting ``conveyance''. (k) Apportionment for Cargo Only Airports.--Section 47114(c)(2)(A) is amended by striking ``2.5 percent'' and inserting ``3 percent''. (l) Flexibility in Pavement Design Standards.--Section 47114(d) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(4) The Secretary may permit the use of State highway specifications for airfield pavement construction using funds made available under this subsection at nonprimary airports with runways of 5,000 feet or shorter serving aircraft that do not exceed 60,000 pounds gross weight, if the Secretary determines that-- ``(A) safety will not be negatively affected; and ``(B) the life of the pavement will not be shorter than it would be if constructed using Administration standards. An airport may not seek funds under this subchapter for runway rehabilitation or reconstruction of any such airfield pavement constructed using State highway specifications for a period of 10 years after construction is completed.''. SEC. 206. REPEAL OF PERIOD OF APPLICABILITY. Section 125 of the Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 1996 (49 U.S.C. 47114 note) is repealed. SEC. 207. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CAPACITY ENHANCEMENTS. Within 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on efforts by the Federal Aviation Administration to implement capacity enhancements and improvements, such as precision runway monitoring systems, and the time frame for implementation of such enhancements and improvements. SEC. 208. PRIORITIZATION OF DISCRETIONARY PROJECTS. Section 47120 is amended by-- (1) inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before ``In''; and (2) adding at the end thereof the following: ``(b) Discretionary Funding To Be Used for Higher Priority Projects.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall discourage airport sponsors and airports from using entitlement funds for lower priority projects by giving lower priority to discretionary projects submitted by airport sponsors and airports that have used entitlement funds for projects that have a lower priority than the projects for which discretionary funds are being requested.''. SEC. 209. PUBLIC NOTICE BEFORE GRANT ASSURANCE REQUIREMENT WAIVED. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Secretary of Transportation may not waive any assurance required under section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, that requires property to be used for aeronautical purposes unless the Secretary provides notice to the public not less than 30 days before issuing any such waiver. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary to issue a waiver of any assurance required under that section. (b) Effective Date.--This section applies to any request filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 210. DEFINITION OF PUBLIC AIRCRAFT. Section 40102(a)(37)(B)(ii) is amended-- (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of subclause (I); (2) by striking the ``States.'' in subclause (II) and inserting ``States; or''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(III) transporting persons aboard the aircraft if the aircraft is operated for the purpose of prisoner transport.''. SEC. 211. TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT COSTS. Section 40117 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(j) Shell of Terminal Building.--In order to enable additional air service by an air carrier with less than 50 percent of the scheduled passenger traffic at an airport, the Secretary may consider the shell of a terminal building (including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and aircraft fueling facilities adjacent to an airport terminal building to be an eligible airport-related project under subsection (a)(3)(E).''. SEC. 212. AIRFIELD PAVEMENT CONDITIONS. (a) Evaluation of Options.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall evaluate options for improving the quality of information available to the Administration on airfield pavement conditions for airports that are part of the national air transportation system, including-- (1) improving the existing runway condition information contained in the Airport Safety Data Program by reviewing and revising rating criteria and providing increased training for inspectors; (2) requiring such airports to submit pavement condition index information as part of their airport master plan or as support in applications for airport improvement grants; and (3) requiring all such airports to submit pavement condition index information on a regular basis and using this information to create a pavement condition database that could be used in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of project applications and forecasting anticipated pavement needs. (b) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall transmit a report, containing an evaluation of such options, to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 213. DISCRETIONARY GRANTS. Notwithstanding any limitation on the amount of funds that may be expended for grants for noise abatement, if any funds made available under section 48103 of title 49, United States Code, remain available at the end of the fiscal year for which those funds were made available, and are not allocated under section 47115 of that title, or under any other provision relating to the awarding of discretionary grants from unobligated funds made available under section 48103 of that title, the Secretary of Transportation may use those funds to make discretionary grants for noise abatement activities. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW SEC. 301. SEVERABLE SERVICES CONTRACTS FOR PERIODS CROSSING FISCAL YEARS. (a) Chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years ``(a) In General.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may enter into a contract for procurement of severable services for a period that begins in one fiscal year and ends in the next fiscal year if (without regard to any option to extend the period of the contract) the contract period does not exceed one year. ``(b) Obligation of Funds.--Funds made available for a fiscal year may be obligated for the total amount of a contract entered into under the authority of subsection (a) of this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years.''. SEC. 302. FOREIGN CARRIERS ELIGIBLE FOR WAIVER UNDER AIRPORT NOISE AND CAPACITY ACT. The first sentence of

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WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998
(Senate - September 25, 1998)

Text of this article available as: TXT PDF [Pages S10945-S10969] WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998 The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Allard). Under the previous order, the Senate will now resume consideration of H.R. 4057, which the clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (H.R. 4057) to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes. The Senate resumed consideration of the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will now be 20 minutes for debate, equally divided between the majority and minority leaders, prior to the vote on passage. section 606 Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would like to point out to the Chairman that Section 606 contains a provision that appears to grant priority status to a single carrier at Chicago O'Hare for the return of slots previously withdrawn for international service. If it is the intention of this provision to give one carrier at O'Hare preference in slot allocation, the Senate conferees must act in conference to remove this provision. This provision appears to hand over roughly 35 slots that the dominant carrier at Chicago previously sought to obtain from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) but was twice denied. This provision would advantage a single carrier, which knew of the priority of slot withdrawal and should have planned its hub operations to take into account the effects. It strengthens a single carrier's position at O'Hare, a situation which the Congress should not legislate. As this legislation goes to conference, the Senate is relying on the conferees to ensure Congress is even-handed in these matters. Mr. McCAIN. I understand the Senator's concerns, which others have raised as well. I appreciate the Senator from Oklahoma expressing these views. death on the high seas act Mr. WYDEN. I would like to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman from Arizona, the distinguished Chairman of the Commerce Committee, concerning provisions included in the FAA reauthorization bill to reform the Death on the High Seas Act. Mr. McCAIN. I would be happy to engage the gentleman from Oregon in a colloquy. Mr. WYDEN. I thank the Chairman. As the Chairman knows, one of my constituents, John Sleavin, lost his brother and nephew and niece under tragic circumstances when their pleasure boat was run down on the high seas by a Korean freighter. The accident was especially tragic because after the collision there was no attempt by the Korean freighter to rescue the family or even to notify the authorities about the collision. Mr. Chairman, you were very gracious to me in allowing my constituent to testify before the Commerce Committee on the need to reform the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) to provide just compensation for victims like my constituent. I believe he provided compelling testimony on the need for reforming DOHSA for [[Page S10946]] maritime accidents. The FAA reauthorization bill reforms DOHSA but only for aviation accidents. I would like to ask the Chairman whether he will commit to work with me to reform DOHSA comprehensively so the reforms cover both aviation and maritime accidents. Mr. McCAIN. Yes, I am committed to work with the Senator from Oregon and other Members who have an interest in this issue to explore this issue further and to work to reform DOHSA to appropriately provide victims of maritime accidents the same rights to recover for loss of their loved ones as are provided to victims of aviation accidents. (At the request of Mr. McCAIN, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.) permimeter rule exemptions Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, the distinguished senior Senator from California, Senator Feinstein, and I would like to ask the Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation a question concerning the perimeter rule exemptions that are contained in S. 2279, the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act. Mr. McCAIN. I will be delighted to respond to questions from the Senators from California. Mrs. BOXER. We thank you. We first want to thank the members of the Commerce Committee for working so diligently to produce a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill, and for giving us the opportunity to address a provision in this bill which affects the people of our state and many of the other western states. Mrs. FEINSTEIN. The FAA reauthorization bill will provide important and necessary funding to our nation's aviation system. It is crucial that we work to pass this legislation before the end of this session. But, there is one provision in this bill that we must resolve before we can go forward. The exemptions to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Perimeter Rule has come to our attention as a section of this bill which opens the door to an array of concerns. The change in the Perimeter Rule will allow for six new daily round trip flights between Reagan National Airport and airports beyond the 1,250-mile perimeter. We have some questions as to who will be served if these exemptions are enacted by Congress. We would like to see the highest level of service provided to the most number of passengers. Do you believe that this Perimeter Rule exemption would prevent airlines from competing to provide the greatest amount of service to the most number of passengers? Mr. McCAIN. This provision included by the committee is intended to implement a process that will provide numerous domestic cities, including small and medium-sized committees, with improved service. However, the provision allows for competition for routes to larger communities. Mrs. BOXER. I ask the distinguished chairman to yield to a further question. Mr. McCAIN. I will be happy to yield. Mrs. BOXER. Specifically, would carriers be prevented from competing for routes from National Airport to Los Angeles or San Jose or other California airports under this bill? Mr. McCAIN. No. As long as carriers can demonstrate that their routes provide domestic network benefits and increase competition in multiple markets, they may compete for these non-stop routes, including select routes to California airports. Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation Improvement Act of 1998. As a member of the Commerce Aviation Subcommittee, it has been my privilege to work with Senator Ford on this and other bills to improve the quality and safety of air transportation in this country, and I believe it is a fitting tribute that we name this bill in his honor. I appreciate the assistance I received from the Senator from Kentucky and from my good friend, the Chairman, Senator McCain, in adding three amendments to this bill which I believe will help improve safety, quality and access. I will vote for this bill because on the whole, it will benefit our airports and air travelers. But I do want to make it clear that I do not support sections 606 and 607. These sections will be detrimental to commercial air service to Maine and the other markets within the perimeter rule. While I will not be offering an amendment to strike these two sections, I would encourage the conferees to seriously consider the detrimental effects these sections will have on air service. Section 606 will negatively alter the perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in a way that jeopardizes air service to Maine. It is my opinion that expanding the number of slots would clearly result in more negatives than positives. Due to the current Federal Aviation Administration guidelines on the distance required between aircraft, adding flights at National airport will require air traffic controllers to chose between staying on schedule or sacrificing safety. If more flights are added through the creation of these new slots in Section 606, the controller will have to place these flights more closely together in order to prevent delays in arrivals and departures. By decreasing the spacing of the flights in and out of Reagan National, it will create an unsafe situation by subjecting the flights to the jet wash, or turbulence, of flights in front of them. Such exposure to the jet wash, especially at take-off creates a terrible safety situation. One which will jeopardize lives of the traveling public. I am also concerned about the way that section 606 distributes the new slots are distributed. Specifically, the section gives priority consideration to air carriers who have