“Oh, what a tangle web we weave when first we practice to deceive.” To be honest, I have no idea if this line from Walter Scott’s poem “Marmion” is apropos to the proposed aircraft registration discussion currently taking place in Alaska. But it was the first thing that popped into my head after reading through […]
user fees
Experiences in other nations raise concerns about proposed user fee
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Congress and the president have big taxation problems to resolve before the end of this year, so there will no doubt be a lot of discussion about aviation user fees. On Dec. 31, all the “Bush” tax cuts will expire, the debt limit will need to be increased, and payroll tax cuts […]
Questions abound about proposed user fee
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The House Small Business Committee recently held a hearing about President Obama’s proposal to charge a $100 per flight user fee for some flying. Committee Chairman Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.) came out strongly against the proposal, as did many of the committee members. Some people involved in general aviation believe that since […]
Split docket: TSA legislation and user fees
By DAVE HOOK. As we move towards the national elections this November, it’s time to energize our general aviation community once again. There are two issues to examine and let our elected representatives in Washington know how we feel. One issue is the perfect storm: User fees. The second issue is an opportunity to have […]
Strong opposition to user fees repeated
Publisher note: This story was updated (see content in parens in the opening paragraph) September 18, 2012. WASHINGTON, D.C. — President Obama’s proposal to impose a $100 per-flight user fee (which as currently proposed on Page 31 here exempts, “All piston aircraft, military aircraft, public aircraft, air ambulances, aircraft operating outside of controlled airspace, and […]
An open letter to President Obama
By DAVE HOOK. I want to thank all who took the time to respond to my previous blog, “Couldn’t sign the user fee petition? Here’s help.” As promised, I sent your names and information to the White House as the attachment to the cover letter below. This response was sent both by email and the […]
Couldn’t sign the user fee petition? Here’s help
By DAVE HOOK. I’ve been receiving emails from readers who wanted to sign the petition against user fees, but couldn’t. Here is what I propose we do: If you send me the same registration information that was required, I will consolidate it and send it to President Obama. Perhaps there are many of you who […]
White House remains committed to user fees
The White House again recently reiterated its commitment to imposing new user fees on general aviation in response to a call from 195 members of Congress to abandon the proposal as “the wrong approach” for GA to pay for its use of the aviation system. According to a report at NBAA.org, Jeffrey D. Zients, White […]
General Aviation Airport Coalition launches petition against $100 fee
The General Aviation Airport Coalition has initiated a petition on the White House website that, if signed by 25,000 people or more by May 16, 2012, will elicit an official response by the administration about how they determined that the proposed $100 fee for general aviation aircraft is fair. “Even if we don’t get the […]