Congresswoman Waters and 34 other Members of Congress Urge FAA Not to Consolidate Regional Offices
Today, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA) sent a letter to Mr. Robert A. Sturgell, the Acting Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), urging him to suspend all plans to consolidate the engineering services at the FAA's regional offices. The letter was signed by 4 members of the United States Senate and 31 members of the House of Representatives. The FAA has nine regional offices, including one in Los Angeles, which serve airports and air travelers nationwide. The text of the letter follows:
It has come to our attention that the Federal Aviation Administration may be considering plans to consolidate the engineering services at the FAA's nine regional offices and eliminate the engineering services at several of these offices.
We share your commitment to ensure the safety and efficiency of air travel throughout the United States. However, we are concerned that the FAA's consolidation plans would compromise air travel safety and reduce the efficiency of the services performed by the regional offices.
The consolidation of engineering services at the FAA's regional offices presumably would reduce or eliminate positions for experienced engineers at the regional offices in Anchorage, Burlington/Nashua, Chicago, Kansas City, New York and Los Angeles. This would compromise the safety of air travel in the regions of the United States served by these offices. Safe and efficient air travel requires engineering and support services that are accessible and convenient for the airports and air travelers that rely on them.
We are concerned that this consolidation may be a step toward the closure of several of the FAA's regional offices. The pending consolidation would be the latest of several administrative actions to reduce personnel in the regional offices. Last year, the FAA consolidated the Air Traffic Organization's administrative and technical support services. The previous year, the FAA consolidated financial accounting services at the regional offices. Consolidation of the engineering services would fit into a clear pattern that suggests plans to consolidate the FAA's nine regional offices into three offices, which would then be expected to serve all fifty states.
H.R. 2881, the FAA Reauthorization Act, as passed by the House of Representatives on September 20, includes language (Section 807) to require the Secretary of Transportation to establish a working group on FAA consolidation. This working group would review proposals to consolidate FAA facilities and services, obtain input from affected stakeholders and comments from the public, and make recommendations to Congress. The FAA would not be allowed to consolidate any of its facilities or services, including the regional offices, until Congress has had an opportunity to consider the working group's recommendations. The FAA Reauthorization Act is awaiting action in the Senate and could be signed into law this year.
In the meantime, the FAA should not move forward with plans to consolidate the regional offices without Congressional consultation and oversight. Therefore, we recommend that you suspend all plans to consolidate the FAA's engineering services and consult with Members of Congress regarding the future of the FAA's regional offices and the services performed by these offices.
We appreciate your attention to our concerns. We look forward to working with you to ensure that the FAA's regional offices are able to provide safe and efficient services to the American people.
Sincerely,
Maxine Waters Barack Obama
Paul Hodes Edward M. Kennedy
Gary L. Ackerman John F. Kerry
Barney Frank Barbara Boxer
Adam B. Schiff Janice Schakowsky
James P. McGovern Michael A. Arcuri
Mark Steven Kirk Xavier Becerra
Edward Markey Laura Richardson
John F. Tierney Gregory W. Meeks
John M. McHugh Alcee Hastings
Jane Harman Bob Filner
William D. Delahunt Ed Pastor
Nancy Boyda Dan Lipinski
Dennis Moore Michael E. Capuano
Joe Baca Linda T. Sánchez
Grace Napolitano John Lewis
Phil Hare Emanuel Cleaver
Rahm Emanuel
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