already had slots withdrawn from them. This will result in the majority of new slots to go to one dominate carrier and further increase already overpriced business airfares. Further, this language will overturn a March 1998, Department of Transportation decision concerning the distribution of slots. I would also like to note my opposition to section 607, which modifies the perimeter rule. It is well established that the perimeter rule maintains a delicate balance between National Airport and Dulles International Airport. Under the perimeter rule, Dulles has flourished as an international gateway, and National has provided regional service to states such as Maine. I believe that in the long run, violating the perimeter rule will hurt travelers from Maine. Eroding the perimeter rule will bring long- haul flights to National--short haul flights, in turn, will be rerouted to Dulles or eliminated altogether. Ironically, violating the perimeter rule would also hurt those underserved communities the legislation is designed to assist. Modifying the perimeter rule could encourage airlines at National to substitute long-haul flights for existing service to smaller communities within the perimeter. I believe that the amendment offered by the Senator from Virginia, Mr. Robb, which I have cosponsored, will mitigate some of the potential impact of modifying the perimeter rule by making it incumbent on the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that these changes will not reduce travel options for communities served by small and medium sized airports within the perimeter and not result in meaningful increases in travel delays. I also would want to note the Dorgan-Snowe amendment that was adopted and to thank the Chairman and Ranking member for their helping in working through the language. The Dorgan-Snowe amendment would facilitate air service to under-served communities and encourage airline competition through non-discriminatory interconnection requirements by permitting the Secretary of Transportation to require major carriers to enter into agreements with new entrant air carriers which serve rural or underserved markets. This amendment will give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to require an air carrier that serves an essential airport facility, such as a major hub, and has an exclusive--almost monopolistic--agreement with another airline which serves an under- served market to enter into a joint fare or interline agreement with a new air carrier, trying to enter the underserved market so that the people living in the rural or underserved area will have a competitive alternative and not be beholden to one airline. This would allow a new airline to fly from a rural or underserved market to a hub airport which is dominated by a [[Page S10947]] major carrier and permit the traveler to continue to another market on the megacarrier without having to purchase a second ticket or worrying if their bags will be transferred to the megacarrier. I want to make it perfectly clear. States which are primarily rural or have a large number of underserved markets will benefit from this amendment. Opponents of this amendment argue that this is re- regulation. Nothing is further from the truth. Senator Dorgan and I are establishing a mechanism which will allow new entrant carriers to be able to compete with the mega air carriers. Only if the Secretary believes that underserved markets will benefit and that competition will result, will an interline agreement be sanctioned. It is interesting to note that when the commercial air carrier industry was deregulated, there were 19 domestic trunk-line and local service carriers. Of those 19, only 5 (American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, and United) airlines are still in existence. At the time of deregulation, eight of the 15 airlines controlled 80% of the market share. Today, the seven largest carriers control more than 90% of the market. Some say that this is positive result of deregulation, claiming that deregulation was designed to promote a ``survival of the fittest'' type industry and promote profitability. Unfortunately, deregulation has actually hurt the vast majority of communities in the United States and the passengers who travel from small and medium sized markets. According to a Government Accounting Office report, the full benefits of deregulation have yet to be realized because of problems with entering the markets dominated by a major airline. As a result of deregulation, consumers are actually paying far more for air travel. In fact, a doubling of an airline's market share on a particular route translates into a price increase of almost nine percent. Today, as a result of the lack of competition at small and medium sized markets, it is cheaper to fly from Washington, D.C. to Mexico City on an unrestricted ticket than it is to fly from Washington to Portland, Maine. Our amendment would require carriers who enter into interline and joint fare agreements with other carriers, like those which have already been proposed and implemented on a limited basis by the megacarriers, to provide these agreements on a non-discriminatory basis to carriers seeking to provide service between an underserved market and a large hub airport in which one carrier has market dominance. Open access like that proposed in this amendment is nothing new. In fact Congress, just two and one-half years ago, approved legislation with similar requirements. When Congress de-regulated the telecommunications industry, the fundamental element to promote competition in that legislation was the requirement that the incumbent carriers would be required, by law, to allow their competitors to interconnect into their network. In a situation analogous to the telecommunications market, in order to develop competition in the local market, we must impose, by law, the requirement that the dominant megacarriers, allow its competitors to interconnect into their networks. By adopting this amendment, new entrant carriers will be allowed to interconnect into the flight network of a major carrier which dominates a hub airport. In light of what has been required of other industries under the goal of promoting competition, this amendment makes sense if one wants to see a competitive airline industry. The only way to allow for competition in this environment is to impose conditions on the major carriers to cooperate with their competitors. Interline and joint fares are necessary to ensure that the dominant carriers will not kill potential competitors. Through the adoption of this amendment, much like the principle underlying the local competition in the telecommunications industry, we will be able to provide more choices, lower costs, and better service to the majority of markets across the country. permanent ban on rocky mountain national park commercial tour overflights Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, as I cast my vote in favor of final passage of the Federal Aviation Administration's Reauthorization bill, S.2279, I am pleased to bring attention to one special amendment to this bill. The amendment which my colleague Senator Allard and I offered will make the FAA's temporary ban on commercial tour overflights permanent. I have been working toward permanently banning commercial tour overflights over Rocky Mountain National Park for many years now, and am pleased to see this provision pass the Senate. As I cast my vote today, Coloradans will be one big step closer to being assured that they will be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park without the noisy disturbances of commercial tour overflights. At this time I want to thank Senator McCain, who as the Chairman of the Commerce Committee, played a critical role in getting this amendment successfully included in the FAA bill. Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, section 606 subparagraph (6) of S. 2279 will have the unintended consequences of limiting competition at Chicago's O'Hare airport. I have spoke at length with Senators Lott, McCain, and Ford regarding my concerns with this provision and understand that it may be possible to correct this problem in conference. I hope that is the case. This provision will allow those carriers who have lost landing/ takeoff slots to foreign air carriers at Chicago's O'Hare to get them back. On the surface this seems very fair; however, it will in fact unfairly favor the largest slot holder at O'Hare at the expense of other competitors and new entrants. Because the dominant carrier at O'Hare has lost the most slots, it stands to gain the most. The result will be less competition rather than more at O'Hare. Mr. President, by way of further explanation on this issue, I would like to submit for the Record a letter Senator Nickles and I sent to Senators Lott, Daschle, McCain, Hollings, Shelby, and Lautenberg describing our concerns and asking for their assistance in correcting the problem. Knowing that the managers of the bill have worked very hard to increase competition, I am certain they share my concerns regarding market domination at O'Hare. In my discussions with Senator Lott, he has assured me that he has no position on section 606 and would not object to this section being removed in conference. I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record. United States Senate, Washington, DC, September 23, 1998. Hon. Trent Lott, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Tom Daschle, Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. John McCain, Chairman, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Ernest F. Hollings, Ranking Member, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard C. Shelby, Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg, Minority Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senators: We are writing to express our strong opposition to a proposal that would increase major airline dominance at a key hub airport while at the same time reversing a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) decision and undercutting our international obligations. Specifically, a provision in Section 606 of FAA Reauthorization (S. 2279) would hand over roughly 35 slots at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to its largest slot holder, United Airlines, while restricting access at that hub to its competitors and new entrants. It is our understanding that this special interest provision is being adviced for inclusion in other pieces of ``must-pass'' legislation. Such special interest legislation benefiting one airline will no doubt lead to less competition and higher airfares. We urge you to foster greater airline competition by deleting this special interest provision from S. 2279 and preventing it from being attached to other legislation. Late last year, United petitioned FAA on just this issue and was rejected soundly. United sought priority for any future slot exemptions claiming they would replace the 35 slots withdrawn under FAA regulations and used by foreign carriers in order to meet our bilateral commitments. In a March 1998 order, FAA found that the public interest [[Page S10948]] would be best served by continuing to meet our aviation bilateral agreement commitments to international air transportation using the slots withdrawn from United and American Airlines at O'Hare, while using the slot exemptions to increase competition at that key airport. The priority by which slots were to be withdrawn was well known. United chose not to invest in better priority slots to protect its schedule and slot holdings. In rejecting United's request, FAA found: ``Since 1993 the FAA withdraws, on average, 31 air carrier slots from United, which is approximately four percent of United's domestic slot base. These slots are withdrawn based on a priority numbering system that was established by random lottery in 1986. Slots having the lowest numbers are most vulnerable to withdrawal, regardless of the slot holder. As articulated in our previous denial to United concerning this issue, United made its selection or acquisition of slots with vulnerable withdrawal priority and planned its hub operations fully knowing the effects of the rule's operations might have upon them . . . United knew, or should have known, that these slots were vulnerable in case of withdrawal.'' We applaud the Commerce Committee's efforts to fashion a bill that promotes greater airline competition aimed at producing lower airfares and improved service in all communities. Accordingly, we respectfully urge your support for striking this provision of section 606, the effect of which is directly opposite the intent of S. 2279 and other procompetitive aviation legislation. Sincerely, Jim Inhofe, Don Nickles. Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I support H.R. 4057, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act and I commend my colleagues on the bipartisan and expeditious manner in which this important legislation was adopted by the Senate. This bill will reauthorize the programs of the FAA for two years, including the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which is due to expire on September 30. The purpose of the AIP is to provide grants to fund the capital needs of the nation's commercial airports and general aviation facilities. Without this important FAA reauthorization legislation to continue the contract authority for the AIP, the FAA would not be able to distribute airport grants that are vitally important to not only the State which I am honored to represent, West Virginia, but also the entire nation. A major focus of H.R. 4057 is promoting competition and quality air service which, Mr. President, the State of West Virginia needs desperately. Since the deregulation of the airlines, West Virginia travelers have suffered from increased airfares and greatly reduced service. Consequently, the inefficiencies in the present air transportation system and the high costs have denied air passengers and air freight shippers in West Virginia reasonable access to the national and international air transportation system. Mother Nature has blessed the State of West Virginia with a beautiful but most unforgiving terrain. Steeply undulating mountains and deep gorges are punctuated by sweetly serene valleys and hollows, and West Virginia is kind to those who need to travel through the State by automobile. Yet, despite the rigorous terrain of the State, most people have to drive great distances even to catch an airplane for what is usually the first of several stops en route to their final destination. In eastern West Virginia, residents travel to either Dulles or Reagan National Airports in Virginia; in the northern reaches, residents drive to Pennsylvania or Ohio; and in the southern portion of the State, they may have to drive to North Carolina to get to a major hub. Not only is the limited availability of flights and destinations a problem for air travel originating within West Virginia, but so is the exorbitant cost of air transportation to and