Bennet blocks Senate approval of must-pass FAA bill over border fight

Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) placed a hold on the short-term Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill on Thursday to force senators to finish negotiations before the end of the year on border security measures that could unlock GOP support for aid to Ukraine and Israel.

The stopgap bill, which would extend the authorization until March 8, must be approved before the FAA authority expires on Dec. 31. The Senate is seeking to pass the reauthorization bill with unanimous consent, which requires an agreement from all 100 senators to pass quickly.

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“I’m willing to hold this up as long as it takes,” Bennet told reporters Thursday afternoon. “Nothing is more important than seizing the moment and getting Ukraine done while we can. I think there are people in good faith working on both sides of this.”

Even though recess is scheduled to begin at the end of the week, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) indicated the Senate would return next week for votes. This would allow negotiators more time to strike a deal while further delaying passage of the short-term FAA extension.

Even if a deal is struck on the supplemental aid bill and the Senate votes on it, there is skepticism the House will take up the legislation by the end of the year. Bennet doesn’t think that should affect the Senate’s work schedule.

“I think, practically speaking, the most important thing we can do is to have a strong bipartisan vote in the Senate, and I think that will signal to the House that they ought to consider it themselves,” he said.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), the ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee, slammed Bennet’s objections to advancing the FAA extension.

“At the moment, we face a potential challenge of not extending the FAA authorities because of the objections of a Senate Democrat. This is irresponsible and frankly bad for the safety agency’s ability to operate effectively for the past year,” Cruz said, speaking on the Senate floor on Thursday.

The Colorado senator fired back at Cruz’s criticism.

“I don’t think it’s irresponsible for me to be here today to object,” Bennet said on the Senate floor after blocking unanimous consent on the bill. “I think it is critically important for us to use this moment to fulfill our obligations in the world.”

Bennet has been outspoken about his desire to secure funding for Ukraine before the end of the year, and he even initially delayed passage of the National Defense Authorization Act on Wednesday in a bid to keep the Senate from going home for recess.

The full FAA reauthorization bill continues to be held up in committee over disputes on whether to change pilot training requirements and whether to allow flight simulator training to count toward the required 1,500 hours of in-flight experience to become a certified pilot.

The House passed its version of the bill 351-69 on July 20. Its version would keep standards for pilot training the same. However, the legislation raised the mandatory pilot retirement age from 65 to 67, which is intended to expand the pilot workforce. The measure faces opponents in both parties and the Biden administration who argue the change could affect safety and cause headaches because pilots older than 65 cannot fly internationally.

In addition to the pilot retirement age policy, lawmakers must resolve a dispute about expanding the perimeter rule for the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. A group of lawmakers is attempting to increase the number of long-distance flights at the airport, which has limits on the number of flights that can travel more than 1,250 miles away.

Cruz emphasized his frustration with passing a short-term extension in the first place.

“We now find ourselves having to pass a second short-term FAA authorization in less than six months without having gotten the bill through committee. This situation was entirely avoidable,” he said.

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“There have been several times throughout this process where we thought we had a deal. But inevitably, some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle were often spurred on by the union that tanked these agreements,” he added.

Even if Congress can approve a short-term extension by the end of the year, industry leaders are concerned the dysfunction could create a safety risk, as more than 130 million people are expected to travel for the holidays this year, according to a recent NerdWallet survey. The surge in travel comes as an independent U.S. aviation review team called for “urgent action” to prevent plane crashes last month.