Stating it’s no longer essential and should be eliminated, Oklahoma U.S. Senator James Lankford has introduced an amendment to the Federal Aviaton Administration Reauthorization Act of 2016 to do away with the program called the Department of Transportation Essential Air Service.
It was an idea he introduced last November in releasing his “Federal Fumbles” government waste report.
“With any bill the Senate addresses, we need to continue to push recommendations that reduce government waste and protect the taxpayer,” said Sen. Lankford.. “This amendment focuses on cutting waste out of the Federal Aviation Administration and ensures they focus more on their true mission, to facilitate the safest air space system in the world.”
The program was created in the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978 to temporarily subsidize commercial flights to small community airports. It was meant to be a temporary program to help the airports transition into the free market system. But 40 years later, the program is still subsidizing flights and the program has become a permament mechanism for subsidizing airlines in low traffic areas.
“It is simply unfair to expect families in 99 percent of cities to subsidize convenient travel options for passengers flying in and out of the seldom-used 144 Essential Air Service airports. Congress should recognize that this 37-year temporary program is no longer essential and should eliminate it.”