from the State. For example, a round trip air ticket from Reagan National Airport to Yeager Airport in Charleston can cost almost $700. That is almost $700 to travel under 400 miles-- and when you are done, you are only as far away as Washington, D.C. Leaving from Washington, $700 can take you to Europe and back! This does not make sense to most hardworking West Virginians, and it discourages other travelers from visiting to experience West Virginia's many wonders for themselves. With the advent of the 21st Century just around the corner, the West Virginia air travelers and businesses that rely on air freight will welcome this legislation. West Virginia's expected economic expansion in the 21st century will depend on its ability to compete not only in the national economy, but also in the ever-growing global economy. To successfully compete, quality, affordable, and efficient air transportation is needed to successfully round out West Virginia's increasingly modern infrastructure of highways, railways, and waterways. Mr. President, this bill, H.R. 4057, contains other necessary language to help West Virginia progress into the new millennium. Major provisions of this bill are not only the AIP program, but also the Small Communities Air Service Development Program, and slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. The Small Communities Air Service Development Program will be a four- year, $30 million, small communities grant program. Executed through the Department of Transportation, this program will encourage commercial air service to small communities all over the United States, including those in West Virginia. By providing matching funds of up to 25 percent, a consortia of local communities in West Virginia is expected to compete for the grants of $500,000 per year available per community. It was Thomas Edison who said, ``Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.'' Mr. President, this captures the way that I feel about additional slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service at Ronald Reagan National Airport. I share the concern expressed by the distinguished Senators from the State of Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding increased noise pollution in the localities surrounding Reagan National Airport. On the other hand, twelve additional slots to increase traffic between Washington and smaller, non-hub airports increases the likelihood of additional airline traffic to underserved areas like West Virginia. Improved air travel to and from States like West Virginia will be critical to my State's remaining competitive in the future and accessible in the present. Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I yield back the time. Mr. REID. Time is yielded back by this side. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time is yielded back. Mr. STEVENS. Have the yeas and nays been ordered? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas and nays have not been ordered. Mr. STEVENS. I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second. The yeas and nays were ordered. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time having been yielded back, the question is, Shall the bill, H.R. 4057, as amended, pass? The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant legislative clerk called the roll. Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Ashcroft) and the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Kempthorne) are necessarily absent. Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Hollings), the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun), and the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) are necessarily absent. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``aye.'' The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 1, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No. 288 Leg.] YEAS--92 Abraham Akaka Allard Baucus Bennett Biden Bingaman Bond Breaux Brownback Bryan Bumpers Burns Byrd Campbell Chafee Cleland Coats Cochran Collins Conrad Coverdell Craig D'Amato Daschle DeWine Dodd Domenici Dorgan Durbin Enzi Faircloth Feingold Feinstein Ford Frist Gorton Graham Gramm Grams Grassley Gregg Hagel Harkin Hatch Helms Hutchinson Hutchison Inhofe Inouye Jeffords Johnson Kennedy Kerrey Kerry Kohl Kyl Landrieu Lautenberg Leahy Levin Lieberman Lott Lugar Mack McCain McConnell Mikulski Moynihan [[Page S10949]] Murkowski Murray Nickles Reed Reid Roberts Rockefeller Roth Santorum Sarbanes Sessions Shelby Smith (NH) Smith (OR) Snowe Specter Stevens Thomas Thompson Thurmond Torricelli Warner Wyden NAYS--1 Robb NOT VOTING--7 Ashcroft Boxer Glenn Hollings Kempthorne Moseley-Braun Wellstone The bill (H.R. 4057), as amended, was passed, as follows: Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 4057) entitled ``An Act to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.'', do pass with the following amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF SECTIONS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act of 1998''. (b) Table of Sections.--The table of sections for this Act is as follows: Sec. 1. Short title; table of sections. Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS Sec. 101. Federal Aviation Administration operations. Sec. 102. Air navigation facilities and equipment. Sec. 103. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 104. Reprogramming notification requirement. Sec. 105. Airport security program. Sec. 106. Contract tower programs Sec. 107. Automated surface observation system stations. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS Sec. 201. Removal of the cap on discretionary fund. Sec. 202. Innovative use of airport grant funds. Sec. 203. Matching share. Sec. 204. Increase in apportionment for noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 205. Technical amendments. Sec. 206. Repeal of period of applicability. Sec. 207. Report on efforts to implement capacity enhancements. Sec. 208. Prioritization of discretionary projects. Sec. 209. Public notice before grant assurance requirement waived. Sec. 210. Definition of public aircraft. Sec. 211. Terminal development costs. Sec. 212. Airfield pavement conditions. Sec. 213. Discretionary grants. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW Sec. 301. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years. Sec. 302. Foreign carriers eligible for waiver under Airport Noise and Capacity Act. Sec. 303. Government and industry consortia. Sec. 304. Implementation of Article 83 Bis of the Chicago Convention. Sec. 305. Foreign aviation services authority. Sec. 306. Flexibility to perform criminal history record checks; technical amendments to Pilot Records Improvement Act. Sec. 307. Aviation insurance program amendments. Sec. 308. Technical corrections to civil penalty provisions. Sec. 309. Criminal penalty for pilots operating in air transportation without an airman's certificate. Sec. 310. Nondiscriminatory interline interconnection requirements. TITLE IV--TITLE 49 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS Sec. 401. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 106(g). Sec. 402. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 44909. TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS Sec. 501. Oversight of FAA response to year 2000 problem. Sec. 502. Cargo collision avoidance systems deadline. Sec. 503. Runway safety areas; precision approach path indicators. Sec. 504. Airplane emergency locators. Sec. 505. Counterfeit aircraft parts. Sec. 506. FAA may fine unruly passengers. Sec. 507. Higher standards for handicapped access. Sec. 508. Conveyances of United States Government land. Sec. 509. Flight operations quality assurance rules. Sec. 510. Wide area augmentation system. Sec. 511. Regulation of Alaska air guides. Sec. 512. Application of FAA regulations. Sec. 513. Human factors program. Sec. 514. Independent validation of FAA costs and allocations. Sec. 515. Whistleblower protection for FAA employees. Sec. 516. Report on modernization of oceanic ATC system. Sec. 517. Report on air transportation oversight system. Sec. 518. Recycling of EIS. Sec. 519. Protection of employees providing air safety information. Sec. 520. Improvements to air navigation facilities. Sec. 521. Denial of airport access to certain air carriers. Sec. 522. Tourism. Sec. 523. Equivalency of FAA and EU safety standards. Sec. 524. Sense of the Senate on property taxes on public-use airports. Sec. 525. Federal Aviation Administration Personnel Management System. Sec. 526. Aircraft and aviation component repair and maintenance advisory panel. Sec. 527. Report on enhanced domestic airline competition. Sec. 528. Aircraft situational display data. Sec. 529. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Charlotte-London route. Sec. 530. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Cleveland-London route. Sec. 531. Allocation of Trust Fund funding. Sec. 532. Taos Pueblo and Blue Lakes Wilderness Area demonstration project. Sec. 533. Airline marketing disclosure. Sec. 534. Certain air traffice control towers. Sec. 535. Compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act. TITLE VI--AVIATION COMPETITION PROMOTION Sec. 601. Purpose. Sec. 602. Establishment of small community aviation development program. Sec. 603. Community-carrier air service program. Sec. 604. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 605. Marketing practices. Sec. 606. Slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. Sec. 607. Exemptions to perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Sec. 608. Additional slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Sec. 609. Consumer notification of e-ticket expiration dates. Sec. 610. Joint venture agreements. Sec. 611. Regional air service incentive options. Sec. 612. GAO study of air transportation needs. TITLE VII--NATIONAL PARK OVERFLIGHTS Sec. 701. Findings. Sec. 702. Air tour management plans for national parks. Sec. 703. Advisory group. Sec. 704. Overflight fee report. Sec. 705. Prohibition of commercial air tours over the Rocky Mountain National Park. TITLE VIII--CENTENNIAL OF FLIGHT COMMEMORATION Sec. 801. Short title. Sec. 802. Findings. Sec. 803. Establishment. Sec. 804. Membership. Sec. 805. Duties. Sec. 806. Powers. Sec. 807. Staff and support services. Sec. 808. Contributions. Sec. 809. Exclusive right to name, logos, emblems, seals, and marks. Sec. 810. Reports. Sec. 811. Audit of financial transactions. Sec. 812. Advisory board. Sec. 813. Definitions. Sec. 814. Termination. Sec. 815. Authorization of appropriations. TITLE IX--EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY Sec. 901. Extension of expenditure authority. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS SEC. 101. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS. (a) In General.--Section 106(k) is amended to read as follows: ``(k) Authorization of Appropriations for Operations.-- ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for operations of the Administration $5,631,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and $5,784,000,000 for fiscal year 2000. Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1999, not more than $9,100,000 shall be used to support air safety efforts through payment of United States membership obligations, to be paid as soon as practicable. ``(2) Authorized expenditures.--Of the amounts appropriated under paragraph (1) $450,000 may be used for wildlife hazard mitigation measures and management of the wildlife strike database of the Federal Aviation Administration. ``(3) University consortium.--There are authorized to be appropriated not more than $9,100,000 for the 3 fiscal year period beginning with fiscal year 1999 to support a university consortium established to provide an air safety and security management certificate program, working cooperatively with the Federal Aviation Administration and United States air carriers. Funds authorized under this paragraph-- ``(A) may not be used for the construction of a building or other facility; and ``(B) shall be awarded on the basis of open competition.''. (b) Coordination.--The authority granted the Secretary under section 41717 of title 49, United States Code, does not affect the Secretary's authority under any other provision of law. [[Page S10950]] SEC. 102. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT. (a) In General.--Section 48101(a) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the following: ``(1) for fiscal year 1999-- ``(A) $222,800,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: en route programs; ``(B) $74,700,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: terminal programs; ``(C) $108,000,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: landing and navigational aids; ``(D) $17,790,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: research, test, and evaluation equipment and facilities programs; ``(E) $391,358,300 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: en route programs; ``(F) $492,315,500 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: terminal programs; ``(G) $38,764,400 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: flight services programs; ``(H) $50,500,000 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: other ATC facilities programs; ``(I) $162,400,000 for non-ATC facilities and equipment programs; ``(J) $14,500,000 for training and equipment facilities programs; ``(K) $280,800,000 for mission support programs; ``(L) $235,210,000 for personnel and related expenses; and ``(2) $2,189,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.''. (b) Continuation of ILS Inventory Program.--Section 44502(a)(4)(B) is amended-- (1) by striking ``fiscal years 1995 and 1996'' and inserting ``fiscal years 1999 and 2000''; and (2) by striking ``acquisition,'' and inserting ``acquisition under new or existing contracts,''. (c) Life-Cycle Cost Estimates.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish life-cycle cost estimates for any air traffic control modernization project the total life-cycle costs of which equal or exceed $50,000,000. SEC. 103. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. (a) Extension and Authorization.--Section 48103 is amended by-- (1) striking ``September 30, 1996,'' and inserting ``September 30, 1998,''; and (2) striking ``$2,280,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1997, and $4,627,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1998.'' and inserting ``$2,410,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1999 and $4,885,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2000.''. (b) Project Grant Authority.--Section 47104(c) is amended by striking ``1998,'' and inserting ``2002,''. SEC. 104. REPROGRAMMING NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. Before reprogramming any amounts appropriated under section 106(k), 48101(a), or 48103 of title 49, United States Code, for which notification of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives is required, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit a written explanation of the proposed reprogramming to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. SEC. 105. AIRPORT SECURITY PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Chapter 471 (as amended by section 202(a) of this Act) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section: ``Sec. 47136. Airport security program ``(a) General Authority.