Issues In The Reauthorization Of The Federal Aviation Administration Faa

The funding authorization for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), included in the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (P.L. 112-95), expires on September 30, 2015. In addition to setting spending levels, FAA authorization acts typically set policy on a wide range of issues related to civil aviation. This report considers topics that are likely to arise as the 114th Congress debates reauthorization. Most FAA programs are financed through the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF), sometimes referred to as the Aviation Trust Fund. The financial health of the AATF, which is funded by a variety of taxes and fees on air transportation, has been a growing concern. Although the trust fund balance is projected to grow in the near term—as AATF revenue continues to rise and airport capital needs are projected to decline—reductions in general fund appropriations to FAA have increased the proportion of FAA funding that is derived from the trust fund. In addition, changes in airline business practices pose a risk to the AATF revenue structure: trust fund revenue is largely dependent on airlines' ticket sales, and airlines' increasing use of fees charged for options that may once have been included in the base ticket price, such as checked bags and onboard meals, has reduced the amount of money flowing into the fund.

Discusses six issues that are important in reauthorizing FAA programs: (1) Ensuring the safe and efficient transformation to the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen); (2) Strengthening oversight of aviation safety: Incomplete and inaccurate safety data jeopardize FAA's implementation of a new safety management approach; (3) Reducing congestion and providing access to the national airspace system; (4) Addressing aviation's impact on the environment, including noise, emissions, and other pollutants; (5) Ensuring a sufficient, trained workforce; and (6) Ensuring timely reauthorization of FAA programs. Charts and tables.

Contents: (1) Background; (2) Legislative Status; (3) Proposed Funding Authorization Levels; (4) Pay-As-You-Go (PAYGO) Act: Budgetary Effects Determination; (5) Aviation System Finance; (6) Airport Financing; (7) Spending Guarantee Mechanisms; (8) Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Management and Organizational Issues; (9) System Capacity; (10) Aviation Safety; (11) Environmental and Energy Issues; (12) Airline Industry Issues; (13) Airline Passenger Rights Issues. Charts and tables.

The reporting requirements that the proposed legislation would place on FAA'S air traffic control modernization program would aid in continued congressional oversight of this problem-ridden program. Over the past 17 years, FAA'S multibillion-dollar program to modernize aging air traffic control systems has experienced cost overruns, schedule slippages, and performance problems of large proportions. Because of the program's size, complexity, cost, and problems, we have designated it as a high-risk information technology initiative since 1995. Our recent review of the program indicated continuing problems. For example, the Wide Area Augmentation System has incurred significant cost growth and schedule delays, and questions remain about whether the system can perform as originally intended.

GAO discussed the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act of 1993, as well as other issues related to the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) facilities and equipment, operations, and research activities. GAO noted that: (1) from fiscal year 1992 to 1993, Airport Improvement Program (AIP) discretionary funds decreased while the proportion of set-aside funds increased; (2) the Capital Investment Plan (CIP) has experienced serious cost and schedule problems with its major projects; (3) FAA has announced a major change to its air traffic control (ATC) facility consolidation plan that will increase CIP costs; (4) FAA needs to address long-standing modernization problems by developing well-supported mission need statements, supporting the development of alternative precision landing systems, and establishing goals to measure progress; (5) FAA needs a strategy to overcome ATC facility staffing imbalances; (6) opportunities exist for FAA to better use its inspector workforce; (7) FAA does not have reliable estimates on its maintenance technician staffing needs; (8) FAA has not provided resource estimates for its research, engineering and development (RE&D) efforts; (9) FAA is instituting new controls to set RE&D priorities and funding levels; (10) FAA efforts to track long-term research are under way; and (11) several interrelated factors will affect the success of the FAA RE&D program.