00                         SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 2                                                                        
01 Urging the United States Congress to fund fully the essential air service program.                                      
02 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE:                                                                                           
03       WHEREAS S.223, the FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety                                              
04 Improvement Act, has been introduced in the United States Senate; and                                                   
05       WHEREAS Amendment 4 to S.223 by the senior senator from Arizona would                                           
06 eliminate funding for the essential air service program; and                                                            
07       WHEREAS the 44 communities in the state that benefit from the essential air service                             
08 program under 49 U.S.C. 41731 - 41748 are the most remote and isolated communities in the                               
09 nation; and                                                                                                             
10       WHEREAS air carriers in the state that are subsidized by the essential air service                              
11 program provide critical passenger, cargo, and mail services to remote communities; and                               
12       WHEREAS, for many remote communities in the state, air travel is not simply a                                   
13 convenience, but the only scheduled passenger service to the rest of the world, making it vital                         
14 for basic economic, health, and safety needs; and                                                                       
15       WHEREAS the essential air service program ensures that remote communities can                                   
16 maintain a link to the national air transportation system; and                                                          

01       WHEREAS Alaska is a young state and, because of the size and the unique                                         
02 geography of the state, relatively few roads provide access to remote communities, making                               
03 aircraft the dominant mode of transportation in many rural areas; and                                                   
04       WHEREAS the elimination of the essential air service program would significantly                                
05 increase commodity prices and the cost of general passenger air travel essential to residents of                        
06 the state's rural communities; and                                                                                      
07       WHEREAS, without the essential air service program, at least 12,000 Alaskans living                           
08 off the road system would not be able to afford travel to regional hubs for essential medical                           
09 care; and                                                                                                               
10       WHEREAS the complete elimination of the essential air service program would have                                
11 a severe negative economic effect on remote communities in the state, many of which are                                 
12 already economically depressed, and could destabilize those communities;                                                
13       BE IT RESOLVED that the Senate supports the essential air service program and                                   
14 urges the United States Congress to reauthorize full funding for the program in S.223, the                              
15 FAA Air Transportation Modernization and Safety Improvement Act.                                                        
16       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable Barack Obama, President of                             
17 the United States; the Honorable Raymond L. LaHood, United States Secretary of                                          
18 Transportation; the Honorable John McCain, U.S. Senator; the Honorable Lisa Murkowski                                   
19 and the Honorable Mark Begich, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S.                                         
20 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress; and all other members of the                              
21 112th United States Congress.