--To improve security at public airports in the United States, the Secretary of Transportation shall carry out not less than 1 project to test and evaluate innovative airport security systems and related technology. ``(b) Priority.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall give the highest priority to a request from an eligible sponsor for a grant to undertake a project that-- ``(1) evaluates and tests the benefits of innovative airport security systems or related technology, including explosives detection systems, for the purpose of improving airport and aircraft physical security and access control; and ``(2) provides testing and evaluation of airport security systems and technology in an operational, test bed environment. ``(c) Matching Share.--Notwithstanding section 47109, the United States Government's share of allowable project costs for a project under this section is 100 percent. ``(d) Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary may establish such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines appropriate for carrying out a project under this section, including terms and conditions relating to the form and content of a proposal for a project, project assurances, and schedule of payments. ``(e) Eligible Sponsor Defined.--In this section, the term `eligible sponsor' means a nonprofit corporation composed of a consortium of public and private persons, including a sponsor of a primary airport, with the necessary engineering and technical expertise to successfully conduct the testing and evaluation of airport and aircraft related security systems. ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--Of the amounts made available to the Secretary under section 47115 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall make available not less than $5,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for such chapter (as amended by section 202(b) of this Act) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47135 the following: ``47136. Airport security program.''. SEC. 106. CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM. There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation such sums as may be necessary to carry out the Federal Contract Tower Program under title 49, United States Code. SEC. 107. AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVATION SYSTEM STATIONS. The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall not terminate human weather observers for Automated Surface Observation System stations until-- (1) the Secretary of Transportation determines that the System provides consistent reporting of changing meteorological conditions and notifies the Congress in writing of that determination; and (2) 60 days have passed since the report was submitted to the Congress. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS SEC. 201. REMOVAL OF THE CAP ON DISCRETIONARY FUND. Section 47115(g) is amended by striking paragraph (4). SEC. 202. INNOVATIVE USE OF AIRPORT GRANT FUNDS. (a) Codification and Improvement of 1996 Program.-- Subchapter I of chapter 471 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 47135. Innovative financing techniques ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation is authorized to carry out a demonstration program under which the Secretary may approve applications under this subchapter for not more than 20 projects for which grants received under the subchapter may be used to implement innovative financing techniques. ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the demonstration program shall be to provide information on the use of innovative financing techniques for airport development projects. ``(c) Limitation--In no case shall the implementation of an innovative financing technique under this section be used in a manner giving rise to a direct or indirect guarantee of any airport debt instrument by the United States Government. ``(d) Innovative Financing Technique Defined.--In this section, the term `innovative financing technique' includes methods of financing projects that the Secretary determines may be beneficial to airport development, including-- ``(1) payment of interest; ``(2) commercial bond insurance and other credit enhancement associated with airport bonds for eligible airport development; and ``(3) flexible non-Federal matching requirements.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47134 the following: ``47135. Innovative financing techniques.''. SEC. 203. MATCHING SHARE. Section 47109(a)(2) is amended by inserting ``not more than'' before ``90 percent''. SEC. 204. INCREASE IN APPORTIONMENT FOR NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. Section 47117(e)(1)(A) is amended by striking ``31'' each time it appears and substituting ``35''. SEC. 205. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. (a) Use of Apportionments for Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.--Section 47114(d)(3) is amended to read as follows: ``(3) An amount apportioned under paragraph (2) of this subsection for airports in Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico may be made available by the Secretary for any public airport in those respective jurisdictions.''. (b) Supplemental Apportionment for Alaska.--Section 47114(e) is amended-- (1) by striking ``Alternative'' in the subsection caption and inserting ``Supplemental''; (2) in paragraph (1) by-- (A) striking ``Instead of apportioning amounts for airports in Alaska under'' and inserting ``Notwithstanding''; and (B) striking ``those airports'' and inserting ``airports in Alaska''; and (3) striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: ``(3) An amount apportioned under this subsection may be used for any public airport in Alaska.''. (c) Repeal of Apportionment Limitation on Commercial Service Airports in Alaska.--Section 47117 is amended by striking subsection (f) and redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (f) and (g), respectively. (d) Discretionary Fund Definition.-- (1) Section 47115 is amended-- (A) by striking ``25'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``12.5''; and (B) by striking the second sentence in subsection (b). (2) Section 47116 is amended-- (A) by striking ``75'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``87.5''; (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) in subsection (b) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and inserting before subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, the following: ``(1) one-seventh for grants for projects at small hub airports (as defined in section 41731 of this title); and ``(2) the remaining amounts based on the following:''. (e) Continuation of Project Funding.--Section 47108 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(e) Change in Airport Status.--If the status of a primary airport changes to a nonprimary airport at a time when a development project under a multiyear agreement under subsection (a) is not yet completed, the project shall remain eligible for funding from discretionary funds under section 47115 of this title at the funding level and under the terms provided by the agreement, subject to the availability of funds.''. [[Page S10951]] (f) Grant Eligibility for Private Reliever Airports.-- Section 47102(17)(B) is amended by-- (1) striking ``or'' at the end of clause (i) and redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and (2) inserting after clause (i) the following: ``(ii) a privately-owned airport that, as a reliever airport, received Federal aid for airport development prior to October 9, 1996, but only if the Administrator issues revised administrative guidance after July 1, 1998, for the designation of reliever airports; or''. (g) Reliever Airports Not Eligible for Letters of Intent.-- Section 47110(e)(1) is amended by striking ``or reliever''. (h) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers.--Section 40117(e)(2) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in subparagraph (B); (2) by striking ``payment.'' in subparagraph (C) and inserting ``payment; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(D) in Alaska aboard an aircraft having a seating capacity of less than 20 passengers.''. (i) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers or for Service to Airports in Isolated Communities.--Section 40117(i) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (1); (2) by striking ``transportation.'' in paragraph (2)(D) and inserting ``transportation; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(3) may permit a public agency to request that collection of a passenger facility fee be waived for-- ``(A) passengers enplaned by any class of air carrier or foreign air carrier if the number of passengers enplaned by the carriers in the class constitutes not more than one percent of the total number of passengers enplaned annually at the airport at which the fee is imposed; or ``(B) passengers enplaned on a flight to an airport-- ``(i) that has fewer than 2,500 passenger boardings each year and receives scheduled passenger service; or ``(ii) in a community which has a population of less than 10,000 and is not connected by a land highway or vehicular way to the land-connected National Highway System within a State.''. (j) Use of the Word ``gift'' and Priority for Airports in Surplus Property Disposal.-- (1) Section 47151 is amended-- (A) by striking ``give'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``convey to''; (B) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (a)(2) and inserting ``conveyance''; (C) by striking ``giving'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveying''; (D) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveyance''; and (E) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(d) Priority for Public Airports.--Except for requests from another Federal agency, a department, agency, or instrumentality of the Executive Branch of the United States Government shall give priority to a request by a public agency (as defined in section 47102 of this title) for surplus property described in subsection (a) of this section for use at a public airport.''. (2) Section 47152 is amended-- (A) by striking ``gifts'' in the section caption and inserting ``conveyances''; and (B) by striking ``gift'' in the first sentence and inserting ``conveyance''. (3) The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by striking the item relating to section 47152 and inserting the following: ``47152. Terms of conveyances.''. (4) Section 47153(a) is amended-- (A) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1) and inserting ``conveyance''; (B) by striking ``given'' in paragraph (1)(A) and inserting ``conveyed''; and (C) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1)(B) and inserting ``conveyance''. (k) Apportionment for Cargo Only Airports.--Section 47114(c)(2)(A) is amended by striking ``2.5 percent'' and inserting ``3 percent''. (l) Flexibility in Pavement Design Standards.--Section 47114(d) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(4) The Secretary may permit the use of State highway specifications for airfield pavement construction using funds made available under this subsection at nonprimary airports with runways of 5,000 feet or shorter serving aircraft that do not exceed 60,000 pounds gross weight, if the Secretary determines that-- ``(A) safety will not be negatively affected; and ``(B) the life of the pavement will not be shorter than it would be if constructed using Administration standards. An airport may not seek funds under this subchapter for runway rehabilitation or reconstruction of any such airfield pavement constructed using State highway specifications for a period of 10 years after construction is completed.''. SEC. 206. REPEAL OF PERIOD OF APPLICABILITY. Section 125 of the Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 1996 (49 U.S.C. 47114 note) is repealed. SEC. 207. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CAPACITY ENHANCEMENTS. Within 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on efforts by the Federal Aviation Administration to implement capacity enhancements and improvements, such as precision runway monitoring systems, and the time frame for implementation of such enhancements and improvements. SEC. 208. PRIORITIZATION OF DISCRETIONARY PROJECTS. Section 47120 is amended by-- (1) inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before ``In''; and (2) adding at the end thereof the following: ``(b) Discretionary Funding To Be Used for Higher Priority Projects.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall discourage airport sponsors and airports from using entitlement funds for lower priority projects by giving lower priority to discretionary projects submitted by airport sponsors and airports that have used entitlement funds for projects that have a lower priority than the projects for which discretionary funds are being requested.''. SEC. 209. PUBLIC NOTICE BEFORE GRANT ASSURANCE REQUIREMENT WAIVED. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Secretary of Transportation may not waive any assurance required under section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, that requires property to be used for aeronautical purposes unless the Secretary provides notice to the public not less than 30 days before issuing any such waiver. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary to issue a waiver of any assurance required under that section. (b) Effective Date.--This section applies to any request filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 210. DEFINITION OF PUBLIC AIRCRAFT. Section 40102(a)(37)(B)(ii) is amended-- (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of subclause (I); (2) by striking the ``States.'' in subclause (II) and inserting ``States; or''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(III) transporting persons aboard the aircraft if the aircraft is operated for the purpose of prisoner transport.''. SEC. 211. TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT COSTS. Section 40117 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(j) Shell of Terminal Building.--In order to enable additional air service by an air carrier with less than 50 percent of the scheduled passenger traffic at an airport, the Secretary may consider the shell of a terminal building (including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and aircraft fueling facilities adjacent to an airport terminal building to be an eligible airport-related project under subsection (a)(3)(E).''. SEC. 212. AIRFIELD PAVEMENT CONDITIONS. (a) Evaluation of Options.