Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Randy Babbitt are asking Congress to approve a reauthorization of the FAA, which expires at midnight tonight.
If no action is taken, officials say project construction delays and employee furloughs are possible. However, officials say there is no reason to worry about passenger safety.
“Congress needs to stop playing games, work out its differences, and pass a clean FAA bill immediately. There is no excuse for not getting this done,” LaHood said in a statement. “Important programs and construction projects are at stake. This stalemate must be resolved.”
Without action, up to 4,000 furloughs could start as soon as Saturday, the FAA contends.
“We are going to be forced to furlough valuable FAA employees unless this situation is resolved quickly,” Babbitt said in a statement. “These employees do everything from getting money out the door for airport construction projects, to airport safety planning and NextGen research. We need them at work.”