To:
Jackson, Ryan[jackson.ryan@epa.gov]
From: Morning Transportation
Sent: Mon 7/10/2017 2:09:58 PM
Subject: POLITICO'S Morning Transportation, presented by Citizens for On Time Flights: Congress
turns to DOT'S 2018 budget -- G-20 leaders commits to aviation security measures -- Graves fails to
convince general aviation on ATC proposal
By Tanya Snyder and Lauren Gardner | 07/10/2017 10:00 AM EDT
With help from Brianna Gurciullo
IT BEGINS WITH A THUD: Something other than jostling over the FAA bill will be happening today, MT readers. House appropriators will mark up their fiscal 2018 spending bill for DOT Tuesday night, which means the legislation should be released tonight around 7 p.m. (House spending bills typically come out 24 hours before the subcommittee moves them). THUD is one of a handful of bills left to duke it out over $311 billion remaining for discretionary spending, as our friends (including MT alum Jennifer Scholtes) over at Pro's Budget and Appropriations Brief report. That's compared to the more than $346 billion those bills allocated for fiscal 2017.
What we're watching for: Trucking riders on federal preemption of state requirements for meal and rest breaks (which Senate Commerce tucked into its FAA bill last month), plus anything that broaches long-standing limits on size and weight. On funding, we're keeping an eye on the accounts for Capital Investment Grants (which the Trump administration has proposed phasing out), Amtrak (especially its long-distance routes) and TIGER grants, which remain popular among lawmakers despite the White House's suggestion to nix them.
IT'S MONDAY: Thanks for tuning in to POLITICO'S Morning Transportation, your daily tipsheet on all things trains, planes, automobiles and ports. Lauren is sharing the MT reins with Stephanie, so send your tips, feedback and lyrics to lgardner@politico.com or @ GardnerJLM and sbeasley@politico.com or @StephJBeasley.
"From your red balloon, you were a super high-tech jet fighter. Floating over planet earth, come back down here, I'll show you where it hurts
GET LISTENING: Follow MT's playlist on Spotify. What better way to start your day than with tunes (picked by us and readers) that are all about flying, driving and sailing?
THE WEEK AHEAD:
Monday - The State Department holds an event to mark the 10th anniversary of the U.S.European Union Open Skies Agreement.
Tuesday - AUVSI and TRB host the fourth annual Automated Vehicle Symposium in San Francisco. The Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee holds a hearing on the nominations of David Glawe to be Homeland Security undersecretary for intelligence and analysis and David Pekoske to be assistant Homeland Security secretary in the Transportation
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Security Administration. The House Appropriations Transportation-HUD Subcommittee marks up the fiscal 2018 spending bill.
Wednesday - ARTBA hosts the annual Public-Private Partnerships in Transportation conference. The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee holds a hearing on the use of TIFIA and innovative financing. The National Press Club hosts a luncheonwith Amtrak CEO Charles W. "Wick" Moorman IV. The Congressional PORTS Caucus co-chairs host a briefing on American coastal ports-of-entry. The House Appropriations Homeland Security subcommittee holds a markup of the fiscal 2018 Homeland Security Appropriations bill.
Thursday - The Senate Finance Committee holds a confirmation hearing on Kevin McAleenan's nomination to be U.S. Customs and Border Protection commissioner. The Senate Appropriations Transportation-HUD Subcommittee holds a hearing on DOT's fiscal 2018 budget. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao will testify.
Friday - The Federal Aviation Administration holds a Drone Advisory Committee meeting.
GLOBAL HONCHOS TALK AIR SECURITY AT G-20: World leaders gathered at the G-20 summit in Germany pledged Friday to implement "effective and proportionate" aviation security measures to prevent terrorist attacks, reports Cathy Buyck. They promised to work together to review, update, adapt and put in place international security standards based on evolving threats and potential vulnerabilities. A UN Security Council resolution signed last year urged closer collaboration among countries to prevent terrorist attacks and enhance global aviation security.
** A message from Citizens for On Time Flights: We should be outraged that a critical piece of our nation's infrastructure is "stuck in the 1950s." But that's where America's air traffic control system is today. ATC reform will bring us into the 21st century. That will mean fewer delays, enhanced safety and reduced emissions. Learn more at OnTimeFlights.Org. **
GRAVES STRUGGLES TO EXPLAIN GA BENEFITS OF FAA BILL: Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) reportedly struggled to answer tough questions at an aviation town hall in his hometown airport Saturday about why the FAA bill's plan to separate the air traffic control system from the FAA is good for general aviation. "I don't have a good answer for you," Graves replied, according to a report by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association that will be published (along with video) later today. "There are still a lot of details that have to be worked out in this process. And that's done by bureaucrats, unfortunately." The crowd was said to be smaller than previous events, and though everyone was polite, he was up against a united front of opposition to the plan. Graves, in a statement provided to POLITICO Saturday, acknowledged that "some differences remain" between him and the general aviation executives and experts at the event, but that it's important GA stay involved in the debate and "maintain a seat at the table" throughout the process.
