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“WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF 1998” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Senate section on pages S10831-S10833 on Sept. 23, 1998.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
WENDELL H. FORD NATIONAL AIR TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM IMPROVEMENT ACT OF
1998
The Senate continued with the consideration of the bill.
Amendments Nos. 3623, 3624, And 3625, En Bloc
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arizona.
Mr. McCAIN. On behalf of Senator Snowe, I send three amendments to the desk and ask unanimous consent that they be considered en bloc.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the amendments.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Arizona [Mr. McCain], for Ms. Snowe, proposes amendments en bloc numbered 3623, 3624 and 3625.
The amendments are as follows:
Amendment No. 3623
(Purpose: To provide increased civil penalties for violation of the prohibition against discrimination against handicapped individuals, and for other purposes)
On page 121, line 1, strike ``INTERNATIONAL''.
On page 121, line 3, before ``The'' insert ``(a) Establishment of Higher International Standards.--''.
On page 121, between lines 9 and 10, insert the following:
(b) Increased Civil Penalties.--Section 46301(a) is amended by--
(1) inserting ``41705,'' after ``41704,'' in paragraph
(1)(A); and
(2) adding at the end thereof the following:
``(7) Unless an air carrier that violates section 41705 with respect to an individual provides that individual a credit or voucher for the purchase of a ticket on that air carrier or any affiliated air carrier in an amount
(determined by the Secretary) of--
``(A) not less than $500 and not more than $2,500 for the first violation; or
``(B) not less than $2,500 and not more than $5,000 for any subsequent violation, that air carrier is liable to the United States Government for a civil penalty, determined by the Secretary, of not more than 100 percent of the amount of the credit or voucher so determined. For purposes of this paragraph, each act of discrimination prohibited by section 41705 constitutes a separate violation of that section.''.
On page 89, strike the item relating to section 507 and insert the following:
Sec. 507. Higher standards for handicapped access.
amendment no. 3624
(Purpose: To require human weather observers for ASOS stations until the automated system reports consistently on changing conditions)
At the appropriate place, insert the following new section:
SEC. . AUTOMATED SURFACE OBSERVATION SYSTEM STATIONS.
The Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall not terminate human weather observers for Automated Surface Observation System stations until--
(1) the Secretary of Transportation determines that the System provides consistent reporting of changing meteorological conditions and notifies the Congress in writing of that determination; and
(2) 60 days have passed since the report was submitted to the Congress.
amendment no. 3625
(Purpose: To provide that communities participating in the community-
carrier air service program will be selected from all regions of the country)
On page 147, line 4, after ``program.'' insert the following: ``For purposes of this subsection, the application of geographical diversity criteria means criteria that--
``(1) will promote the development of a national air transportation system; and
``(2) will involve the participation of communities in all regions of the country.''.
Ms. SNOWE. Mr. President, I thank the Chairman, Senator McCain, and the ranking member, Senator Ford, for their assistance with my three amendments.
One way that the FAA reauthorization bill will improve the nation's air service is through the new Community Carrier Air Service Program. This program will provide assistance to communities so that underserved markets can attract carriers.
The Secretary of Transportation will select communities to participate in this program based on geographic diversity and other unique circumstances that presently hinder communities from attracting adequate air service. It is important to note that the intent of this language is to ensure that participation in the program will promote the development of a national air transportation system. And my amendment will ensure that it involves the Transportation must ensure this diversity so that every region of the nation can benefit from the program.
An important provision for Maine's pilots is included in my amendment on the ASOS program. This amendment requires that the Federal Aviation Administration retain human observers at the automated surface transportation system stations which have had a high rate of reporting error. The language in the amendment requires the FAA to correct the problems and notify Congress that the problems have been solved before it can remove a human observer from an ASOS station.
ASOS is an automatic weather observance system which uses electronic sensors, computers and display units to detect weather. It is fully automated and computerized and is intended to replace human observers of on-the-ground weather conditions in specific locales. Information from ASOS sensors are transmitted to a computer, and users, like pilots, can call a special phone number or tune into a special radio frequency to obtain information.
