HOUSE WILL HANDLE: The House is poised to vote on the full FAA bill, H.R. 3935 (118), this week, after the Senate cleared it on Thursday, wrapping up months (and months) of negotiations, compromises and a last-minute fight over refund language for airline passengers and extra flights out of Congress’ favorite airport. The House could take up the bill as soon as Tuesday, according to a floor schedule released on Friday. — The House, at this moment, seems likely to clear the bill (perhaps against our better judgment — knowing how Congress works). There has been a sense of optimism from lawmakers who want to get the bill done and allow the FAA to move forward with provisions in the bill intended to improve safety, ease the gridlock on air traffic controller hiring and training, and more. The usual caveats apply in a Congress that's increasingly difficult to predict. — House Transportation Committee Ranking Member Rick Larsen (D-Wash.) told your MT host last week that the bill is solid and should pass the House. “There's a lot of good stuff in this bill that a lot of our members fought for when we put it together in the House,” he said. Others seem to agree that it's too important to let the perfect be the enemy of the good, including Rep. Rick Crawford (R-Ark.), who called it a "fair compromise." He continued: “I look forward to supporting this bill." TOP APPROPRIATOR ON BALTIMORE BRIDGE: Your MT host caught up with Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) last week to see what appropriators will do about the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. Cole, Rep. Steve Womack (R-Ark.), Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) and other members met with Maryland Gov. Wes Moore earlier this month to discuss funding the bridge repair efforts. Cole said the meeting was “terrific” and “very bipartisan.” What’s next: The first order of business, Cole said, is to make sure the emergency funding for the cleanup of debris and other recovery efforts “continues to flow.” There are a lot of Coast Guard, Navy and Army Corps of Engineers assets deployed to help with the effort, which Cole said Congress may have to make whole. He noted that would be a White House request and that “we would certainly be supportive of that.” A standalone bill: “It might be,” Cole said. “Again, the administration needs to figure that out, but we want to be helpful. I mean, this should never be partisan, and I’m so impressed with Gov. Moore. He’s a great guy to work with. Very impressed with the mayor and the county executive there.” Cole said it’s too early to know how much Congress needs to give out. “Probably the next action would be a request from the administration to fill up the funds if they're running short,” Cole said. He added his panel is willing to look at "forgoing" the traditional requirement of a 10 percent state cost share. “Nobody in Baltimore had anything to do with this.” BIDEN CELEBRATES INFRASTRUCTURE WEEK: President Joe Biden is trotting out his top aides and Cabinet members to remind Americans about what his signature spending bills — including the 2021 infrastructure law, the Inflation Reduction Act, CHIPS and pandemic relief laws — have done for them. This includes, the administration notes, progress on high-speed rail, improved roadways and cleaner drinking water to communities that lacked it. — It's not the easiest sell. A recent POLITICO-Morning Consult poll showed that voters don't know much about the laws or how they're affecting their lives — and perhaps even worse, that Biden only has a very slim edge over former President Donald Trump when it comes to perceptions about who did more for infrastructure. Chris has more here.
| 
No comments:
Post a Comment