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Obama wants more money for airport scanners, air marshals

February 02, 2010

President Obama's proposed budget for fiscal year 2011 requests more funding for airport scanners and air marshals, but drops any references to new aviation user fees.

The fees were mentioned and footnoted in the fiscal 2010 budget, although the administration released no further details. Analysts and industry officials worried that any additional user fees or government taxes to further fund air travel could stunt post-recession growth.

In a press teleconference on Monday to talk about the Transportation Department's budget request, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said, "There are no user fees, and you can assume that President Obama's not for user fees."

The Obama budget request does include about $214.7 million for the Homeland Security counterterrorism programs, including another 500 imaging machines at airport checkpoints, doubling the 500 machines already set to be deployed this year.

The budget request also includes an additional $85 million for more federal air marshals on international flights, an additional $71 million for airport canine patrols and an additional $374 million for explosive-detection systems for checked baggage.

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#2February 05, 2010
Getting the money to buy this equipment and hire air marshall's is wonderful and needed, BUT, it's more important to have QUALIFIED, (I repeat...QUALIFIED), HONEST people that don't feel they're on a 'power trip' to work the equipment or do the job. As for 'New Aviation User Fees'...I guess it's something else the airlines or government came up with to charge more and take the passenger's money, but it (like everything else) would probably not go toward what it's supposed to. Kudo's to Mr. Obama for being against it.
#1February 02, 2010
I understand user fees but what exactly is, "new aviation user fees"? A fee to fund new equipment and programs relating to aviation security? /s/ Bewildered on the ground.

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