Rep. Jamie Raskin yesterday joined 28 other Members of Congress in requesting that the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigate "how the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has considered community noise impacts while implementing the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen) in major metropolitan areas," including the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area.
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Comments
"While the Federal Aviation Administration may have denounced the House Appropriations Committee-ordered audit of its NextGen program, it is time that Congress denounced NextGen. It’s a failed program with bad design. The airlines don’t like it, and it isn’t saving them money. More important, NextGen is torturing hundreds of thousands of taxpaying citizens all over the country with noise pollution never heard before. The concentrated flight paths over heavily populated areas at low altitudes are causing health problems and lowering property values."
Congresswoman Norton and Congressman Stephen F. Lynch (D-MA), co-chairs of the Quiet Skies Caucus (Caucus), announced the Caucus met last week with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Stephen Dickson to discuss FAA and Caucus priorities. During the hour-long discussion, the Caucus emphasized four priorities: dispersing flight patterns to alleviate airplane noise levels, completing and releasing studies on the impacts of airplane noise on residents, creating an accessible central repository of resident complaints, and conducting increased community outreach.
“I appreciate our meeting with Administrator Dickson to discuss many of our priorities,” Norton said. “Recognizing that he has only recently been confirmed, we wanted the administration to know that we are concerned that the FAA has not fully engaged with our communities on addressing noise pollution. Despite the fact that the Government Accountability Office has already agreed to study noise pollution by helicopters in the National Capital Region, we must make sure that FAA stays responsive and collaborates with the Caucus on matters that impact our constituents.”
Senator Ben Cardin -May 14, 2020, 3:26 PM (2 days ago)
to me
Thank you for contacting me regarding the unacceptable level of noise produced by the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) and the DC Metroplex airports (Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) and Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD)) and caused by changes in flight patterns after the rollout of the NextGen air traffic control system. I share your concerns and am working hard to see that this serious problem is addressed. Aircraft noise threatens the quality of life of Marylanders in these communities, robbing them of sleep, cardiovascular health and their children’s learning.
On October 3, 2018, the Senate agreed to the motion to concur with respect to H.R. 302, the Aviation, Transportation Safety, and Disaster Recovery Reforms and Reauthorization Act, legislation to update and extend the policies of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for five years. I voted for H.R. 302, which passed the Senate by a bipartisan vote of 93-6. I am particularly pleased the legislation includes a number of provisions to help alleviate community exposure to aircraft noise. I successfully negotiated provisions in the bill dedicated solely to Airport Noise Mitigation. President Trump signed the legislation into law on October 5, 2018.
Now, in accordance with these provisions, airports like BWI and DCA must submit updated noise exposure maps to the FAA. The FAA in turn will consider noise concerns from affected communities when proposing new departure procedures, and conduct a review of the FAA’s community involvement in NextGen projects. The FAA will also submit a report to Congress on how the agency can improve community involvement, and evaluate existing studies of the relationship between aircraft approach and takeoff speeds and corresponding noise impacts on communities surrounding airports.
In addition, H.R. 302 directs the FAA to revise land use compatibility guidelines and pilot a program to mitigate the impacts of aircraft noise. The FAA will enter into an agreement with an eligible institution of higher education to conduct a study on the health impacts of noise from aircraft flights on residents. The study will focus on major metropolitan areas including Boston, Chicago, New York, the Northern and Southern California Metroplexes, Phoenix, and the District of Columbia. While Washington, DC’s inclusion for study will benefit many Marylanders, I am disappointed Baltimore was not included. FAA will also partner with NASA to study the impact of technologies on noise and aircraft weight. Outside the noise context, H.R. 302 will make the skies safer and more dignified for airline passengers and professionals alike.
Thank you again for sharing with me your experience with aircraft noise. Please do not hesitate to contact me again regarding this or any other matter where I may be of service to you.