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From the Senate Reports Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Omissions are marked by ellipses: "* * * * *"]
Calendar No. 504
104th Congress Report
SENATE
2d Session 104-325
_______________________________________________________________________
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AND RELATED AGENCIES APPROPRIATIONS BILL,
1997
_______
July 19, 1996--Ordered to be printed
_______________________________________________________________________
Mr. Hatfield, from the Committee on Appropriations, submitted the
following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 3675]
The Committee on Appropriations, to which was referred the
bill (H.R. 3675) making appropriations for the Department of
Transportation and related agencies for the fiscal year ending
September 30, 1997, and for other purposes, reports the same to
the Senate with amendments and recommends that the bill as
amended do pass.
* * * * *
BUREAU OF TRANSPORTATION STATISTICS
(AIRPORT AND AIRWAY TRUST FUND)
Appropriations, 1996.................................... $2,200,000
(By transfer, highway trust fund)................... (20,000,000)
Budget estimate, 1997................................... 3,100,000
(By transfer, highway trust fund)................... (25,000,000)
House allowance.........................................................
(By transfer, highway trust fund)................... (25,000,000)
Committee recommendation................................................
(By transfer, highway trust fund)
(25,000,000)
The Bureau of Transportation Statistics [BTS] was
established in section 6006 of the Intermodal Surface
Transportation Efficiency Act [ISTEA], to compile, analyze, and
make accessible information on the Nation's transportation
systems, collect information on intermodal transportation, and
enhance the quality and effectiveness of the statistical
programs of the Department of Transportation. Financing of BTS
operations is authorized as contract authority out of the
highway trust fund, by transfer from the Federal-aid highways
program, and is subject to the obligations limitation on that
program. For fiscal year 1997, a funding level of $25,000,000
is authorized for BTS programs. BTS offices include the
Director, Statistical Programs and Services, Transportation
Studies, and the Office of Aviation Information [OAI]. In
addition, effective January 1, 1996, the responsibility to
collect motor carrier financial data was transferred to the BTS
after the sunset of the Interstate Commerce Commission.
In Public Law 104-50, the Office of Aviation Information
was transferred from the Research and Special Programs
Administration and the fiscal year 1996 appropriation of
$2,200,000 went directly to the Bureau of Transportation
Statistics as a new account. The Office of Aviation Information
collects and compiles financial and traffic (passenger and
cargo) data. This information provides the Government with
uniform and comprehensive economic and market data on
individual airline operations. This program includes a small
field office located in Anchorage, AK, which provides consumers
and the Government with airline data related to essential air
service and the intra-Alaskan mail rate program.
For 1997, the administration is requesting an appropriation
of $3,100,000 from the airport and airway trust fund for the
OAI, a 41-percent increase above the fiscal year 1996 enacted
level. The majority of this increase is associated with
contract costs and computer equipment to be used in developing
a software program and data processing system to directly
access origin and destination data from airlines' computer
reservation systems, for both domestic and international
flights. The Committee lauds the OAI's efforts to improve and
upgrade the 25-year-old airline data retrieval system. The
statistical aviation data compiled by OAI includes: airline
passenger traffic statistics, ontime performance data by
carrier, financial performance and certification data, fuel
purchase and consumption, and other business and consumer
directed statistics. These statistics are vitally important to
the Federal Government and the aviation industry. In some
cases, it is statutorily required that these statistics be used
by the Federal Aviation Administration and the Office of the
Secretary of Transportation in allocation of trust funds,
aviation bilateral negotiations, and other Federal
transportation policy decisionmaking.
Offsetting collections.--The Committee has deleted House
bill language requiring that all airline statistics activities
be offset by user fees charged for those activities. In
calendar year 1995, Office of Aviation Information data sales
totaled only $177,000. Though the Committee believes that these
offsetting costs should be maximized to the extent possible
(and holds the same belief concerning the sales of all BTS-
generated data products), it is unrealistic to expect the OAI
to completely offset its operating costs through data sales and
user fees in fiscal year 1997. However, the Committee agrees
with the House assertion that BTS contract authority funds
could be made available for the compilation of aviation
statistics, and has, therefore, included a provision making up
to $3,100,000 of BTS's ISTEA contract authority available for
OAI, and has not provided either airport and airways trust
funds or general funds to finance the operations of the Office
of Aviation Information. Two ways that BTS can decrease
expenditures in order to more readily absorb the costs of OAI
are more efficient collection of funds from agency reimbursable
agreements and tightening staff travel.
BTS worldwide web site/National Transportation Library.--In
order to promote the private sector development of magnetic
levitation (maglev) technologies, and recognizing the wealth of
information previously collected by Government and industry on
maglev technology, the Committee directs the Bureau of
Transportation Statistics to collect statistical and other
relevant information regarding the application of maglev
technologies and to make available such information to the
public by means of the National Transportation Library, part of
BTS's dedicated worldwide web site accessible via the internet.
The Committee expects that the Bureau will utilize the
expertise and existing data collections of the High-Speed Rail/
Maglev Association Foundation in collecting and reviewing such
information.
General provisions.--The Committee has not included the
provision requested by the administration which gives Bureau of
Transportation Statistics the authority to enter into grants
and cooperative agreements with other agencies, institutions,
and individuals to collect data on the impact of natural
disasters on transportation systems. The House bill did not
contain this provision. Since BTS is absorbing new additional
costs for OAI activities and motor carrier data collection, the
expenditure of up to 5 percent of the agency's resources could
potentially limit the allocation of funds to ongoing data and
analysis programs. The Committee believes that BTS should
request this natural disaster authorization in the next ISTEA,
which is due for reauthorization in 1997.
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