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Senate Unanimously Passes Sen. Moran’s Bipartisan Bill to Improve Safety of FAA System and Prevent Outages

Legislation to strengthen Notice to Air Missions (NOTAM) system heads to the House

May 09 2023

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Senate unanimously passed bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) – ranking member of the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation and co-chair of the Senate Travel and Tourism Caucus – and U.S. Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) to help prevent Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) system outages.

The NOTAM Improvement Act would require the FAA to strengthen the resiliency and cybersecurity of the NOTAM system, which alerts pilots of safety and location hazards on flight routes. This bill follows a recent NOTAM system outage in January that grounded flights nationwide.

“The FAA has a responsibility to make certain air travel in our country is as safe and efficient as possible,” said Sen. Moran. “I am pleased by the swift passage of this legislation and urge my colleagues to quickly pass this in the House. The complete failure of the FAA’s NOTAM system stranded millions of Americans and was a warning of the need to strengthen and modernize our air travel system. This bill is an important first step to accomplish those goals.”

The task force created by the NOTAM Improvement Act would be composed of representatives from air carriers, airports and airline pilots, aircraft dispatchers and FAA personnel unions, as well as aviation safety and cybersecurity experts.

In January, Sens. Moran and Klobuchar spoke with FAA Acting Administrator Billy Nolen following the NOTAM system failure to discuss his agency’s efforts to identify the factors behind the system outage that grounded all flights nationwide and to prevent similar breakdowns from happening again.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) and Jon Tester (D-Mont.) introduced legislation to bolster and attract new air service to small communities across the country.

The Small Community Air Service Development Program (SCASDP) was designed to allow small airports to apply for grants to help support and draw air carrier service to their airports. Sens. Moran and Tester’s legislation, the Small Community Air Service Enhancement Act, will improve the SCASDP by increasing available funding for this competitive program and ensuring airports which have experienced a significant reduction in air service are prioritized.

“Every flight counts in small communities with limited access to air travel, where each flight can have a significant impact on drawing new businesses and families to a region,” said Sen. Moran. “Strengthening the Small Community Air Service Development Program will help small airports attract commercial flights increasing connectivity across the state of Kansas.”

“Expanding reliable air service is essential for Montana so we can lower flight costs, create jobs, and keep families connected across our state,” said Sen. Tester. “That’s why I’m teaming up with Senator Moran to reauthorize the Small Community Air Service Development Program, which helps our rural airports offer more flights and support travel and commerce in Montana for years to come.”

“Senator Moran has been a consistent supporter and friend to aviation so we feel extremely fortunate to have his leadership as we look towards FAA Reauthorization and finding opportunities to help us rebuild post-COVID,” said Jesse R. Romo, Director of Airports, Wichita Airport Authority. “We support the proposed improvements to the SCASDP that not only gives the U.S. DOT increased funding, but it also expands their focus to take into consideration several items that are pertinent to small hub airports, like Wichita Eisenhower National Airport.”

“Increasing the funding to the Small Community Air Service Development Program will allow regional airports an opportunity to grow commercial service and further enhance those communities,” said Brandon Keazer, Airport Director of Manhattan Regional Airport.

“Unfortunately, the global pandemic accelerated air service losses in small and rural communities throughout America,” said Kevin Burke, ACI-NA President and CEO. “Airports appreciate Senators Moran and Tester leading this effort to give those communities most impacted by air service challenges another opportunity to showcase their vitality and viability to airlines and travelers alike.” 

“We’re grateful to Senators Moran and Tester for their continued leadership in helping airports and communities attract and maintain air service,” said Todd Hauptli, AAAE President and CEO. “Enhancing the Small Community Air Service Development Program is an important element in helping ensure that travelers in underserved areas have continued access to the nation’s air transportation system.”
 

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WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R-Kan.) today applauded the Senate passage of a Congressional Review Act (CRA) Resolution of Disapproval introduced by Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kan.) to nullify the listing of the lesser prairie-chicken as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. Companion legislation was led by Congressman Tracey Mann (KS-01) in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Today, the Senate acted to protect farmers, ranchers and producers from the unnecessary consequences of listing the lesser prairie chicken,” said Sen. Moran. “Listing the bird as a threatened or endangered species is not the answer – plain and simple, we need more rainfall, not more regulation. I am confident there are ways to conserve the species without hindering economic development in rural communities, and I will continue to push for a voluntary solution. I appreciate the Senate acting quickly to pass this resolution and Sen. Marshall’s efforts to bring this legislation to the floor.”

Click HERE to Watch Sen. Moran’s Full Remarks


Items to Note:

  • On May 21, 2021, Sens. Moran and Marshall joined their colleagues in urging U.S. Department of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland to not list the lesser prairie-chicken under the Endangered Species Act.
  • On July 16, 2021, Sens. Moran and Marshall and Rep. Mann led a group of their colleagues in requesting a 90-day extension to the comment period for the proposed listing of the lesser prairie-chicken.

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