Washington Wire: Schumer Vows to Block NYC Airport Slot Auctions

Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) is vowing to block a Federal Aviation Administration proposal to force airlines to auction some slots at New York City's three airports, a move the Bush administration said will encourage competition and ease congestion. The proposed rules, announced in April and May, would affect less than 20 percent of slots at LaGuardia, 14 percent at Kennedy and 8 percent at Newark, while capping flights to reduce delays. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said the rules, which could become effective late this year or early in 2009, will drive down fares. Schumer, testifying before the House Aviation Subcommittee on June 18, called the proposal "an ideological, untested experiment coming from somebody in an ivory tower. I will act quickly to prevent this plan from being implemented." U.S. Transportation Department spokesman Brian Turmail said, "Senator Schumer appears to be more interested in obstructing measures to cut delays than in modernizing the nation's air traffic control system and managing chronic aviation congestion. The Bush Administration will continue to pursue aggressive steps to make operational improvements, expand aviation capacity and put in place solutions to scheduling practices that jam runways at the busiest times of the day." Airlines and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airports, also oppose the DOT plan. Air Transport Association president and CEO James May noted at that hearing how rare it was for his association's "competitive, and sometimes fractious membership" to be aligned on a policy issue, nevermind the Port Authority. Slot auctions and congestion pricing, May said, "conceal the root problem underlying delays," which he said were the lack of airspace and air traffic management infrastructure.

IRS Raises Vehicle Reimbursement Rate
Effective July 1, the Internal Revenue Service is raising its mileage reimbursement rate by 8 cents to 58.5 cents per mile. AAA said the gasoline price per gallon has risen by one dollar since January, when IRS last adjusted the rate from 44.5 cents to 50.5 cents per mile.

House Passes Watch List Redress Bill
The House of Representatives adopted legislation June 18 to make it easier for travelers wrongly placed on terrorist watch lists to correct the record. The bill establishes an office within the Department of Homeland Security to expedite reviews of appeals for individuals who claim they were wrongly put on the list and generate a "cleared list" of individuals who go through extra vetting. Bill Connors, executive director of the National Business Travel Association, said, "The FAST Redress Act would help to rectify misidentifications, reducing traveler inconveniences and increasing productivity for business travelers affected by false positive." The bill now goes to the Senate.