House Passes FAA Reauthorization

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House Passes FAA Reauthorization

By Kate O'Connor | September 26, 2018

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The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 (H.R. 302 Division B) was passed
by the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 398 to 23 on
Wednesday. The bill will authorize FAA funding and programs until
2023. If it also passes the Senate, which has to happen before it can
be signed into law, it will be the first time that the FAA has
received a five-year reauthorization since 1982.

“I am proud of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee’s
bipartisan work on this legislation,” said Transportation and
Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster, R, Pa. “Not only does
it provide FAA programs with stability and certainty for the next five
years, its numerous reforms will allow America’s aviation industry to
continue to safely innovate, thrive and lead.”

As previously reported by AVweb, this version of the reauthorization
legislation, which was released on Saturday, incorporated several
compromises that legislators believed would allow it to pass both
House and Senate votes. A provision that would have given the
Department of Transpiration oversight of certain airline fees was
removed last-minute. A few notable provisions that did make into the
1,200-page bill were a controversial set of additional restrictions
for model aircraft, a requirement for the FAA to set seat pitch and
width minimums on commercial airliners, returning supersonic civilian
aircraft to U.S. airspace and further regulation of unmanned aircraft
operations, including expanding unmanned aircraft traffic management
systems and allowing the government to shoot down drones thought to be
a threat.

Several aviation groups including the National Air Transportation
Association (NATA), General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA)
and Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA) have voiced their
support for the bill. The Senate is expected to vote on the bill
before the FAA’s current authorization expires on Sept. 30.
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