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“DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT-- Continued” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Senate section on pages S10827 on Sept. 14, 1999.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS ACT--
Continued
Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the time on two amendments that have been offered by Senator Wyden relative to airline reporting be limited to 1 hour of total debate, to be equally divided in the usual form. I further ask that votes occur on or in relation to the Wyden amendments in the order in which they were offered, beginning at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, tomorrow, with 2 minutes for explanation between each vote and no additional amendments in order prior to the votes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. SHELBY. Mr. President, in light of this agreement, there will be no further votes this evening, and the next votes will occur at 11 a.m. Wednesday, tomorrow.
Mr. WYDEN addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon.
Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, I want to commend the distinguished Senator from West Virginia for an excellent statement with respect to the air traffic control system. It seems to me what the Senator from West Virginia has pointed out is that our country, to some extent, wants a 21st century air traffic control system and they want to figure out how to do it on a 19th century budget.
The Senator from West Virginia, it seems to me, is saying it is time for all of us in the Congress to, in effect, put our dollars where our mouth is with respect to safety. If you are serious about improving safety, you have to fund this woefully inadequate air traffic control system.
The fact of the matter is, the Senator from West Virginia has spent many years battling to strengthen the air traffic control system, as has the distinguished ranking minority member of the Senate Commerce Committee, Senator Hollings. I think the Senator from West Virginia has given an extremely important address this afternoon in terms of highlighting how critical it is to the safety agenda of the American people. You cannot do what is needed to improve safety for airline passengers in this country without following the recommendations of the Senator from West Virginia. I wanted him to know that his remarks were heard, and heard clearly, by this junior member of the Commerce Committee.
I will wrap up this afternoon by thanking again Senator Shelby and Senator Lautenberg for their support of the two amendments I am offering that will be voted on in the morning. They are simple, straightforward amendments calling for disclosure with respect to overbooking of airline flights, making sure the passengers can actually know about the lowest fares that are available, whether it is over the telephone or on a web site.
As we wrap up this afternoon, my understanding is that we will have additional time to discuss this on the floor of the Senate tomorrow morning. I am very proud to have the support of the chairman of the subcommittee, Mr. Shelby, and the ranking minority member, Mr. Lautenberg, on the two amendments that will come up tomorrow morning with respect to disclosure. I also thank their staffs and the staffs of the Commerce Committee, who have been working to make it possible, procedurally, for the Senate to consider these in the morning.
With that, I yield the floor.
Mr. LAUTENBERG addressed the Chair.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from New Jersey.
Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Oregon for his contribution in the form of these amendments. We work together on the Budget Committee, and on other matters. He is always thoughtful on the matters he brings to the Senate.
Before the Senator from West Virginia leaves the room, I want to say to him that one of the things he talked about, sort of indirectly, in terms of getting the FAA up to the point that it should be in order to take care of the volume of traffic we have--we must make air travel more user friendly. You do that by providing an infrastructure that can accommodate the volume of traffic we have. I commend the Senator from West Virginia. He works very hard on matters of aviation. We are grateful to him for his contribution.
I would like to say this. One of the things that kind of pervades the discussion that has gone on here for the last while by the Senator from Oregon and the Senator from West Virginia is that there has to be a change in attitude, in my view.
The airlines have to understand that they have a precious commodity when they have license to offer the services that they do. They are not unlike the doctor who provides excellent service who uses the hospital operating room for his or her work.
We provide airspace--limited airspace. We provide huge investment in technology to have a system operate better. We provide airports. We provide facilities. And all of this is not designed to punish. My conversation is not designed to punish the airlines but to make sure it is remembered that they are serving the public, with the permission of the Government indirectly, by providing the kinds of facilities that can accommodate the number of flights and the routes that are being used. It is user friendly.
I recently proposed something in New Jersey that has some people in government a little nervous. I suggested that when someone has to wait to pay a toll and it gets beyond a certain point, the drivers be permitted to go through free. I call it a deadline, Don't Encumber Drivers--DED--because otherwise those toll road authorities just collect their money. It just takes them a little while longer. But the one who pays and gets less service is the driver. You sit there in all of that smog, fog, and congestion. You miss your appointment, you don't get to work, you don't get to school, you don't get to the doctor, and shopping is not done on time.
Why is it that the user is the one always pays the price?
You go into a well operated supermarket, and they open more lanes so you can pay your bills faster because they know you don't want to stand around there to have to give them your money. So it is also, I think, with the airlines.
I don't want to see them punished. This isn't designed to be punitive. What we are suggesting here is designed to make it fairer for the traveling passenger. Rather than bumping people, there ought to be other ways to deal with it, so that if someone is bumped, the airline also feels the pressure--not just the passenger if the airline chose to oversell the seats.
I don't want to see the airlines flying with empty seats. That is not a mission at all. Maybe they have to come up with a different scheme. Maybe there has to be a deposit when you make an airline reservation. I have talked to lots of people who would make two or three reservations on airplanes on different flights so they could do it at their convenience, which means that someone else could not fly because they have blocked these seats. Maybe there has to be a deposit when the reservation is made to be used either for a trip or as a cost for doing business.
If you want to have furniture delivered to your house, you can't get it delivered without suffering some kind of a penalty if they deliver it and nobody is home and they have to turn around and take it back, or if you want to cancel midstream. Try buying a car without a deposit. They will tell you no. You can't have your wash done without having a laundry ticket.
In any event, I yield the floor.
I note the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative assistant proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. GORTON. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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