The Department of Commerce announced June 4 that it is moving forward with closing National Weather Service Center Weather Service Units at each of the 20 Air Route Traffic Control Centers in the continental United States, according to the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which called the move dangerous to air traffic safety.

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The Senate began work on reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration with a hearing by the aviation subcommittee that signaled a push to speed operation of the NextGen air traffic control system, another battle over user fees, and greater FAA financing from the general fund.

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The aviation trust fund, which is used to help finance the FAA and provide help for airports, is in danger of going broke, according to a report from the Government Accounting Office (GAO) which could signal a stronger pitch for user fees.

At the end of fiscal Year 2001, the uncommitted balance in the fund was $7.3 billion. This had declined to $1.4 billion at the end of FY 2008. The Congressional Budget Office recently forecast the uncommitted balance to fall still farther, to $752 million.

The reduction in airline operations and overly optimistic forecasts by the FAA are cited as the primary causes for the trouble. Airlines have reduced their active fleets by 18 % from the fourth quarter of 2007 to the fourth quarter of 2008, through which 38 cities lost scheduled service altogether and many others saw a sharp drop in the number of flights. Los Angeles International Airport, for instance, lost non-stop service to 12 of its 92 destinations, while the smaller airport at Little Rock, Arkansas, lost six of its 22 flights. That meant less fuel tax revenue and lower passenger facility charges. Passenger facility charges were about $145 million less in 2008 than in 2007. Actual revenues into the trust fund have been lower than forecast since 2001 and FAA now says it expects revenues to continue their decline in 2009.

According to the FAA, the Obama administration is considering transferring responsibility for revenue forecasts from the FAA to the Treasury Department.

Over-all, the GAO report says airports generally are in good financial shape but must consider taking steps to reduce expenses, delay some major projects, and find ways to increase revenue. Smaller airports could be more vulnerable. The report expresses concern that, if revenues to the trust Fund continue to drop below forecast levels, there could be a risk of insufficient resources to cover all the obligations the FAA has the authority to incur.

Rep. John Mica (R-Fla.) was quick to jump on release of the report to declare that Congress must work with the FAA to find alternative ways to match trust fund commitments with actual revenues. Mica, ranking minority member on the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, carried the Bush administration torch for user fees in the past session.

With the federal government’s budget already expected to raise deficits into the trillions of dollars, and a declining source of revenue going into the trust fund, aviation interests can expect major battles over fees, services and projects in the coming months.

Do states have a right to control operations of emergency medical helicopters or is this role exclusive to the Federal Aviation Administration? With states eager to place restrictions on airports and flight paths, a decision favoring them could end up causing numerous problems for general aviation.

The question was the center of an April 22 Congressional hearing into the safety of helicopter medical emergency flights (HEMS), brought on by a spike in fatal accidents last year.

Reps. John Mica (R-FL) and Tom Petri (R-WI) asked for the hearing after last year’s eight fatal and five non-fatal accidents. Mica and Petri are ranking members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Aviation Subcommittee, respectively. Two bills have been introduced to give states more authority over helicopter emergency medical services. The bills would give states authority to regulate HEMS much as they regulate doctors and other medical services.

Testifying for the FAA, John Allen, director of flight standards, said the agency is taking steps to improve safety. Air ambulances, he said, operate under the Airline Deregulation Act of 1979, granting states rights to control prices, routes and services, but not safety or other operational rules. He said many of the HEMS companies operate in more than one state. To have 50 different state regimes addressing economic regulation could complicate the industry.

If states are granted rights to impose individual regulations on one segment of the industry, other segments may seek similar protection from competition, Allen pointed out. Rep. Mica echoed that concern in his opening statement. If HEMS were treated differently in terms of state versus federal oversight, he said, other sectors of aviation might feel justified in demanding their own carve-out of federal regulations.

Currently, HEMS operations come under Part 121 and 135 of Federal Aviation Regulations.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Reauthorization of the FAA is nearly two years behind schedule. The House is trying again to pass a bill, hoping that it won’t be stalled – again – in the Senate. The present temporary reauthorization expires March 31.

“We need to get a bill passed as quickly as possible,” said Rep. Jerry Costello (D-Ill.), chair of the Aviation Subcommittee.

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