Dodd Praises Efforts to Hold FAA Accountable for Flawed Airspace Redesign

Press Release

Dodd Praises Efforts to Hold FAA Accountable for Flawed Airspace Redesign

Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) today praised approval of a provision requiring the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to report back to the Senate after the Government Accountability Office (GAO) releases its review of the FAA's proposed airspace redesign. The provision, which was introduced by Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee, would require the FAA Administrator to report the agency's attempts to address any concerns or recommendations raised in the GAO's report to the Senate Committee on Appropriations and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Justice, Science, and Transportation.

"I applaud Senator Lautenberg's efforts to force the FAA to address the concerns that many of us in Congress have raised about their proposed changes to regional flight patterns. Over the past year, I have found that extracting answers from the FAA has been difficult at best, and often impossible. Given the drastic impact their plan could have on the quality of life for residents of southwestern Connecticut and the rest of the tri-state region, the FAA's unresponsiveness is simply unacceptable. I am confident that the GAO report will shed some much-needed light on the airspace redesign plan, and I look forward to soon hearing a comprehensive response from the FAA."

Last year, Senators Dodd and Lieberman requested that the GAO examine the fairness and full analysis of the four alternative options in their study examining the proposed FAA airspace redesign plan. The GAO is expected to release its final report at the end of July.

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