On December 11, the House narrowly passed by a vote of 219 to 206 the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act of 2015 (H.R.83), a $1.01 trillion spending bill that will keep most of the federal government, including the FAA, funded through September 2015. The House vote on the bill was delayed on Thursday by several hours due to Democratic opposition to several riders attached to the massive bill. At press, the Senate was expected to pass the bill, at which time the legislation will be sent to the president for his signature. With the most recent continuing resolution expiring on December 11, Congress also passed a two-day stopgap measure to keep the government funded and giving the Senate time to consider the bill.
The $1.013 trillion bill, dubbed the “cromnibus” since it combines a continuing resolution extending last year’s spending with an omnibus package of 11 of 12 spending bills, adheres to the caps set by last December’s budget deal, which lessened sequestration impacts for fiscal years 2014 and 2015. The legislation includes $521 billion in military spending, with an additional $64 billion in overseas contingency operations funding for the Pentagon, including $5 billion to fight the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as well as $5.4 billion to combat the Ebola epidemic. Other federal agencies are funded at a total of $492 billion. The bill also includes a continuing resolution to fund the Department of Homeland Security through February 27.
Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) and Rep. Harold Rogers (R-Ky.), chairs of the Senate and House appropriations committees who led the talks surrounding the bill, came out in support of the legislation while acknowledging that compromises were made. “After months of thorough, business-like, sometimes tough but always civil negotiations, we have reached a responsible, bipartisan and bicameral agreement on funding for government operations for 2015,” they said in a joint statement. “More than two months into the fiscal year, it’s time we end government on autopilot so we can turn our focus to meeting the day to day needs of Americans and long-range needs of the nation.”
For Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, the bill includes $53.8 billion, which is $2.9 billion more than FY 2014 funding but $6.1 billion less than the request for 2015. The bill includes $9.7 billion for FAA operations, which is $90 million more than the 2014 enacted level and $9.3 million less than the president’s budget request. PASS lobbied extensively for funding for the FAA and is pleased with the amounts included in the legislation. The agreement includes full funding for the Air Traffic Organization (ATO) at $7.4 billion as well as for NextGen operations and planning at $60 million. Aviation Safety (AVS) is funded at $1.218 billion, which includes an additional $3 million to facilitate and safely integrate unmanned aircraft into the National Airspace System. In addition, the bill directs the agency to submit to Congress a report describing a comprehensive strategy for staffing, hiring and training Flight Standards and Aircraft Certification employees.
The report language specifically addresses the fire at the Chicago Center and the need for increased facility security. It directs the FAA to identify resources to advance measures that will improve security and minimize service disruptions and, if necessary, submit a reprogramming request to complete the most urgent security initiatives. The report also references aircraft certification review process and reform, instructing the agency to submit a report within 60 days of enactment on measures related to expanding the use of delegated authority and a risk-based, systems safety approach to its oversight.
The bill includes $2.6 billion for facilities and equipment and directs the FAA to submit a detailed five-year capital investment plan to Congress with its FY 2016 budget request. The report language specifically references implementation of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), including an additional $7.5 billion to advance the use of space-based ADS-B for air traffic control separation services, support the collection and validation of surveillance data, and help assess the impact on FAA’s oceanic automation system. According to the report, the FAA must make an investment decision regarding satellite-based ADS-B no later than 30 days after enactment of the bill. The bill also provides $156 million for research, engineering and development.
In addition, the legislation retains a House amendment that bars Norwegian Air from operating in this country unless it abides by U.S. law and the U.S.-EU Open Skies Agreement. PASS has been working closely with the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) to prevent Norwegian Air from being allowed to operate in this country while in violation of major agreements.
Finally, the bill allows for the 1 percent pay raise for federal employees ordered by the president to begin in January. Mikulski said the 1 percent raise “builds on the modest pay raise for federal employees in 2014” and stressed that federal employees “have been undervalued and underappreciated for too long.” The legislation also includes a 1 percent pay raise for military service members.
Once the Senate passes the bill and it is signed by the president, lawmakers will begin their holiday recesses. With the second session of the 113th Congress set to adjourn soon, please stay tuned for more legislative news when the 114th Congress convenes in January.