General aviation advocacy groups are lambasting the US Federal Aviation Administration for submitting in the fiscal year 2009 budget what appears to be an identical copy of the soundly defeated user-fee programme it proposed in the 2008 budget.
"Despite Congress saying 'no' to the Administration's proposal to scrap the current funding mechanism for a less efficient one that imposes user fees, they have once again launched an effort to complete an FAA authorisation bill by proposing the exact same failed plan," says Pete Bunce, president and chief executive of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association. National Business Aviation Association officials offered similar views when the budget was revealed on 4 February.
The architect of the user-fee plan, former FAA administrator Marion Blakey, now head of the Aerospace Industries Association, praised the FAA budget proposal. "The request for fiscal 2009 includes a three-fold increase in funding for development and implementation of the Next Generation Air Transportation System, known as NextGen," she said. "This will allow further progress toward NextGen implementation, and I would encourage Congress to support this proposal."
FAA's overall request is for $14.6 billion, with $688 million allocated for NextGen, an increase of $212 million over the proposed 2008 budget, which has not yet been approved. A resolution currently funding the FAA will expire on 29 February.
Source: Flight International
