New Surveillance System Is Key to Modernization

By Rep. Tom Petri
Special to Roll Call

July 15, 2007, 12 a.m.

Last month, the Bureau of Transportation Statistics reported record airline delays. Weather and increased air traffic volume are major factors in these holdups, but the aviation industry’s consensus opinion is that the outdated, aging air traffic control system also is to blame. Failure to modernize our air traffic control system will result in crippling bottlenecks at our nation’s airports, to the great inconvenience of the traveling public and at a cost of roughly $30 billion annually to our economy.

Schumer Advocates for Many on Panel

Nov. 16, 12 a.m.

As Senate Majority Leader, Lyndon Johnson once said of the Joint Economic Committee, “It’s as useless as tits on a bull.” But as that panel’s chairman during the 110th Congress, Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) seized the opportunity to elevate the traditionally low-profile post to the forefront of shaping policy. Read Full Article