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall evaluate options for improving the quality of information available to the Administration on airfield pavement conditions for airports that are part of the national air transportation system, including-- (1) improving the existing runway condition information contained in the Airport Safety Data Program by reviewing and revising rating criteria and providing increased training for inspectors; (2) requiring such airports to submit pavement condition index information as part of their airport master plan or as support in applications for airport improvement grants; and (3) requiring all such airports to submit pavement condition index information on a regular basis and using this information to create a pavement condition database that could be used in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of project applications and forecasting anticipated pavement needs. (b) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall transmit a report, containing an evaluation of such options, to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 213. DISCRETIONARY GRANTS. Notwithstanding any limitation on the amount of funds that may be expended for grants for noise abatement, if any funds made available under section 48103 of title 49, United States Code, remain available at the end of the fiscal year for which those funds were made available, and are not allocated under section 47115 of that title, or under any other provision relating to the awarding of discretionary grants from unobligated funds made available under section 48103 of that title, the Secretary of Transportation may use those funds to make discretionary grants for noise abatement activities. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW SEC. 301. SEVERABLE SERVICES CONTRACTS FOR PERIODS CROSSING FISCAL YEARS. (a) Chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years ``(a) In General.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may enter into a contract for procurement of severable services for a period that begins in one fiscal year and ends in the next fiscal year if (without regard to any option to extend the period of the contract) the contract period does not exceed one year. ``(b) Obligation of Funds.--Funds made available for a fiscal year may be obligated for the total amount of a contract entered into under the authority of subsection (a) of this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years.''. SEC. 302. FOREIGN CARRIERS ELIGIBLE FOR WAIVER UNDER AIRPORT NOISE AND CAPACITY ACT. The first sentence of section 4

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All articles in Senate section

WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998
(Senate - September 25, 1998)

Text of this article available as: TXT PDF [Pages S10945-S10969] WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998 The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Allard). Under the previous order, the Senate will now resume consideration of H.R. 4057, which the clerk will report. The assistant legislative clerk read as follows: A bill (H.R. 4057) to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes. The Senate resumed consideration of the bill. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Under the previous order, there will now be 20 minutes for debate, equally divided between the majority and minority leaders, prior to the vote on passage. section 606 Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would like to point out to the Chairman that Section 606 contains a provision that appears to grant priority status to a single carrier at Chicago O'Hare for the return of slots previously withdrawn for international service. If it is the intention of this provision to give one carrier at O'Hare preference in slot allocation, the Senate conferees must act in conference to remove this provision. This provision appears to hand over roughly 35 slots that the dominant carrier at Chicago previously sought to obtain from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) but was twice denied. This provision would advantage a single carrier, which knew of the priority of slot withdrawal and should have planned its hub operations to take into account the effects. It strengthens a single carrier's position at O'Hare, a situation which the Congress should not legislate. As this legislation goes to conference, the Senate is relying on the conferees to ensure Congress is even-handed in these matters. Mr. McCAIN. I understand the Senator's concerns, which others have raised as well. I appreciate the Senator from Oklahoma expressing these views. death on the high seas act Mr. WYDEN. I would like to engage in a colloquy with the gentleman from Arizona, the distinguished Chairman of the Commerce Committee, concerning provisions included in the FAA reauthorization bill to reform the Death on the High Seas Act. Mr. McCAIN. I would be happy to engage the gentleman from Oregon in a colloquy. Mr. WYDEN. I thank the Chairman. As the Chairman knows, one of my constituents, John Sleavin, lost his brother and nephew and niece under tragic circumstances when their pleasure boat was run down on the high seas by a Korean freighter. The accident was especially tragic because after the collision there was no attempt by the Korean freighter to rescue the family or even to notify the authorities about the collision. Mr. Chairman, you were very gracious to me in allowing my constituent to testify before the Commerce Committee on the need to reform the Death on the High Seas Act (DOHSA) to provide just compensation for victims like my constituent. I believe he provided compelling testimony on the need for reforming DOHSA for [[Page S10946]] maritime accidents. The FAA reauthorization bill reforms DOHSA but only for aviation accidents. I would like to ask the Chairman whether he will commit to work with me to reform DOHSA comprehensively so the reforms cover both aviation and maritime accidents. Mr. McCAIN. Yes, I am committed to work with the Senator from Oregon and other Members who have an interest in this issue to explore this issue further and to work to reform DOHSA to appropriately provide victims of maritime accidents the same rights to recover for loss of their loved ones as are provided to victims of aviation accidents. (At the request of Mr. McCAIN, the following statement was ordered to be printed in the Record.) permimeter rule exemptions Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, the distinguished senior Senator from California, Senator Feinstein, and I would like to ask the Chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation a question concerning the perimeter rule exemptions that are contained in S. 2279, the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act. Mr. McCAIN. I will be delighted to respond to questions from the Senators from California. Mrs. BOXER. We thank you. We first want to thank the members of the Commerce Committee for working so diligently to produce a comprehensive FAA reauthorization bill, and for giving us the opportunity to address a provision in this bill which affects the people of our state and many of the other western states. Mrs. FEINSTEIN. The FAA reauthorization bill will provide important and necessary funding to our nation's aviation system. It is crucial that we work to pass this legislation before the end of this session. But, there is one provision in this bill that we must resolve before we can go forward. The exemptions to the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport Perimeter Rule has come to our attention as a section of this bill which opens the door to an array of concerns. The change in the Perimeter Rule will allow for six new daily round trip flights between Reagan National Airport and airports beyond the 1,250-mile perimeter. We have some questions as to who will be served if these exemptions are enacted by Congress. We would like to see the highest level of service provided to the most number of passengers. Do you believe that this Perimeter Rule exemption would prevent airlines from competing to provide the greatest amount of service to the most number of passengers? Mr. McCAIN. This provision included by the committee is intended to implement a process that will provide numerous domestic cities, including small and medium-sized committees, with improved service. However, the provision allows for competition for routes to larger communities. Mrs. BOXER. I ask the distinguished chairman to yield to a further question. Mr. McCAIN. I will be happy to yield. Mrs. BOXER. Specifically, would carriers be prevented from competing for routes from National Airport to Los Angeles or San Jose or other California airports under this bill? Mr. McCAIN. No. As long as carriers can demonstrate that their routes provide domestic network benefits and increase competition in multiple markets, they may compete for these non-stop routes, including select routes to California airports. Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I rise to express my support for the Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation Improvement Act of 1998. As a member of the Commerce Aviation Subcommittee, it has been my privilege to work with Senator Ford on this and other bills to improve the quality and safety of air transportation in this country, and I believe it is a fitting tribute that we name this bill in his honor. I appreciate the assistance I received from the Senator from Kentucky and from my good friend, the Chairman, Senator McCain, in adding three amendments to this bill which I believe will help improve safety, quality and access. I will vote for this bill because on the whole, it will benefit our airports and air travelers. But I do want to make it clear that I do not support sections 606 and 607. These sections will be detrimental to commercial air service to Maine and the other markets within the perimeter rule. While I will not be offering an amendment to strike these two sections, I would encourage the conferees to seriously consider the detrimental effects these sections will have on air service. Section 606 will negatively alter the perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in a way that jeopardizes air service to Maine. It is my opinion that expanding the number of slots would clearly result in more negatives than positives. Due to the current Federal Aviation Administration guidelines on the distance required between aircraft, adding flights at National airport will require air traffic controllers to chose between staying on schedule or sacrificing safety. If more flights are added through the creation of these new slots in Section 606, the controller will have to place these flights more closely together in order to prevent delays in arrivals and departures. By decreasing the spacing of the flights in and out of Reagan National, it will create an unsafe situation by subjecting the flights to the jet wash, or turbulence, of flights in front of them. Such exposure to the jet wash, especially at take-off creates a terrible safety situation. One which will jeopardize lives of the traveling public. I am also concerned about the way that section 606 distributes the new slots are distributed. Specifically, the section gives priority consideration to air carriers who have already had slots withdrawn from them. This will result in the majority of new slots to go to one dominate carrier and further increase already overpriced business airfares. Further, this language will overturn a March 1998, Department of Transportation decision concerning the distribution of slots. I would also like to note my opposition to section 607, which modifies the perimeter rule. It is well established that the perimeter rule maintains a delicate balance between National Airport and Dulles International Airport. Under the perimeter rule, Dulles has flourished as an international gateway, and National has provided regional service to states such as Maine. I believe that in the long run, violating the perimeter rule will hurt travelers from Maine. Eroding the perimeter rule will bring long- haul flights to National--short haul flights, in turn, will be rerouted to Dulles or eliminated altogether. Ironically, violating the perimeter rule would also hurt those underserved communities the legislation is designed to assist. Modifying the perimeter rule could encourage airlines at National to substitute long-haul flights for existing service to smaller communities within the perimeter. I believe that the amendment offered by the Senator from Virginia, Mr. Robb, which I have cosponsored, will mitigate some of the potential impact of modifying the perimeter rule by making it incumbent on the Secretary of Transportation to ensure that these changes will not reduce travel options for communities served by small and medium sized airports within the perimeter and not result in meaningful increases in travel delays. I also would want to note the Dorgan-Snowe amendment that was adopted and to thank the Chairman and Ranking member for their helping in working through the language. The Dorgan-Snowe amendment would facilitate air service to under-served communities and encourage airline competition through non-discriminatory interconnection requirements by permitting the Secretary of Transportation to require major carriers to enter into agreements with new entrant air carriers which serve rural or underserved markets. This amendment will give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to require an air carrier that serves an essential airport facility, such as a major hub, and has an exclusive--almost monopolistic--agreement with another airline which serves an under- served market to enter into a joint fare or interline agreement with a new air carrier, trying to enter the underserved market so that the people living in the rural or underserved area will have a competitive alternative and not be beholden to one airline. This would allow a new airline to fly from a rural or underserved market to a hub airport which is dominated by a [[Page S10947]] major carrier and permit the traveler to continue to another market on the megacarrier without having to purchase a second ticket or worrying if their bags will be transferred to the megacarrier. I want to make it perfectly clear. States which are primarily rural or have a large number of underserved markets will benefit from this amendment. Opponents of this amendment argue that this is re- regulation. Nothing is further from the truth. Senator Dorgan and I are establishing a mechanism which will allow new entrant carriers to be able to compete with the mega air carriers. Only if the Secretary believes that underserved markets will benefit and that competition will result, will an interline agreement be sanctioned. It is interesting to note that when the commercial air carrier industry was deregulated, there were 19 domestic trunk-line and local service carriers. Of those 19, only 5 (American, Continental, Delta, Northwest, and United) airlines are still in existence. At