US Says Funding for Air Service to Rural Areas to Expire as Soon as Sunday
Federal officials has announced that funds from a US government program that supports airline routes to remote airfields are set to expire as early as this weekend due to the ongoing government shutdown.
The US transportation department stated that subsidies under the Essential Air Service program are expected to expire as early as this weekend after the agency transferred separate financial resources from the Federal Aviation Administration as an temporary measure.
Transportation officials is in the process of alerting carriers about the funding shortfall and alerting local areas about possible impacts.
Federal authorities provides approximately $350 million in yearly financial support for the program.
Earlier this year, the administration proposed cutting funding by $308 million for the Essential Air Service, which enjoys popularity among GOP legislators because it provides services to predominantly Republican rural regions.
During the first presidency of Donald Trump, the administration proposed eliminating the Essential Air Service program – but lawmakers opted to increase funding instead.
The program typically subsidizes two return flights each day using 30- to 50-seat aircraft – or additional frequencies with smaller planes. According to the department that under the program, approximately 65 communities in Alaska have air access and 112 locations across the other 49 states and the territory that likely wouldn't have any airline service.
“Every state across the country will be impacted,” the transportation chief stated during a press conference, observing the service had bipartisan support. “We lack the funding for that initiative moving forward.”
