CONTACT FINANCE COMMITTEE- NO ON FAA REAUTHORIZATION

[Thomas Sullivan]

Hi ALL,

 

We need your help!!!

 

We just received this email about an important vote in Congress with regard to FAA Reauthorization Act.

 

Please read all the information in the email below and send your strong opinions to members of the Finance Committee as well as our senators. 

 

There is a list with names and emails to contact if you wish to voice and impact the outcome of this bill in Congress.   This is a huge part in our battle to get the FAA to comply with their own rules and regulations before they get refunded with our tax revenues.

 

Please be take action now.

 

Thomas Sullivan

Quiet Rocklan

 

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Hi All,

 

We do not support the FAA Reauthorization Act as written. Voting Yes for this Bill now will effectively render congress powerless over the FAA. At this point the bad outweighs the good in the bill.

Congress needs to write in many safeguards to this bill before awarding the FAA with the greatest funding increase in the history of the agency which the current FAA Reauthorization Act accomplishes. The GAO just published 2 damning reports on the FAA’s gross lack of accounting and Risk Management on NEXT GEN- which is the primary project the FAA Reauthorization Act flushes with capital. Now is no time to award the FAA with a blank check.

This bill is currently stalled in the Finance Committee and may be fast-tracked to a vote if the Health Care legislation is approved this weekend. They first need to have hearings and our voice needs to be heard now. We can’t allow this to bill to be fast tracked. It needs to be amended- or we need to get our Senators to vote no. WE NEED YOUR HELP!

TO DO:

Call  Email or Fax

1. Members of the Finance Committee (see links below)
2. Your Senators ( http://www3.capwiz.com/c-span/directory/congdir.tt)
   

Tell Them:

• Do not Fast Track FAA Reauthorization Act
• Vote NO or Amend the Bill
• Read the GAO studies on the FAA Next Gen and ARC Congestion Management.
• We need a Cost Benefit Analysis of the Airspace Redesign and all of Next Gen before further implementation and investment.
  

Committee  On Finance
219 Dirksen Senate Office Building
 Washington, DC 20510-6200
 (202) 224-4515

Democrats
MAX  BAUCUS, MT <http://baucus.senate.gov>  
JOHN  D. ROCKEFELLER IV, WV <http://rockefeller.senate.gov>  PRESSURE HIM!
KENT  CONRAD, ND <http://conrad.senate.gov>  
JEFF  BINGAMAN, NM <http://bingaman.senate.gov>  
JOHN  F. KERRY, MA <http://kerry.senate.gov>  
BLANCHE  L. LINCOLN, AR <http://lincoln.senate.gov>
RON  WYDEN, OR <http://wyden.senate.gov>  
CHARLES  E. SCHUMER, NY <http://schumer.senate.gov> AGAINST US –PRESSURE HIM!
DEBBIE STABENOW, MI <http://stabenow.senate.gov/>    
 MARIA  CANTWELL, WA <http://cantwell.senate.gov/>
BILL NELSON, FL <http://billnelson.senate.gov/>
 ROBERT MENENDEZ, NJ<http://menendez.senate.gov/>  FOR US- TELL HIM TO BUILD COALITION AGAINST FAA REAUTHORIZATION BASED ON NO COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS
THOMAS CARPER, DE <http://carper.senate.gov/>

REPUBLICANS  
CHUCK  GRASSLEY, IA <http://grassley.senate.gov/>
 ORRIN G. HATCH, UT <http://hatch.senate.gov>
 OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, ME <http://snowe.senate.gov>  FOR US-
JON KYL, AZ <http://kyl.senate.gov>
 JIM BUNNING, KY <http://bunning.senate.gov>
MIKE  CRAPO, ID <http://crapo.senate.gov>
 PAT  ROBERTS, KS <http://roberts.senate.gov>
 JOHN ENSIGN, NV <http://ensign.senate.gov/>  KIND OF AGAINST US – PRESSURE HIM
MIKE ENZI, WY <http://enzi.senate.gov/public/>
 JOHN CORNYN, TX  <http://cornyn.senate.gov/public/>

BACKGROUND

Your Senators in Washington and The Senate Finance Committee need to closely examine the two Government Accountability Office(GAO) reports on the FAA and ARC before they throw their support behind a massive funding increases for Next Gen and it’s flawed Airspace Redesign. The FAA is failing on a grand scale according to the new audit and testimony.

If our representatives in Washington ignore these reports, they are directly complicit in this gross mismanagement of taxpayer dollars, because they have just been put on notice through these reports of the inept nature of these multi billion dollar projects. They will be taking on a significant political liability by voting in favor of FAA Funding Authorization this year without crafting amendments to provide protections against this well recorded gross waste and mismanagement of taxpayer dollars.  

 The FAA must address some of these glaring issues before getting a blank check. The FAA needs to do their home work. They can not be allowed to continue operate multi billion dollar projects without cost benefit analysis, Risk Analysis and benchmarks. That is no way to run a federal agency that is responsible for Aviation Safety and congress needs to be vocal on that because they hold the checkbook.


Here is one of the GAO report Summary:

Next Generation Air Transportation System: FAA Faces Challenges in Responding to Task Force Recommendations
GAO-10-188T October 28, 2009

Internet Link: http://gaonet.gov/products/GAO-10-188T

Actions Needed to Meet Expectations for the Next Generation Air Transportation System in the Mid–Term

Date: October 28, 2009

Type:  Testimony

Project ID:

CC-2010-001
Internet Link: http://www.oig.dot.gov/item.jsp?id=2557

Summary:

On October 28, 2009, the Inspector General testified before the House Subcommittee on Aviation regarding FAA actions required to address the recommendations of a joint Government/Industry task force report for achieving mid–term goals for the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen).

The Inspector General noted that NextGen is a high risk effort and a top management challenge for the Department and FAA. A number of operational and management decisions must be addressed to successfully transition to NextGen and address the task force’s recommendations. These include maximizing the benefits of performance based navigation initiatives and managing NextGen efforts as integrated portfolios of investments. The Inspector General noted that the findings of the task force are consistent with our work but also identified several new areas for FAA’s attention.

To move beyond endorsing the task force’s recommendations, the Inspector General stated that FAA must set realistic expectations for NextGen. Specifically, FAA must: (1) develop plans to initiate action and establish a 5–year funding profile for the NextGen mid–term, (2) establish metrics for assessing and measuring progress, and (3) develop and implement a strategy for linking near– and mid–term efforts with the Agency’s long–term plans for transforming the National Airspace System.

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Posted By  OurAirspace  to  FAA Airspace Redesign <http://ourairspace.blogspot.com/2009/11/gao-oig-uncovers-inept-faa-failing-on.html>   at  11/04/2009 09:27:00 PM

Heather V. Wolf
Chair Special Committee on Aviation for the Town of Pound Ridge
OurAirspace
P.O. Box 263 Pound Ridge, NY 10576
con...@ourAirspace.org
http://ourairspace.org
917-355-6640