U.S. Congress split on Airlines Bill

By Sridhar Krishnaswami

WASHINGTON, NOV. 2. At a time when the country is looking at secure means of air travel, the House of Representatives and the Senate are deadlocked on an Airlines Security Bill. On Thursday, the House rejected a version of the Senate that called for airport screening to be manned by Federal employees.

Recently, the Senate voted unanimously to create a 28,000 Federal force that would be in charge of screening at airports. But Republicans in the House backed by the White House rejected this initiative insisting that private contractors were capable of doing the job. The public refrain has also been that the House Republicans are against creating ``another'' bureaucracy.

What it means is that the House action will delay for several weeks an Airlines Security Bill as the difference in the versions will have to be reconciled in a Conference Committee. The Bill will then have to be sent back to both chambers for a fresh vote. If Republicans in the House are adamant against creating another Federal work force, their colleagues in the Senate are equally determined to have their way.

The Republican Senator from Arizona, Mr. John McCain, a strong supporter of the Senate version of the Bill, argued that he expected his colleagues to stand by the original emphasis on Federal screeners and ``fight to restore these important security measures''. A major debate came about in the aftermath of the four deadly terrorist hijackings of Sept. 11 with one of the accusations being that strict guidelines were not being followed while processing applications for screeners.

While Republicans stand by the present system and argue that federalising the screeners has failed in other countries, the Democrats are making the point that the present functions carried out by private companies have failed and, therefore, there is a need to provide air travellers with adequate security. Some conservatives argue that creating a new Federal workforce will take years, leaving airports vulnerable in the meantime.

``The American people deserve tough security standards and the House plan delivers'', the President, Mr. George W. Bush, said in a statement. Mr. Bush is urging the House and the Senate to send him a bill at the earliest for signature. Given the nature of differences, it is going to be a tough battle which would force the President to issue an Executive Order for some of the security guideline for airport screening.

There is the expected apprehension on Capitol Hill that this debate on Airlines Security Bill is not exactly enhancing the public's confidence in airline travel; and that if an agreement by the House and the Senate is not reached quickly, the airline industry will be further hit.

As it is, several major carriers are foundering and are in deep financial difficulty bordering on folding up. In the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the administration and Congress came up with a $ 15-billion package for the beleaguered airlines. Some criticised this package as a bailout exercise while others maintained that even this is not enough to keep the planes flying.

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Section  : International
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