DOT Funding for Rural Air Service Could Lapse Oct. 12
Program Supports 170 Communities, With Alaska Relying Most Heavily on It
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Funding for a U.S. Department of Transportation program that provides subsidies to airlines to maintain flights to small and rural communities is set to dry up as soon as Oct. 12 if the government shutdown persists.
“Essential Air Service subsidies are expected to expire as soon as Sunday. USDOT exhausted every resource in trying to prolong an EAS shortfall, including transferring unrelated funding from the FAA as an advance,” the department said in a statement, referring to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The statement blamed Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the Senate Democratic leader, and Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), his House counterpart, for the shutdown, now in its sixth day without any clear path for a quick resolution as both parties remain at an impasse over federal spending.
was established when the airline industry was deregulated in 1978 so that communities wouldn’t lose service on routes that aren’t profitable for carriers. The program supports more than 170 communities across the U.S. and in Puerto Rico, with Alaska relying most heavily on it.
New: says essential air service funding to expire as soon as Sunday because of government shutdown — David Shepardson (@davidshepardson)
The service is a priority for U.S. lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, especially those representing states that have a lot of rural areas. The continued impasse between Democrats and Republicans over a deal to fund the government now risks temporarily disrupting the program.
Sen. Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska), who serves on the Commerce Committee, raised the importance of the Essential Air Service during Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s nomination hearing in January. He said that without it, some of his constituents in Alaska would go without food or the ability to venture outside of their communities.
Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) said the program is critical for economic development in rural places across the U.S.
During that hearing, Duffy told lawmakers that he, too, supported the program. Even so, the Trump administration proposed cutting funding for the essential air service by $308 million as part of its skinny budget request in May.
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