FLORIDA MAN CHARGED AFTER IN-FLIGHT BRAWL: A Tampa, Fla , man was charged Friday with interfering with flight crewmembers after allegedly assaulting a Delta attendant on a plane that had taken off Thursday night for Beijing from Seattle. The U.S. attorney's office in the Western District of Washington identified him as 23-year-old Joseph
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Daniel Hudek IV, who could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Hudek, who was traveling in first class on a "dependent pass," made several trips to the bathroom, then lunged for an exit door and tried to open it. One flight attendant broke a wine bottle over Hudek's head in an attempt to subdue him after he had punched another attendant and a passenger multiple times (they had to go to the hospital for "severe facial injuries" after they landed). "Several additional passengers" helped to eventually restrain Hudek, who had managed to turn the emergency release lever of the door halfway. (Read the complaint here - it's bonkers.)
NOT A DRINK COUPON: In emails to members of its frequent flyer program Thursday, Southwest Airlines implored customers to "help us advocate for national ATC modernization." If you click the link to "let your voice be heard," it directs you to http://ww. ontimeflights. org/. (Alaska Airlines also promoted the website in a May blog post about air traffic control.) The program, dubbed "Citizens for On Time Flights," is "facilitated" by Airlines for America, according to spokesperson Chris Billeter. "The traveling and shipping public carries too much of the burden of delays, cancellations and wasted fuel, and Citizens for On Time Flights is dedicated to giving consumers who want more efficient air travel a voice in the debate for a better air traffic control system," Billeter emailed MT.
State by state: The group has what appear to be chapters set up in a handful of states, most of which are notable for being the homes of key authorizing and appropriating lawmakers who either oppose spinning off air traffic control operations from the FAA and into a nonprofit corporation, or at least aren't enthusiastically pushing it. They include Mississippi (Sen. Roger Wicker), South Dakota (Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune), Florida (Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart) and Maine (Sen. Susan Collins). There's also one in Arizona.
SOME LIGHT READING: Amtrak recently finished its five-year plan for the railroad's "service lines" (think Northeast Corridor, state-supported routes and long-distance lines, among others) required under the FAST Act, and passenger rail enthusiasts can check the report out here. It includes detailed breakdowns of where Amtrak gets its financial resources from and how exactly it spends them on operating and capital needs, as well as making debt service payments.
OPEN SKIES TURNS 25: The State Department is hosting an event this evening to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the first U.S. Open Skies agreement, signed with the Netherlands, and the 10th anniversary of the agreement with the European Union. The Partnership for Open & Fair Skies issued a statement saying they hope that "before the next milestone anniversary," the U.S. government will start enforcing the agreements to prevent countries like the United Arab Emirates and Qatar from "breaking the rules by funneling tens of billions of dollars in unfair government subsidies to ... airlines, distorting the international market and harming American workers."
LOBBYING UPDATE: Diana Cooper, senior vice president of policy and strategy for drone maker PrecisionHawk, registered to lobby on FAA reauthorization, bills connected to drones and federal regulations.
ARRIVALS AND DEPARTURES: David Friedman, a top official at NHTSA and the Department of Energy under President Barack Obama, has joined Consumers Union, the policy
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arm of Consumer Reports, as the director of cars and product policy and analysis. Matthew Lehner, former spokesman for Obama-era FRA Administrator Sarah Feinberg and a Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) alum, starts a new job today in Chicago at Uptake, a tech company that uses data analytics to help other companies (including some in the transportation realm) spot potential problems. And Houston Mills will move to UPS' global public affairs team to work on federal aviation policy and international aviation standards.
THE AUTOBAHN:
- "If you want your five bucks back, the FAA is refunding drone registrations." Gizmodo.
- Royal Jordanian, Kuwait Airlines lift laptop ban on U.S. flights. The Associated Press.
- "Battle emerging inside Trump administration over who controls immigration and refugees." Washington Post.
- "How to get to New York during Penn Station's summer repairs." The New York Times.
- "1 dead in Amtrak collision with vehicle in Richmond." ABC8 News.
- "Michigan's new Motor City: Ann Arbor as a driverless-car hub." The New York Times.
THE COUNTDOWN: DOT appropriations run out in 83 days. The FAA reauthorization expires in 83 days. Highway and transit policy is up for renewal in 1,179 days.
** A message from Citizens for On Time Flights: Innovation is in America's DNA. If this weren't the case, we'd still be watching black-and-white televisions, computers would be the size of refrigerators, and phones would be tethered to walls. Yet when it comes to our nation's air traffic control (ATC) system, we're using WW-II era technology. Today, controllers sequence planes for take-off using paper strips and track them in flight with ground-based radar. This outdated and inefficient system is responsible for nearly half of all flight delays, yet efforts to reform and improve it have stalled. American taxpayers deserve a 21st-century ATC system that delivers enhanced safety, fewer delays and cancellations, reduced emissions and lower costs. Opponents say reforming the system is too complicated. That's a copout. Since when has a challenge kept America from innovating? Congress has the opportunity to fix the ATC system's structure while giving taxpayers the modem system they deserve. Visit OnTimeFlights.Org to learn more. **
To view online'. http://www.politico.com/tipsheets/morning-transportation/2017/07/10/congress-turns-to-dots2018-budget-221244
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