Top Committee Democrats Request CBO Score of Revised AIRR Act

The following press release was published by the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on Aug. 7, 2017. It is reproduced in full below.

Washington, D.C. -Today, Ranking Members of four United States House of Representatives Committees sent a letter to Keith Hall, Director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), requesting a revised cost estimate for H.R. 2997, the “21st Century AIRR Act", as posted by the Committee on Rules. The letter was signed by Ranking Member of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio (D-OR), Ranking Member of the Committee on the Budget John Yarmuth (D-KY), Ranking Member of the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX), and Ranking Member of the Committee on Ways and Means Richard Neal (D-MA).

Last month, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released its cost estimate for H.R. 2997, the “21st Century AIRR Act", as ordered reported by the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. CBO determined that H.R. 2997, which privatizes the Nation’s air traffic control system, would increase net deficits by more than $20 billion over the next 10 years and by more than $5 billion in subsequent 10-year periods. The Committee on Rules subsequently posted a different version of H.R. 2997 (Rules Committee Print 115-25) for consideration on the House Floor. Rules Committee Print 115-25 includes significant changes to the reported version of the bill.

“In total, these changes to H.R. 2997, reflected in Rules Committee Print 115-25, likely add tens of billions of dollars to the cost of the legislation and, thus, the budget deficit. These changes were executed without any opportunity for us, as Ranking Members of the Committees of jurisdiction, to provide input or to debate the wisdom of the changes. Moreover, given that none of these changes were considered in the Committees of jurisdiction, CBO has not provided any cost estimate of their effects. Therefore, to better inform Members of Congress of the significant changes included in H.R. 2997 prior to Floor consideration, we request that CBO issue a full cost estimate of Rules Committee Print 115-25 by September 5, 2017," the Members wrote.

August 7, 2017

The Honorable Keith Hall

Director

Congressional Budget Office

402 Ford House Office Building

Washington, DC 20515

Dear Director Hall:

Subsequent to CBO’s cost estimate, the Committee on Rules posted a different version of H.R. 2997 (Rules Committee Print 115-25) for consideration on the House Floor. Rules Committee Print 115-25 includes significant changes to the version of the bill that CBO previously reviewed. For instance, compared to the reported bill, Rules Committee Print 115-25:

In total, these changes to H.R. 2997, reflected in Rules Committee Print 115-25, likely add tens of billions of dollars to the cost of the legislation and, thus, the budget deficit. These changes were executed without any opportunity for us, as Ranking Members of the Committees of jurisdiction, to provide input or to debate the wisdom of the changes. Moreover, given that none of these changes were considered in the Committees of jurisdiction, CBO has not provided any cost estimate of their effects.

Therefore, to better inform Members of Congress of the significant changes included in H.R. 2997 prior to Floor consideration, we request that CBO issue a full cost estimate of Rules Committee Print 115-25 by September 5, 2017.

If you have any questions, please contact Ward McCarragher, Democratic Chief Counsel, of the Committee on Transportation on Infrastructure (ext. 54472).

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

_______________________ _______________________

PETER DeFAZIO JOHN A. YARMUTH

Ranking Member Ranking Member

Committee on Transportation Committee on the Budget

and Infrastructure

_______________________ _______________________

EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON RICHARD E. NEAL

Ranking Member Ranking Member

Committee on Science, Space, and Committee on Ways and Means

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