General Discussion
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The FAA has to cut $637 million as its share of $85 billion in automatic, government-wide spending cuts, These cuts must be made by the end of the federal budget year which is Sept. 30.
It was achieving about a third of the cuts by furloughing nearly all its workers including the 15,000 air traffic controllers (one day every two weeks) which set off massive air travel delays.
This infuriated the traveling public and caused angst among the members of Congress. The problem was easy to see and easy to understand. And apparently, easy to fix.
The new bill passed by Congress will let the FAA use up to $253 million (about 1/3 of the $637 million they have to cut) from other programs and accounts within their own budget which will halt the furloughs. The money can be used for other FAA operations, too, including keeping open small airport towers around the country that the agency said it would shut to satisfy the spending cuts.
The FAA is NOT getting additional funding from the government. They are making the changes in-house due to a change in the law. Its merely a juggling of the books, so to speak.
Its unclear to me whether other government agencies/programs have that flexibility that is, to make their own decisions about how to implement their share of the government- spending cuts. This may have been just a unique opportunity for the FAA due to the way its funded. Who knows?
Yes, it sucks that programs such as Head Start and Meals-on-Wheels dont seem to have the same opportunity, but it is what it is a Congress that failed to do its job in the first place.
Sherman A1
(38,958 posts)and it is unfortunate to be certain.
markpkessinger
(8,381 posts). . . he didn't have to push for the sequester, or sign it into law. But he did. His gambit (if indeed that's what it was) blew up in his face.
graham4anything
(11,464 posts)That's why we need to make the nation 80-20 politically and make the 20%fringe inconsequential
The 20% fringe (both side total) are the ones that want to keep things mired in fractures and protest and offer nothing.
I include Ralph Nader in that.
The 1% of the nation that likes those 3rd parties and protest votes had way too much power in 2000 when things could have been different.
80% of the people want something positive.
20% want to keep burning things down without really caring the day after
80-20 is coming
and then things can move forward.
for too long the 80% have remained silent while the 20%(total on both sides combined)
have divided the country so that nothing gets done.
And that 80-20 is coming is the genius.This is not a 50-50 country.
Only with the ones in senate/house does it seem, but the people themselves do not want 50-50, they want 80-20.
Fumesucker
(45,851 posts)I'm including Congress in the 1% BTW.
wandy
(3,539 posts)annoy the elite, be it the Koch Brothers or the MIC. We can marvel at how quickly our elected officials respond to the bidding of the people they represent.