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A young passenger runs through the hallway of Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport on November 21, 2023 in Arlington, Virginia.
Washington
CNN
—
The House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a one-week extension of the federal aviation program. This is a stopgap measure aimed at circumventing the looming weekend deadline.
Congress faces a Friday deadline of May 10 for reauthorization of Federal Aviation Administration officials. This moves the deadline to next Friday, May 17th.
Now that it has passed the House, the Senate must next pass an extension bill.
The move to pass the one-week patch comes as the Senate works to pass a five-year FAA reauthorization bill. But it was unclear whether the bill could pass both chambers by Friday’s deadline, as senators sought various amendments.
The broader FAA reauthorization bill is expected to ultimately pass with broad bipartisan support. But ongoing debate over some of the bill’s provisions, and the need for unanimous consent for the bill’s quick passage, prompted one senator to delay passage of the extension bill beyond Friday night’s deadline. there is a possibility.
Lawmakers announced late last month that they had reached bipartisan agreement on a sweeping FAA reauthorization bill, which sparked extensive debate.
One flash point centers on flights at Reagan National Airport in the Washington, D.C., area, with a group of Washington-area Senate Democrats opposing the addition of long-haul flights and a package currently under discussion. They are requesting a vote on an amendment to remove the airport from the list.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said Wednesday that the Senate is “working hard” to complete the broader FAA reauthorization, ahead of the House’s move to pass an extension.
Schumer told his weekly press conference that although the chamber was deadlocked on which amendments to vote on, “we are working hard to get started and finish.”
Republican Majority Leader John Thune welcomed the House’s move to pass FAA reauthorization in a week, but warned there was still no agreement on how to move the reauthorization through the Senate quickly.
“It just gives us a little bit of breathing room,” Thune said. “I think the goal is still to get it through the Senate this week and get a result, but at least for now it could be punted if necessary.”
The Biden administration said Wednesday it “supports enactment” of a sweeping FAA reauthorization bill.
“FAA reauthorization is critical to improving aviation safety, increasing the efficiency of aviation systems, strengthening passenger rights, and working with international partners,” the Office of Management and Budget said in a statement Wednesday evening. .
This story has been updated with additional developments.
CNN’s Ted Barrett, Lauren Fox, Gregory Wallace and Samantha Woldenberg contributed to this report.
