WASHINGTON— Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed “The Reducing Flight Delays Act of 2013” to put an end to the FAA furlough of air traffic controllers by a bipartisan vote of 361-41. Congresswoman Lynn Jenkins (R-KS) released the following statement in support of the bill:

“Americans are not pawns upon whom the administration can inflict pain to make a political point. The president already had the ability to prevent these flight delays, and did not act. So today, Congress took responsible action to put the American people above politics. The Reducing Flight Delays Act will ensure the safety and efficiency of our nation’s transportation system by providing the FAA with the authority to prioritize funding and restore air traffic control operations. This bill will also provide the FAA with more than enough flexibility to keep the contract towers at Forbes Field and Philip Billard Municipal Airport open, along with approximately 149 contract towers across the country.

“The FAA’s operations budget has grown by nearly 110 percent since 1996, while domestic flight traffic is down 27 percent. There is no reason the FAA had to furlough essential staff to absorb a 5 percent budget cut. They had a year and a half to plan for the sequester, but instead of making adequate reforms and cutting waste, the administration chose to disrupt our transportation system. We must put an end to this shameful, status quo politicking, and this vote was a step in the right direction.” 

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