Sen. Barbara Boxer To Tour Palm Springs Airport Tower

Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., will visit Palm Springs International Airport Wednesday to call for a long-term solution to the Federal Aviation Administration budget crisis.

Boxer will tour the facility, then address the partial FAA shutdown that stalled airport construction projects — including an air traffic control tower at the Palm Springs airport. On Friday, a temporary FAA funding agreement was reached in Washington, D.C., allowing construction work to resume.

That temporary agreement, however, lasts only until Sept. 16.

“Specifically, Sen. Boxer will call on House Speaker John Boehner to quickly appoint House conferees to an FAA conference committee so that issues between the two houses on a long-term FAA reauthorization can be worked out,” according to a statement from Boxer’s office.

Boxer is a member of the FAA conference committee. She and a group of other Senate Democrats sent a letter to Boehner, R-Ohio, and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., urging them to appoint negotiators to discuss the FAA situation and accusing them of dragging their feet on the topic.

But Mica pointed the finger at Democrats for causing the FAA shutdown.

“The American people have witnessed firsthand during this minor difference of opinion — blown up into a crisis by Senate Democrats — how truly difficult it is to bring about even modest reforms and cut wasteful programs in Washington, like $3,720 individual airline ticket subsidies,” Mica said Friday. “… If the Senate refuses to negotiate on the few remaining issues, they can be assured that every tool at our disposal will be utilized to ensure a long-term bill is signed into law.”

A major stumbling block in the negotiations is an effort by House Republicans to reverse a new labor rule that makes it easier for transportation employees to unionize. Democrats support the rule, with President Barack Obama threatening to veto any legislation that would undo it.

Palm Springs airport executive director Tom Nolan said Monday that project managers were preparing to resume construction on the control tower, which is about half finished. Construction should resume within a week or so, he said.

Boxer is also expected to discuss the economy, Standard & Poor’s U.S. credit rating downgrade and debt negotiations in Washington.