US Travel Industry Urges Support for FAA Reauthorization Bill

by Patrick Clarke
Last updated: 10:00 AM ET, Thu July 20, 2023

The U.S. Travel Association is urging support for the passage of the U.S. House of Representatives' bipartisan "Securing Growth and Robust Leadership in American Aviation Act" (H.R. 3935), otherwise known as the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill.

"The United States requires a more modern, efficient and secure air travel system to meet increasing demand and grow the U.S. economy. The bipartisan House bill is a critical step in correcting years of federal underinvestment, which has left the system with 1,200 fewer air traffic controllers than a decade ago," U.S. Travel President and CEO Geoff Freeman said in a statement on Thursday.

"The bill includes provisions to increase investments in airport infrastructure, accelerate the deployment of air traffic control technologies and address workforce shortages, relieving strain on the system and increasing our country’s global competitiveness," he added.

"It’s what travelers and the industry demand: Over half of Americans say they would travel more for leisure if the travel experience were less of a hassle."

"The U.S. Travel Association thanks Chairman Graves (MO), Ranking Member Larsen, Chairman Graves (LA), Ranking Member Cohen and the members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for their efforts to advance the bill. We urge the U.S. Senate to act on an FAA reauthorization bill as soon possible," Freeman concluded.

The legislation also has the support of the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA), which lobbied for enhanced clarity that an agency's obligation to issue a client refund for a canceled or significantly changed flight is limited to scenarios where it and not the airline possesses the funds in question during its annual Legislative Day on Capitol Hill last month.