ASOS is intended to make weather information collection and dissemination more cost-effective by replacing the human element with electronics. The problem is that in the northern tier states, such as Maine, the ASOS system has problems discerning certain weather conditions. For example, sleet falls faster than snow so ASOS records it as rain and recently heavy smoke from Canadian forest fires caused the ASOS at the Houlton airport to report heavy fog at the airport. Needless to say, flying through fog is very different than flying through smoke. This is a very serious matter and could result in life threatening problems if a pilot does not have the proper weather information.
The ASOS systems in Maine have been very unreliable. The station in Houlton recorded more than 1,400 mistakes in one year. A letter from the FAA dated May 26, 1998, to you admits the problems with the system.
My third amendment increases fines for those airlines which chose to discriminate against the handicapped. Although the airlines have been working to improve their treatment of the handicapped, there have been some incidents which warrant a sizable fine by the Department of Transportation.
For example, one of my constituents, Ms. Alice Conway, of Portland, Maine was returning from Mexico in 1994 after attending a disabilities related conference. Her story is a very unfortunate one and clearly illustrates the need for penalties which will deter such treatment by the airlines and their employees.
The problem began for Alice in Mexico City. There a mechanical problem forced a 45 minute delay in departure. While other passengers were able to exit the plane, nobody offered to help Ms. Conway off the plane. After the flight finally got underway, Ms. Conway, who is paraplegic, asked to use the aisle chair in order to visit the restroom. Ms. Conway was denied access to the restroom because the chair had been forgotten.
At one point of the flight, the plane landed in Indianapolis. On the ground there, the flight attendants refused to bring her a chair and denied her any assistance which would have allowed her to visit the restroom. As the flight traveled to Chicago, she asked is she could scoot along the aisle of the aircraft to get to the restroom, a flight attendant told her that sitting in the aisle was illegal and if she did so, she would be arrested when they landed.
Finally, after seven hours of travel, an attendant gave her a blanket and a bottle so that she could empty her colostomy pouch while sitting in her seat.
She had to empty her colostomy pouch in her seat!
How can any of us condone such behavior? Thankfully, this bill contains language that will create stiff penalties for those who violate the law.
Again, I thank the Senator from Arizona and the Senator from Kentucky and their staff for their assistance in coming to agreement on these three amendments.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I understand that these amendments have been cleared on both sides. I support them.
Mr. FORD. Mr. President, I have no objections and support the three amendments of the Senator from Maine, Ms. Snowe.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There being no further discussion on the amendments, without objection, the amendments are agreed to.
The amendments (Nos. 3623, 3624, and 3625) were agreed to.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
Mr. FORD. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Amendment No. 3626
(Purpose: To make technical corrections in the managers' amendment)
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, on behalf of myself and Senator Ford, I send an amendment to the desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the amendment.
The assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
The Senator from Arizona [Mr. McCain], for himself and Mr. Ford, proposes an amendment numbered 3626.
Mr. FORD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that reading of the amendment be dispensed with.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The amendment is as follows:
On page 48 of the managers' amendment, strike
``additional'' in line 12, line 16, and line 23.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, this amendment is in the nature of technical corrections, and I ask for its immediate consideration.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. There being no further debate, without objection, the amendment is agreed to.
The amendment (No. 3626) was agreed to.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I move to reconsider the vote.
Mr. FORD. I move to lay that motion on the table.
The motion to lay on the table was agreed to.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, shortly we will have a list of agreed upon amendments for tomorrow. We do not have time agreements on those amendments, I am sorry to say, but we at least have the list narrowed down, and I am confident we are now approaching the point where there are probably only two or three controversial amendments.
My friend from Kentucky can correct me, but I think the majority leader, in consultation with the Democratic leader, will decide at what time the vote on the Inhofe amendment will take place.
Mr. FORD. The Senator is correct. And I am more than willing to work out whatever time is agreeable to the two leaders. I agree with my friend that we need to move on. We are down to just very few votes on this piece of legislation. We have worked awfully hard on our side. We have been able to clear up two or three that we worked on pretty hard. The Snowe amendments we have agreed to, the technical corrections amendment we agreed to, and those have been taken care of.
So we are moving on, even though it does not appear there is much action on the floor. Once the legislation is before the Senate, a vacuum is created. I learned that a long time ago. You may not have everything put together, but once you get started it creates a vacuum, and I think we are on our way to being able to pass this piece of legislation sometime tomorrow.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arizona.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, we are awaiting the approval from the cloakrooms of this list. So while we are awaiting that, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. GREGG). Without objection, it is so ordered.
