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Federal bill
would triple funding
for isle airports
The measure has passed
From staff and wire reports
both houses of Congress;
Clinton says he'll signHawaii's airports will get three times as much federal money in the coming fiscal year as they did this year, under a $40 billion aviation bill on its way to the president's desk.
Setting new funding levels for the nation's airports and for the Federal Aviation Administration, the measure sets funding for Hawaii at $52.7 million for the fiscal year 2001, which starts July 1 this year.
Federal funding for the current year is $17.6 million.
President Clinton has said he will sign the bill, which passed the House yesterday 319-101 and earlier made it through the Senate on a vote of 82-17.
Under the new measure, Honolulu Airport will get $21.9 million in fiscal 2001, a 200 percent increase from $7.3 million in fiscal 2000. Kahului, Maui, comes in for the next-biggest chunk, $8.6 million in the coming year, an increase of 196 percent from $2.9 million this year.
The Kona International Airport at Keahole and Lihue Airport on Kauai are each earmarked to recieve $6.4 million next year, up 205 percent from $2.1 million each this year.
Hilo is due for $5.6 million, up 195 percent from $1.9 million; Kaunakakai, Molokai, will get $2.1 million, up 206 percent from $687,000; and the airport at Lanai City will get $1.7 million, up 198 percent from this year's $571,000.
Mike Slackman, a spokesman for Rep. Neil Abercrombie, said some of the boost for Hawaii comes because of a change in the formula for calculating each airport's funding. The formula places greater emphasis than in former years on the number of people going through each airport, he said.
As an island state with a large tourist traffic, Hawaii's airports are among the highest in the nation in the number of travelers using them.
Abercombie voted for the bill as did Hawaii Rep. Patsy Mink.
The compromise bill won wide support among lawmakers recognizing there must be a major investment to cope with an expected growth in air passengers from 600 million last year to more than 1 billion by the end of the decade.
Also included in the bill are provisions to help airlines buy regional jets if they agree to use them to serve small airports, money to improve the training of airport screeners, requirements for emergency locator devices on small jets and guidelines for air tours over national parks.
The Association of Flight Attendants said the bill was a victory for their members because it improves protections for whistleblowers, increases penalties for unruly passengers and provides a study of cabin air quality.
