Smith and Lummis Applaud Inclusion of Small Airport Regulation Relief Act in Senate FAA Reauthorization

Representatives Adrian Smith (R-NE) and Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) released the following statements today after the U.S. Senate passed its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization bill, which includes the Small Airport Regulation Relief Act introduced by Smith and Lummis in 2015.

The Small Airport Regulation Relief Act requires the FAA to use enplanement numbers from calendar year 2012 when calculating appropriate annual funds for airports through the Airport Improvement Program (AIP). It would ensure those airports which reached 10,000 enplanements in 2012 – before new federal pilot regulations took effect – could use the enplanement numbers from that year.

“Commercial air service is vital to rural America,” Rep. Smith said. “Some of Nebraska’s small airports, such as Kearney, North Platte, and Scottsbluff, successfully qualified for the Airport Improvement Program before the pilot shortage reduced their enplanements. The bill I introduced with Rep. Lummis would ensure small airports are not penalized twice by the heavy burdens of federal pilot regulations. I am pleased to see our bill included in the Senate’s FAA reauthorization and look forward to reviewing the full legislation when it comes to the House.”

“Small and rural airports across the west warrant our support because they are vital to western economies,” said Rep. Lummis. “Our legislation takes a practical approach by helping reduce the harm of one-size-fits-all federal regulations. I’ll continue to work with Rep. Smith and the authorizing committees to ensure we continue to help the little guys.”

The Airport Improvement Program provides funds for projects to improve infrastructure, including runways, taxiways, aprons, noise control, land purchases, navigational aids, safety and security.