the time of deregulation, eight of the 15 airlines controlled 80% of the market share. Today, the seven largest carriers control more than 90% of the market. Some say that this is positive result of deregulation, claiming that deregulation was designed to promote a ``survival of the fittest'' type industry and promote profitability. Unfortunately, deregulation has actually hurt the vast majority of communities in the United States and the passengers who travel from small and medium sized markets. According to a Government Accounting Office report, the full benefits of deregulation have yet to be realized because of problems with entering the markets dominated by a major airline. As a result of deregulation, consumers are actually paying far more for air travel. In fact, a doubling of an airline's market share on a particular route translates into a price increase of almost nine percent. Today, as a result of the lack of competition at small and medium sized markets, it is cheaper to fly from Washington, D.C. to Mexico City on an unrestricted ticket than it is to fly from Washington to Portland, Maine. Our amendment would require carriers who enter into interline and joint fare agreements with other carriers, like those which have already been proposed and implemented on a limited basis by the megacarriers, to provide these agreements on a non-discriminatory basis to carriers seeking to provide service between an underserved market and a large hub airport in which one carrier has market dominance. Open access like that proposed in this amendment is nothing new. In fact Congress, just two and one-half years ago, approved legislation with similar requirements. When Congress de-regulated the telecommunications industry, the fundamental element to promote competition in that legislation was the requirement that the incumbent carriers would be required, by law, to allow their competitors to interconnect into their network. In a situation analogous to the telecommunications market, in order to develop competition in the local market, we must impose, by law, the requirement that the dominant megacarriers, allow its competitors to interconnect into their networks. By adopting this amendment, new entrant carriers will be allowed to interconnect into the flight network of a major carrier which dominates a hub airport. In light of what has been required of other industries under the goal of promoting competition, this amendment makes sense if one wants to see a competitive airline industry. The only way to allow for competition in this environment is to impose conditions on the major carriers to cooperate with their competitors. Interline and joint fares are necessary to ensure that the dominant carriers will not kill potential competitors. Through the adoption of this amendment, much like the principle underlying the local competition in the telecommunications industry, we will be able to provide more choices, lower costs, and better service to the majority of markets across the country. permanent ban on rocky mountain national park commercial tour overflights Mr. CAMPBELL. Mr. President, as I cast my vote in favor of final passage of the Federal Aviation Administration's Reauthorization bill, S.2279, I am pleased to bring attention to one special amendment to this bill. The amendment which my colleague Senator Allard and I offered will make the FAA's temporary ban on commercial tour overflights permanent. I have been working toward permanently banning commercial tour overflights over Rocky Mountain National Park for many years now, and am pleased to see this provision pass the Senate. As I cast my vote today, Coloradans will be one big step closer to being assured that they will be able to enjoy the scenic beauty of Rocky Mountain National Park without the noisy disturbances of commercial tour overflights. At this time I want to thank Senator McCain, who as the Chairman of the Commerce Committee, played a critical role in getting this amendment successfully included in the FAA bill. Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, section 606 subparagraph (6) of S. 2279 will have the unintended consequences of limiting competition at Chicago's O'Hare airport. I have spoke at length with Senators Lott, McCain, and Ford regarding my concerns with this provision and understand that it may be possible to correct this problem in conference. I hope that is the case. This provision will allow those carriers who have lost landing/ takeoff slots to foreign air carriers at Chicago's O'Hare to get them back. On the surface this seems very fair; however, it will in fact unfairly favor the largest slot holder at O'Hare at the expense of other competitors and new entrants. Because the dominant carrier at O'Hare has lost the most slots, it stands to gain the most. The result will be less competition rather than more at O'Hare. Mr. President, by way of further explanation on this issue, I would like to submit for the Record a letter Senator Nickles and I sent to Senators Lott, Daschle, McCain, Hollings, Shelby, and Lautenberg describing our concerns and asking for their assistance in correcting the problem. Knowing that the managers of the bill have worked very hard to increase competition, I am certain they share my concerns regarding market domination at O'Hare. In my discussions with Senator Lott, he has assured me that he has no position on section 606 and would not object to this section being removed in conference. I ask unanimous consent that the letter be printed in the Record. United States Senate, Washington, DC, September 23, 1998. Hon. Trent Lott, Majority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Tom Daschle, Minority Leader, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. John McCain, Chairman, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Ernest F. Hollings, Ranking Member, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard C. Shelby, Chairman, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Hon. Frank R. Lautenberg, Minority Member, Subcommittee on Transportation, Senate Appropriations Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. Dear Senators: We are writing to express our strong opposition to a proposal that would increase major airline dominance at a key hub airport while at the same time reversing a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) decision and undercutting our international obligations. Specifically, a provision in Section 606 of FAA Reauthorization (S. 2279) would hand over roughly 35 slots at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport to its largest slot holder, United Airlines, while restricting access at that hub to its competitors and new entrants. It is our understanding that this special interest provision is being adviced for inclusion in other pieces of ``must-pass'' legislation. Such special interest legislation benefiting one airline will no doubt lead to less competition and higher airfares. We urge you to foster greater airline competition by deleting this special interest provision from S. 2279 and preventing it from being attached to other legislation. Late last year, United petitioned FAA on just this issue and was rejected soundly. United sought priority for any future slot exemptions claiming they would replace the 35 slots withdrawn under FAA regulations and used by foreign carriers in order to meet our bilateral commitments. In a March 1998 order, FAA found that the public interest [[Page S10948]] would be best served by continuing to meet our aviation bilateral agreement commitments to international air transportation using the slots withdrawn from United and American Airlines at O'Hare, while using the slot exemptions to increase competition at that key airport. The priority by which slots were to be withdrawn was well known. United chose not to invest in better priority slots to protect its schedule and slot holdings. In rejecting United's request, FAA found: ``Since 1993 the FAA withdraws, on average, 31 air carrier slots from United, which is approximately four percent of United's domestic slot base. These slots are withdrawn based on a priority numbering system that was established by random lottery in 1986. Slots having the lowest numbers are most vulnerable to withdrawal, regardless of the slot holder. As articulated in our previous denial to United concerning this issue, United made its selection or acquisition of slots with vulnerable withdrawal priority and planned its hub operations fully knowing the effects of the rule's operations might have upon them . . . United knew, or should have known, that these slots were vulnerable in case of withdrawal.'' We applaud the Commerce Committee's efforts to fashion a bill that promotes greater airline competition aimed at producing lower airfares and improved service in all communities. Accordingly, we respectfully urge your support for striking this provision of section 606, the effect of which is directly opposite the intent of S. 2279 and other procompetitive aviation legislation. Sincerely, Jim Inhofe, Don Nickles. Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I support H.R. 4057, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act and I commend my colleagues on the bipartisan and expeditious manner in which this important legislation was adopted by the Senate. This bill will reauthorize the programs of the FAA for two years, including the Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which is due to expire on September 30. The purpose of the AIP is to provide grants to fund the capital needs of the nation's commercial airports and general aviation facilities. Without this important FAA reauthorization legislation to continue the contract authority for the AIP, the FAA would not be able to distribute airport grants that are vitally important to not only the State which I am honored to represent, West Virginia, but also the entire nation. A major focus of H.R. 4057 is promoting competition and quality air service which, Mr. President, the State of West Virginia needs desperately. Since the deregulation of the airlines, West Virginia travelers have suffered from increased airfares and greatly reduced service. Consequently, the inefficiencies in the present air transportation system and the high costs have denied air passengers and air freight shippers in West Virginia reasonable access to the national and international air transportation system. Mother Nature has blessed the State of West Virginia with a beautiful but most unforgiving terrain. Steeply undulating mountains and deep gorges are punctuated by sweetly serene valleys and hollows, and West Virginia is kind to those who need to travel through the State by automobile. Yet, despite the rigorous terrain of the State, most people have to drive great distances even to catch an airplane for what is usually the first of several stops en route to their final destination. In eastern West Virginia, residents travel to either Dulles or Reagan National Airports in Virginia; in the northern reaches, residents drive to Pennsylvania or Ohio; and in the southern portion of the State, they may have to drive to North Carolina to get to a major hub. Not only is the limited availability of flights and destinations a problem for air travel originating within West Virginia, but so is the exorbitant cost of air transportation to and from the State. For example, a round trip air ticket from Reagan National Airport to Yeager Airport in Charleston can cost almost $700. That is almost $700 to travel under 400 miles-- and when you are done, you are only as far away as Washington, D.C. Leaving from Washington, $700 can take you to Europe and back! This does not make sense to most hardworking West Virginians, and it discourages other travelers from visiting to experience West Virginia's many wonders for themselves. With the advent of the 21st Century just around the corner, the West Virginia air travelers and businesses that rely on air freight will welcome this legislation. West Virginia's expected economic expansion in the 21st century will depend on its ability to compete not only in the national economy, but also in the ever-growing global economy. To successfully compete, quality, affordable, and efficient air transportation is needed to successfully round out West Virginia's increasingly modern infrastructure of highways, railways, and waterways. Mr. President, this bill, H.R. 4057, contains other necessary language to help West Virginia progress into the new millennium. Major provisions of this bill are not only the AIP program, but also the Small Communities Air Service Development Program, and slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. The Small Communities Air Service Development Program will be a four- year, $30 million, small communities grant program. Executed through the Department of Transportation, this program will encourage commercial air service to small communities all over the United States, including those in West Virginia. By providing matching funds of up to 25 percent, a consortia of local communities in West Virginia is expected to compete for the grants of $500,000 per year available per community. It was Thomas Edison who said, ``Restlessness and discontent are the necessities of progress.'' Mr. President, this captures the way that I feel about additional slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service at Ronald Reagan National Airport. I share the concern expressed by the distinguished Senators from the State of Maryland and the Commonwealth of Virginia regarding increased noise pollution in the localities surrounding Reagan National Airport. On the other hand, twelve additional slots to increase traffic between Washington and smaller, non-hub airports increases the likelihood of additional airline traffic to underserved areas like West Virginia. Improved air travel to and from States like West Virginia will be critical to my State's remaining competitive in the future and accessible in the present. Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I yield back the time. Mr. REID. Time is yielded back by this side. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time is yielded back. Mr. STEVENS. Have the yeas and nays been ordered? The PRESIDING OFFICER. The yeas and nays have not been ordered. Mr. STEVENS. I ask for the yeas and nays. