Wed, Nov 08, 2006
Dems Control House, Senate Still To Be Determined
Results from Tuesday's midterm
elections are shaping up as many expected they would. Democrats
have seized control of the House of Representatives from the
Republicans... while the question of which party will have control
of the Senate is still up in the air.
And speaking of "up in the air"... how might this election
influence issues currently facing pilots, such as the issue of user
fees to fund the FAA?
Last week, Aero-News spoke
with Phil Boyer, president of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots
Association, about that very subject. Based on his insights from
that conversation, and what we know so far about Tuesday's
results... we may be in for a mixed bag.
Democrats have historically been more in favor of subsidies that
could help general aviation pilots avoid "pay per use" programs
being touted by the FAA, and the airlines, to fund the agency past
2007. Over time, that party has also had a generally more favorable
overall impact on general aviation, according to Boyer.
On the flip side, at least one expected GA advocate -- Democrat
Tammy Duckworth, a veteran of the Iraq war whose husband is a
private pilot -- lost her bid for the Illinois 6th to Republican
Peter Roskam.
Should the Senate remain under Republican control, that balance
of power... combined with a Democrat-led House, and a lame-duck
presidency for the next two years... could mean good news in the
end.
As Boyer puts it... GA would probably fare best with very little
attention being paid to minor issues as FAA funding.
You can bet the elections will be a hot topic at this week's
AOPA Expo in Palm Springs. Stay tuned...
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