House and Senate Transportation Leaders Introduce Final FAA Reauthorization

Late last night, House and Senate transportation leaders filed bill text for a bipartisan, bicameral bill to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ahead of the agency’s May 10 funding deadline. The FAA Reauthorization Act (text; summary) authorizes $105 billion in funding for the agency through 2028 and includes a slate of provisions related to aviation safety, consumer protections, accessibility, and infrastructure upgrades. The Senate will consider the bill first as an amendment to the House-passed FAA reauthorization bill, thus allowing the measure to be quickly considered by the House prior to next week’s deadline.

• Situational awareness. While leaders are confident that the bill can reach the president’s desk without incident, some of the issues that have bogged down the FAA reauthorization process this Congress are poised to get relitigated on the Senate floor. This includes a provision in the final bill that would add additional perimeter slots at DCA — something that has been strongly opposed by lawmakers in the Virginia and Maryland delegations. Some lawmakers are hopeful that the bill could be used as a broader legislative vehicle to carry a series of banking and financial services-related provisions on cannabis banking, stablecoins, and more, but it remains to be seen whether these efforts will be successful. Additionally, votes on amendments related to the pilot retirement age and training requirements could also come up on the Senate side this week as leaders push for a “time agreement” to expedite consideration.

• Today in Congress. The House will return first this week to consider 17 bills under suspension of the rules. This includes a bill out of the Science, Space, and Technology Committee that would create a program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to improve forecasting of weather and environmental conditions that contribute to wildfires. Lawmakers will also consider several measures out of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee that seek to ensure that veterans can access a range of federal benefits. Meanwhile, the Senate will gavel in for legislative business tomorrow to resume consideration of pending nominations before turning to the FAA Reauthorization Act.