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there a sufficient second? There is a sufficient second. The yeas and nays were ordered. The PRESIDING OFFICER. All time having been yielded back, the question is, Shall the bill, H.R. 4057, as amended, pass? The yeas and nays have been ordered. The clerk will call the roll. The assistant legislative clerk called the roll. Mr. NICKLES. I announce that the Senator from Missouri (Mr. Ashcroft) and the Senator from Idaho (Mr. Kempthorne) are necessarily absent. Mr. FORD. I announce that the Senator from California (Mrs. Boxer), the Senator from Ohio (Mr. Glenn), the Senator from South Carolina (Mr. Hollings), the Senator from Illinois (Ms. Moseley-Braun), and the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) are necessarily absent. I further announce that, if present and voting, the Senator from Minnesota (Mr. Wellstone) would vote ``aye.'' The result was announced--yeas 92, nays 1, as follows: [Rollcall Vote No. 288 Leg.] YEAS--92 Abraham Akaka Allard Baucus Bennett Biden Bingaman Bond Breaux Brownback Bryan Bumpers Burns Byrd Campbell Chafee Cleland Coats Cochran Collins Conrad Coverdell Craig D'Amato Daschle DeWine Dodd Domenici Dorgan Durbin Enzi Faircloth Feingold Feinstein Ford Frist Gorton Graham Gramm Grams Grassley Gregg Hagel Harkin Hatch Helms Hutchinson Hutchison Inhofe Inouye Jeffords Johnson Kennedy Kerrey Kerry Kohl Kyl Landrieu Lautenberg Leahy Levin Lieberman Lott Lugar Mack McCain McConnell Mikulski Moynihan [[Page S10949]] Murkowski Murray Nickles Reed Reid Roberts Rockefeller Roth Santorum Sarbanes Sessions Shelby Smith (NH) Smith (OR) Snowe Specter Stevens Thomas Thompson Thurmond Torricelli Warner Wyden NAYS--1 Robb NOT VOTING--7 Ashcroft Boxer Glenn Hollings Kempthorne Moseley-Braun Wellstone The bill (H.R. 4057), as amended, was passed, as follows: Resolved, That the bill from the House of Representatives (H.R. 4057) entitled ``An Act to amend title 49, United States Code, to reauthorize programs of the Federal Aviation Administration, and for other purposes.'', do pass with the following amendment: Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert: SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF SECTIONS. (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Wendell H. Ford National Air Transportation System Improvement Act of 1998''. (b) Table of Sections.--The table of sections for this Act is as follows: Sec. 1. Short title; table of sections. Sec. 2. Amendments to title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS Sec. 101. Federal Aviation Administration operations. Sec. 102. Air navigation facilities and equipment. Sec. 103. Airport planning and development and noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 104. Reprogramming notification requirement. Sec. 105. Airport security program. Sec. 106. Contract tower programs Sec. 107. Automated surface observation system stations. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS Sec. 201. Removal of the cap on discretionary fund. Sec. 202. Innovative use of airport grant funds. Sec. 203. Matching share. Sec. 204. Increase in apportionment for noise compatibility planning and programs. Sec. 205. Technical amendments. Sec. 206. Repeal of period of applicability. Sec. 207. Report on efforts to implement capacity enhancements. Sec. 208. Prioritization of discretionary projects. Sec. 209. Public notice before grant assurance requirement waived. Sec. 210. Definition of public aircraft. Sec. 211. Terminal development costs. Sec. 212. Airfield pavement conditions. Sec. 213. Discretionary grants. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW Sec. 301. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years. Sec. 302. Foreign carriers eligible for waiver under Airport Noise and Capacity Act. Sec. 303. Government and industry consortia. Sec. 304. Implementation of Article 83 Bis of the Chicago Convention. Sec. 305. Foreign aviation services authority. Sec. 306. Flexibility to perform criminal history record checks; technical amendments to Pilot Records Improvement Act. Sec. 307. Aviation insurance program amendments. Sec. 308. Technical corrections to civil penalty provisions. Sec. 309. Criminal penalty for pilots operating in air transportation without an airman's certificate. Sec. 310. Nondiscriminatory interline interconnection requirements. TITLE IV--TITLE 49 TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS Sec. 401. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 106(g). Sec. 402. Restatement of 49 U.S.C. 44909. TITLE V--MISCELLANEOUS Sec. 501. Oversight of FAA response to year 2000 problem. Sec. 502. Cargo collision avoidance systems deadline. Sec. 503. Runway safety areas; precision approach path indicators. Sec. 504. Airplane emergency locators. Sec. 505. Counterfeit aircraft parts. Sec. 506. FAA may fine unruly passengers. Sec. 507. Higher standards for handicapped access. Sec. 508. Conveyances of United States Government land. Sec. 509. Flight operations quality assurance rules. Sec. 510. Wide area augmentation system. Sec. 511. Regulation of Alaska air guides. Sec. 512. Application of FAA regulations. Sec. 513. Human factors program. Sec. 514. Independent validation of FAA costs and allocations. Sec. 515. Whistleblower protection for FAA employees. Sec. 516. Report on modernization of oceanic ATC system. Sec. 517. Report on air transportation oversight system. Sec. 518. Recycling of EIS. Sec. 519. Protection of employees providing air safety information. Sec. 520. Improvements to air navigation facilities. Sec. 521. Denial of airport access to certain air carriers. Sec. 522. Tourism. Sec. 523. Equivalency of FAA and EU safety standards. Sec. 524. Sense of the Senate on property taxes on public-use airports. Sec. 525. Federal Aviation Administration Personnel Management System. Sec. 526. Aircraft and aviation component repair and maintenance advisory panel. Sec. 527. Report on enhanced domestic airline competition. Sec. 528. Aircraft situational display data. Sec. 529. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Charlotte-London route. Sec. 530. To express the sense of the Senate concerning a bilateral agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom regarding Cleveland-London route. Sec. 531. Allocation of Trust Fund funding. Sec. 532. Taos Pueblo and Blue Lakes Wilderness Area demonstration project. Sec. 533. Airline marketing disclosure. Sec. 534. Certain air traffice control towers. Sec. 535. Compensation under the Death on the High Seas Act. TITLE VI--AVIATION COMPETITION PROMOTION Sec. 601. Purpose. Sec. 602. Establishment of small community aviation development program. Sec. 603. Community-carrier air service program. Sec. 604. Authorization of appropriations. Sec. 605. Marketing practices. Sec. 606. Slot exemptions for nonstop regional jet service. Sec. 607. Exemptions to perimeter rule at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. Sec. 608. Additional slot exemptions at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Sec. 609. Consumer notification of e-ticket expiration dates. Sec. 610. Joint venture agreements. Sec. 611. Regional air service incentive options. Sec. 612. GAO study of air transportation needs. TITLE VII--NATIONAL PARK OVERFLIGHTS Sec. 701. Findings. Sec. 702. Air tour management plans for national parks. Sec. 703. Advisory group. Sec. 704. Overflight fee report. Sec. 705. Prohibition of commercial air tours over the Rocky Mountain National Park. TITLE VIII--CENTENNIAL OF FLIGHT COMMEMORATION Sec. 801. Short title. Sec. 802. Findings. Sec. 803. Establishment. Sec. 804. Membership. Sec. 805. Duties. Sec. 806. Powers. Sec. 807. Staff and support services. Sec. 808. Contributions. Sec. 809. Exclusive right to name, logos, emblems, seals, and marks. Sec. 810. Reports. Sec. 811. Audit of financial transactions. Sec. 812. Advisory board. Sec. 813. Definitions. Sec. 814. Termination. Sec. 815. Authorization of appropriations. TITLE IX--EXTENSION OF AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND EXPENDITURE AUTHORITY Sec. 901. Extension of expenditure authority. SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO TITLE 49, UNITED STATES CODE. Except as otherwise expressly provided, whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or a repeal of, a section or other provision, the reference shall be considered to be made to a section or other provision of title 49, United States Code. TITLE I--AUTHORIZATIONS SEC. 101. FEDERAL AVIATION ADMINISTRATION OPERATIONS. (a) In General.--Section 106(k) is amended to read as follows: ``(k) Authorization of Appropriations for Operations.-- ``(1) In general.--There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation for operations of the Administration $5,631,000,000 for fiscal year 1999 and $5,784,000,000 for fiscal year 2000. Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated for fiscal year 1999, not more than $9,100,000 shall be used to support air safety efforts through payment of United States membership obligations, to be paid as soon as practicable. ``(2) Authorized expenditures.--Of the amounts appropriated under paragraph (1) $450,000 may be used for wildlife hazard mitigation measures and management of the wildlife strike database of the Federal Aviation Administration. ``(3) University consortium.--There are authorized to be appropriated not more than $9,100,000 for the 3 fiscal year period beginning with fiscal year 1999 to support a university consortium established to provide an air safety and security management certificate program, working cooperatively with the Federal Aviation Administration and United States air carriers. Funds authorized under this paragraph-- ``(A) may not be used for the construction of a building or other facility; and ``(B) shall be awarded on the basis of open competition.''. (b) Coordination.--The authority granted the Secretary under section 41717 of title 49, United States Code, does not affect the Secretary's authority under any other provision of law. [[Page S10950]] SEC. 102. AIR NAVIGATION FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT. (a) In General.--Section 48101(a) is amended by striking paragraphs (1) and (2) and inserting the following: ``(1) for fiscal year 1999-- ``(A) $222,800,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: en route programs; ``(B) $74,700,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: terminal programs; ``(C) $108,000,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: landing and navigational aids; ``(D) $17,790,000 for engineering, development, test, and evaluation: research, test, and evaluation equipment and facilities programs; ``(E) $391,358,300 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: en route programs; ``(F) $492,315,500 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: terminal programs; ``(G) $38,764,400 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: flight services programs; ``(H) $50,500,000 for air traffic control facilities and equipment: other ATC facilities programs; ``(I) $162,400,000 for non-ATC facilities and equipment programs; ``(J) $14,500,000 for training and equipment facilities programs; ``(K) $280,800,000 for mission support programs; ``(L) $235,210,000 for personnel and related expenses; and ``(2) $2,189,000,000 for fiscal year 2000.''. (b) Continuation of ILS Inventory Program.--Section 44502(a)(4)(B) is amended-- (1) by striking ``fiscal years 1995 and 1996'' and inserting ``fiscal years 1999 and 2000''; and (2) by striking ``acquisition,'' and inserting ``acquisition under new or existing contracts,''. (c) Life-Cycle Cost Estimates.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall establish life-cycle cost estimates for any air traffic control modernization project the total life-cycle costs of which equal or exceed $50,000,000. SEC. 103. AIRPORT PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AND NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. (a) Extension and Authorization.--Section 48103 is amended by-- (1) striking ``September 30, 1996,'' and inserting ``September 30, 1998,''; and (2) striking ``$2,280,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1997, and $4,627,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1998.'' and inserting ``$2,410,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 1999 and $4,885,000,000 for fiscal years ending before October 1, 2000.''. (b) Project Grant Authority.--Section 47104(c) is amended by striking ``1998,'' and inserting ``2002,''. SEC. 104. REPROGRAMMING NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENT. Before reprogramming any amounts appropriated under section 106(k), 48101(a), or 48103 of title 49, United States Code, for which notification of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate and the House of Representatives is required, the Secretary of Transportation shall submit a written explanation of the proposed reprogramming to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives. SEC. 105. AIRPORT SECURITY PROGRAM. (a) In General.--Chapter 471 (as amended by section 202(a) of this Act) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new section: ``Sec. 47136. Airport security program ``(a) General Authority.--To improve security at public airports in the United States, the Secretary of Transportation shall carry out not less than 1 project to test and evaluate innovative airport security systems and related technology. ``(b) Priority.--In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall give the highest priority to a request from an eligible sponsor for a grant to undertake a project that-- ``(1) evaluates and tests the benefits of innovative airport security systems or related technology, including explosives detection systems, for the purpose of improving airport and aircraft physical security and access control; and ``(2) provides testing and evaluation of airport security systems and technology in an operational, test bed environment. ``(c) Matching Share.--Notwithstanding section 47109, the United States Government's share of allowable project costs for a project under this section is 100 percent. ``(d) Terms and Conditions.--The Secretary may establish such terms and conditions as the Secretary determines appropriate for carrying out a project under this section, including terms and conditions relating to the form and content of a proposal for a project, project assurances, and schedule of payments. ``(e) Eligible Sponsor Defined.--In this section, the term `eligible sponsor' means a nonprofit corporation composed of a consortium of public and private persons, including a sponsor of a primary airport, with the necessary engineering and technical expertise to successfully conduct the testing and evaluation of airport and aircraft related security systems. ``(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--Of the amounts made available to the Secretary under section 47115 in a fiscal year, the Secretary shall make available not less than $5,000,000 for the purpose of carrying out this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for such chapter (as amended by section 202(b) of this Act) is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47135 the following: ``47136. Airport security program.''