Airlines 4 America is lobbying against a proposed increase in 9/11 Security Fee from $2.50 to $5 per segment. The increase has bipartisan support as Congress seeks to increase revenue due to automatic cuts in discretionary spending coming in January.
A4A has been greeting passengers — including members of Congress arriving at Washington Reagan National Airport— with leaflets and air sickness bags with the message “Are higher taxes on air travel making you sick?” The group urged passengers to contact their congressional representatives and the Obama administration to protest the new tax.
“Airline passengers already pay more than their fair share in taxes to the federal government,” said Nicholas Calio, president and CEO of Airlines for America. “It’s unreasonable and unnecessary for budget negotiators to be looking to squeeze any more out of an already overtaxed industry and their customers. We understand the difficulty of the challenge they are trying to meet, but respectfully suggest they look elsewhere to plug the budget hole.”