Baldwin Votes to Boost Passenger Safety, Protect Consumers, and Support Aviation Workforce in Bipartisan FAA Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) voted for bipartisan legislation to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for the next five years and increase passenger safety, enhance consumer protections, and build a modern, well-trained, safety-centric workforce. Several of Senator Baldwin’s bipartisan provisions were included in the bill to increase access to flight training for veterans and grow our aviation workforce, strengthen protections for Americans with disabilities, and phase out the use of PFAS firefighting foam.

“This bipartisan legislation will help keep Americans safe while they travel, support our economy, and protect people from getting ripped off by big airlines,” said Senator Baldwin. “Right now, the aviation industry is facing huge challenges, and this bipartisan bill delivers to address the staffing shortages, delays, and safety lapses that too many Americans have experienced. I was proud to include my bipartisan provisions that help our veterans more easily become pilots, improve passenger safety, and support the Made in America aviation economy.”

Senator Baldwin successfully included the following priorities for veterans, the aviation workforce, and passenger safety:

Connecting Veterans with Careers in Aviation – The FAA legislation includes Senator Baldwin’s bipartisan American Aviator Act to enable eligible flight training schools to recruit and train veterans, who are not already military aviators, to become commercial pilots and certified flight instructors. By covering costs beyond existing veteran education benefits, the measure will help grow the supply of qualified pilots to provide air service to more underserved areas, including rural communities.

Improving Passenger Safety for All Americans – Senator Baldwin worked to include key provisions from her Air Carrier Access Amendments Act to ensure airplanes are designed to accommodate people with disabilities and airlines meet accessibility standards, including individuals who use wheelchairs.

Senator Baldwin also included a key provision of her Emergency Vacating of Aircraft Cabin (EVAC) Act, legislation to ensure the FAA does more to prioritize passenger safety. The provision requires the FAA to study aircraft evacuation, evaluate gaps in current standards and procedures, and make recommendations. The FAA must initiate a rulemaking on the recommendations that the FAA Administrator deems appropriate.

Phasing Out PFAS Fire Fighting Foam – Senator Baldwin has fought to reduce the use of PFAS firefighting foam and in the FAA legislation, she successfully included a grant program to support airports’ transition away from firefighting foams containing PFAS.

Preventing Taxpayer Dollars from Supporting Trade Cheats – Senator Baldwin worked to protect Made in the USA businesses by including language that prevents airports from using taxpayer-funded grant money to purchase buses or shuttles manufactured by state-owned enterprises, like China.

Protecting Aircraft Maintenance from National Security Threats – Senator Baldwin included her Global Aircraft Maintenance Safety Improvement Act to ensure that foreign aviation repair stations are subject to the same safety standards as American aviation repair companies, helping bolster passenger safety and level the playing field for U.S. companies.

Strengthening Consumer Protections – The legislation strengthens critical consumer protections, including by ensuring airline passengers will have the right to a refund if a flight is canceled or delayed 3 or more hours domestically and if an international flight is delayed 6 or more hours.

A full summary of the Senate-passed legislation is available here.

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