. SEC. 106. CONTRACT TOWER PROGRAM. There are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Transportation such sums as may be necessary to carry out the Federal Contract Tower Program under title 49, United States Code. SEC. 107. AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVATION SYSTEM STATIONS. The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall not terminate human weather observers for Automated Surface Observation System stations until-- (1) the Secretary of Transportation determines that the System provides consistent reporting of changing meteorological conditions and notifies the Congress in writing of that determination; and (2) 60 days have passed since the report was submitted to the Congress. TITLE II--AIRPORT IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM AMENDMENTS SEC. 201. REMOVAL OF THE CAP ON DISCRETIONARY FUND. Section 47115(g) is amended by striking paragraph (4). SEC. 202. INNOVATIVE USE OF AIRPORT GRANT FUNDS. (a) Codification and Improvement of 1996 Program.-- Subchapter I of chapter 471 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 47135. Innovative financing techniques ``(a) In General.--The Secretary of Transportation is authorized to carry out a demonstration program under which the Secretary may approve applications under this subchapter for not more than 20 projects for which grants received under the subchapter may be used to implement innovative financing techniques. ``(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the demonstration program shall be to provide information on the use of innovative financing techniques for airport development projects. ``(c) Limitation--In no case shall the implementation of an innovative financing technique under this section be used in a manner giving rise to a direct or indirect guarantee of any airport debt instrument by the United States Government. ``(d) Innovative Financing Technique Defined.--In this section, the term `innovative financing technique' includes methods of financing projects that the Secretary determines may be beneficial to airport development, including-- ``(1) payment of interest; ``(2) commercial bond insurance and other credit enhancement associated with airport bonds for eligible airport development; and ``(3) flexible non-Federal matching requirements.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 47134 the following: ``47135. Innovative financing techniques.''. SEC. 203. MATCHING SHARE. Section 47109(a)(2) is amended by inserting ``not more than'' before ``90 percent''. SEC. 204. INCREASE IN APPORTIONMENT FOR NOISE COMPATIBILITY PLANNING AND PROGRAMS. Section 47117(e)(1)(A) is amended by striking ``31'' each time it appears and substituting ``35''. SEC. 205. TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS. (a) Use of Apportionments for Alaska, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii.--Section 47114(d)(3) is amended to read as follows: ``(3) An amount apportioned under paragraph (2) of this subsection for airports in Alaska, Hawaii, or Puerto Rico may be made available by the Secretary for any public airport in those respective jurisdictions.''. (b) Supplemental Apportionment for Alaska.--Section 47114(e) is amended-- (1) by striking ``Alternative'' in the subsection caption and inserting ``Supplemental''; (2) in paragraph (1) by-- (A) striking ``Instead of apportioning amounts for airports in Alaska under'' and inserting ``Notwithstanding''; and (B) striking ``those airports'' and inserting ``airports in Alaska''; and (3) striking paragraph (3) and inserting the following: ``(3) An amount apportioned under this subsection may be used for any public airport in Alaska.''. (c) Repeal of Apportionment Limitation on Commercial Service Airports in Alaska.--Section 47117 is amended by striking subsection (f) and redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsections (f) and (g), respectively. (d) Discretionary Fund Definition.-- (1) Section 47115 is amended-- (A) by striking ``25'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``12.5''; and (B) by striking the second sentence in subsection (b). (2) Section 47116 is amended-- (A) by striking ``75'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``87.5''; (B) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) in subsection (b) as subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and inserting before subparagraph (A), as so redesignated, the following: ``(1) one-seventh for grants for projects at small hub airports (as defined in section 41731 of this title); and ``(2) the remaining amounts based on the following:''. (e) Continuation of Project Funding.--Section 47108 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(e) Change in Airport Status.--If the status of a primary airport changes to a nonprimary airport at a time when a development project under a multiyear agreement under subsection (a) is not yet completed, the project shall remain eligible for funding from discretionary funds under section 47115 of this title at the funding level and under the terms provided by the agreement, subject to the availability of funds.''. [[Page S10951]] (f) Grant Eligibility for Private Reliever Airports.-- Section 47102(17)(B) is amended by-- (1) striking ``or'' at the end of clause (i) and redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and (2) inserting after clause (i) the following: ``(ii) a privately-owned airport that, as a reliever airport, received Federal aid for airport development prior to October 9, 1996, but only if the Administrator issues revised administrative guidance after July 1, 1998, for the designation of reliever airports; or''. (g) Reliever Airports Not Eligible for Letters of Intent.-- Section 47110(e)(1) is amended by striking ``or reliever''. (h) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers.--Section 40117(e)(2) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' after the semicolon in subparagraph (B); (2) by striking ``payment.'' in subparagraph (C) and inserting ``payment; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(D) in Alaska aboard an aircraft having a seating capacity of less than 20 passengers.''. (i) Passenger Facility Fee Waiver for Certain Class of Carriers or for Service to Airports in Isolated Communities.--Section 40117(i) is amended-- (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (1); (2) by striking ``transportation.'' in paragraph (2)(D) and inserting ``transportation; and''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(3) may permit a public agency to request that collection of a passenger facility fee be waived for-- ``(A) passengers enplaned by any class of air carrier or foreign air carrier if the number of passengers enplaned by the carriers in the class constitutes not more than one percent of the total number of passengers enplaned annually at the airport at which the fee is imposed; or ``(B) passengers enplaned on a flight to an airport-- ``(i) that has fewer than 2,500 passenger boardings each year and receives scheduled passenger service; or ``(ii) in a community which has a population of less than 10,000 and is not connected by a land highway or vehicular way to the land-connected National Highway System within a State.''. (j) Use of the Word ``gift'' and Priority for Airports in Surplus Property Disposal.-- (1) Section 47151 is amended-- (A) by striking ``give'' in subsection (a) and inserting ``convey to''; (B) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (a)(2) and inserting ``conveyance''; (C) by striking ``giving'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveying''; (D) by striking ``gift'' in subsection (b) and inserting ``conveyance''; and (E) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(d) Priority for Public Airports.--Except for requests from another Federal agency, a department, agency, or instrumentality of the Executive Branch of the United States Government shall give priority to a request by a public agency (as defined in section 47102 of this title) for surplus property described in subsection (a) of this section for use at a public airport.''. (2) Section 47152 is amended-- (A) by striking ``gifts'' in the section caption and inserting ``conveyances''; and (B) by striking ``gift'' in the first sentence and inserting ``conveyance''. (3) The chapter analysis for chapter 471 is amended by striking the item relating to section 47152 and inserting the following: ``47152. Terms of conveyances.''. (4) Section 47153(a) is amended-- (A) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1) and inserting ``conveyance''; (B) by striking ``given'' in paragraph (1)(A) and inserting ``conveyed''; and (C) by striking ``gift'' in paragraph (1)(B) and inserting ``conveyance''. (k) Apportionment for Cargo Only Airports.--Section 47114(c)(2)(A) is amended by striking ``2.5 percent'' and inserting ``3 percent''. (l) Flexibility in Pavement Design Standards.--Section 47114(d) is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(4) The Secretary may permit the use of State highway specifications for airfield pavement construction using funds made available under this subsection at nonprimary airports with runways of 5,000 feet or shorter serving aircraft that do not exceed 60,000 pounds gross weight, if the Secretary determines that-- ``(A) safety will not be negatively affected; and ``(B) the life of the pavement will not be shorter than it would be if constructed using Administration standards. An airport may not seek funds under this subchapter for runway rehabilitation or reconstruction of any such airfield pavement constructed using State highway specifications for a period of 10 years after construction is completed.''. SEC. 206. REPEAL OF PERIOD OF APPLICABILITY. Section 125 of the Federal Aviation Reauthorization Act of 1996 (49 U.S.C. 47114 note) is repealed. SEC. 207. REPORT ON EFFORTS TO IMPLEMENT CAPACITY ENHANCEMENTS. Within 9 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Transportation shall report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the House of Representatives on efforts by the Federal Aviation Administration to implement capacity enhancements and improvements, such as precision runway monitoring systems, and the time frame for implementation of such enhancements and improvements. SEC. 208. PRIORITIZATION OF DISCRETIONARY PROJECTS. Section 47120 is amended by-- (1) inserting ``(a) In General.--'' before ``In''; and (2) adding at the end thereof the following: ``(b) Discretionary Funding To Be Used for Higher Priority Projects.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall discourage airport sponsors and airports from using entitlement funds for lower priority projects by giving lower priority to discretionary projects submitted by airport sponsors and airports that have used entitlement funds for projects that have a lower priority than the projects for which discretionary funds are being requested.''. SEC. 209. PUBLIC NOTICE BEFORE GRANT ASSURANCE REQUIREMENT WAIVED. (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law to the contrary, the Secretary of Transportation may not waive any assurance required under section 47107 of title 49, United States Code, that requires property to be used for aeronautical purposes unless the Secretary provides notice to the public not less than 30 days before issuing any such waiver. Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize the Secretary to issue a waiver of any assurance required under that section. (b) Effective Date.--This section applies to any request filed on or after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 210. DEFINITION OF PUBLIC AIRCRAFT. Section 40102(a)(37)(B)(ii) is amended-- (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of subclause (I); (2) by striking the ``States.'' in subclause (II) and inserting ``States; or''; and (3) by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(III) transporting persons aboard the aircraft if the aircraft is operated for the purpose of prisoner transport.''. SEC. 211. TERMINAL DEVELOPMENT COSTS. Section 40117 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``(j) Shell of Terminal Building.--In order to enable additional air service by an air carrier with less than 50 percent of the scheduled passenger traffic at an airport, the Secretary may consider the shell of a terminal building (including heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) and aircraft fueling facilities adjacent to an airport terminal building to be an eligible airport-related project under subsection (a)(3)(E).''. SEC. 212. AIRFIELD PAVEMENT CONDITIONS. (a) Evaluation of Options.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall evaluate options for improving the quality of information available to the Administration on airfield pavement conditions for airports that are part of the national air transportation system, including-- (1) improving the existing runway condition information contained in the Airport Safety Data Program by reviewing and revising rating criteria and providing increased training for inspectors; (2) requiring such airports to submit pavement condition index information as part of their airport master plan or as support in applications for airport improvement grants; and (3) requiring all such airports to submit pavement condition index information on a regular basis and using this information to create a pavement condition database that could be used in evaluating the cost-effectiveness of project applications and forecasting anticipated pavement needs. (b) Report to Congress.--The Administrator shall transmit a report, containing an evaluation of such options, to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure not later than 12 months after the date of enactment of this Act. SEC. 213. DISCRETIONARY GRANTS. Notwithstanding any limitation on the amount of funds that may be expended for grants for noise abatement, if any funds made available under section 48103 of title 49, United States Code, remain available at the end of the fiscal year for which those funds were made available, and are not allocated under section 47115 of that title, or under any other provision relating to the awarding of discretionary grants from unobligated funds made available under section 48103 of that title, the Secretary of Transportation may use those funds to make discretionary grants for noise abatement activities. TITLE III--AMENDMENTS TO AVIATION LAW SEC. 301. SEVERABLE SERVICES CONTRACTS FOR PERIODS CROSSING FISCAL YEARS. (a) Chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``Sec. 40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years ``(a) In General.--The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration may enter into a contract for procurement of severable services for a period that begins in one fiscal year and ends in the next fiscal year if (without regard to any option to extend the period of the contract) the contract period does not exceed one year. ``(b) Obligation of Funds.--Funds made available for a fiscal year may be obligated for the total amount of a contract entered into under the authority of subsection (a) of this section.''. (b) Conforming Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 401 is amended by adding at the end thereof the following: ``40125. Severable services contracts for periods crossing fiscal years.''. SEC. 302. FOREIGN CARRIERS ELIGIBLE FOR WAIVER UNDER AIRPORT NOISE AND CAPACITY ACT. The first sentence of