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Friday, April 1, 2011

Pierluisi Ensures Equal Treatment For Puerto Rico's Airports

Washington, DC- The U.S. House of Representatives today approved legislation that expressly guarantees equal treatment for Puerto Rico’s airports with respect to federal funding, after Resident Commissioner Pedro Pierluisi successfully offered an amendment on the subject.

The amendment filed by Pierluisi, and adopted by the House, ensures that Puerto Rico’s 11 public-use airports will be treated equally to airports in the States with regards to both formula and discretionary funding allocated by the federal government under the Airport Improvement Program. These funds are used to maintain and upgrade airports across the country.

The Resident Commissioner defended his amendment on the House floor, and it obtained the support of Chairman John Mica (R-FL) and Ranking Member Nick Rahall (D-WV), the lead Republican and Democrat on the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, which has jurisdiction over the bill, the FAA Reauthorization and Reform Act of 2011.

“There is no reasonable basis to treat Puerto Rico less-than-equally when it comes to obtaining federal funds under the Airport Improvement Program, especially since aviation serves such a critical role on the Island,” said Pierluisi.

“Puerto Rico is heavily dependent on safe and reliable air service to carry passengers and transport goods to and from the U.S. mainland. The Island’s main airport, the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, is ranked among the top 50 commercial service airports in the United States in terms of the number of passenger boardings, averaging over four-and-half million boardings each year,” explained the Resident Commissioner in his floor speech.

Apart from Luis Muñoz Marín, Puerto Rico is home to five other commercial service airports, located in Aguadilla, Ponce, Mayagüez, Isla Grande and Vieques, as well as to five other general aviation airports that serve smaller communities.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration, Puerto Rico needs $285 million over the next five years to bring its airports up to current design standards, to add capacity to meet projected needs, and to improve safety.

In addition, the House Committee on Rules, which determines those amendments that will be considered on the House floor, accepted for debate a second amendment filed by Pierluisi, related to the Essential Air Service (EAS) program, which was created to help maintain airline service at approximately 140 smaller and more rural airports throughout the nation. The EAS program, administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation, currently provides subsidies to carriers serving Mercedita Airport in Ponce and Eugenio María de Hostos (“El Mani”) Airport in Mayagüez.

The House bill would phase out the EAS program by October 2013, but would authorize the Secretary of Transportation to continue the program in Alaska and Hawaii past that date. The amendment filed by Pierluisi would add Puerto Rico to the list of jurisdictions where the EAS program can be continued beyond 2013.

“The sound arguments that militate in favor of allowing the Secretary this discretion with respect to Alaska and Hawaii apply with similar force with respect to Puerto Rico,” Pierluisi argued.

In response to Pierluisi’s amendment, Chairman Mica committed to working with the Resident Commissioner as the House and Senate deliberate over the future of the EAS program in the coming weeks.

“Thanks to Chairman Mica’s pledge, I feel confident that the EAS program will continue in Puerto Rico. This program is of great importance to my constituents, especially those who reside in Ponce and Mayagüez,” said the Resident Commissioner.