Unanimous Consent Agreement
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the following amendments be the only amendments in order to S. 2279, that they be subject to relevant second-degree amendments, and that they be considered under time agreements where listed, and that any second-
degree amendment be accorded the same time as the first degree to which it is offered, and that the previous requirement of relevancy be in effect.
The following is the list of the amendments: McCain-Ford amendment, a managers' amendment; McCain amendment which is relevant, 5 minutes equally divided; Hollings amendment, relevant, 5 minutes equally divided; Gorton, relevant amendment, 5 minutes equally divided; Ford, relevant, 5 minutes equally divided; Bingaman, overflights, bolster Native Americans' role, 30 minutes equally divided; Boxer amendment, relevant; Daschle, two relevant amendments; DeWine, SOS, 10 minutes equally divided; Dorgan, regional jet tax incentives, 2 hours equally divided; Dorgan, mandatory interline and joint fare agreements, 2 hours equally divided; Faircloth, SOS, 5 minutes equally divided; Feinstein, National Airport perimeter slots; Harkin, relevant; Harkin, slots; Inhofe, FAA emergency revocation power--and, Mr. President, that is the pending amendment No. 3620, the Inhofe amendment on FAA emergency revocation power; Landrieu, relevant amendment; Lott, relevant amendment; Moynihan, airport improvement, 1 hour equally divided; Mikulski-Sarbanes, three amendments, Reagan National, slots, and perimeter rule, 30 minutes equally divided for each of these three amendments; Roth, reintroduce title VIII to bill, 5 minutes equally divided--
Mr. FORD. That has been taken care of.
Mr. McCAIN. That amendment would be removed.
Thompson, criminal penalties for airmen who fly without a certificate; Torricelli-Lautenberg, Quiet Communities Act, 1 hour equally divided; Torricelli, relevant; D'Amato-Moynihan, DOT issue 70 slot exemptions at JFK Airport, New York, 10 minutes equally divided; Lott-Frist-Moynihan amendment, limit eligible airport size for regional jet section, and Reagan National commuter slots, 10 minutes equally divided; Reed of Rhode Island, noise at Rhode Island airport, 15 minutes equally divided; Reed of Rhode Island, code-sharing notice, 15 minutes equally divided; Robb, Reagan National Airport, slots and perimeter rule, 1 hour equally divided; Warner, prohibit new Reagan National slots and perimeter rule exemptions until MWAA nominees confirmed by the Senate, 1 hour equally divided; Warner, notice, comment and hearings before proceeding with Reagan National slots and perimeter rule exemptions, 1 hour equally divided; Domenici amendment regarding Taos; D'Amato, travel agents, 20 minutes equally divided; Coats, Reagan National Airport slots; Daschle, relevant.
Mr. FORD. McCain-Ford managers' amendment.
Mr. McCAIN. I did that at the start.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. McCAIN. Before I proceed further, I do want to say that although it looks like there are a lot of amendments, we are working out agreements on almost all of them. So I urge my colleagues to get with us tomorrow. We can work out these agreements and have two or three amendments and hopefully get this legislation passed today.
Before I proceed, I ask if the distinguished Senator from Kentucky has any remarks.
I yield the floor.
Mr. FORD. Mr. President, I have no disagreement with the unanimous consent proposal, particularly retaining the relevancy that is in effect now. There is only one question I might have. There is a Torricelli-Lautenberg Quiet Communities Act amendment that should be for both, I think. And just so long as that is understood that it is not two amendments; it is only one.
Mr. McCAIN. That is a Torricelli-Lautenberg amendment.
Mr. FORD. One amendment rather than two. If we could cut an amendment off now, we ought to do it instead of waiting until tomorrow. So I agree with my colleague, we have an opportunity to finish this bill tomorrow. And it is one of those ``must-pass'' bills. And I am very hopeful that we can do it. We are here. Our staff is available. We are very amenable right now and probably more so tomorrow; but toward noon and a little after we may get intolerable. So let's hope we can do things early in the morning after our first vote.
I thank the Chair and thank my colleague.
Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, just for the record, I want to make it clear that these are first-degree amendments only.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Record will so reflect.
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