President Obama on Tuesday said Congress to needs to work to end the partial FAA shutdown.
“And there is another stalemate in Congress right now involving our aviation industry which has stalled airport construction projects all around the country – and put the jobs of tens of thousands of construction workers and others at risk – because of politics,” Obama said. “It’s another Washington-inflicted wound on America, and Congress needs to break that impasse now so these folks can get back to work.”
Since Congress did not reauthorize the FAA last month, and the federal agency has furloughed 4,000 employees nationwide as a result. Federal officials, however, contend passenger safety is not at risk.
At the same time, officials have stopped work on a number of construction projects are at risk, including one at Savannah-Hilton Head International Airport, which did not receive $8 million in federal funds, Georgia Public Broadcasting previously reported.