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Norton Files Amendment Directing FAA to Prioritize Combating Airplane, Helicopter Noise

June 17, 2019

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), the co-chair of the Quiet Skies Caucus and a senior member of the Aviation Subcommittee, has filed an amendment to the fiscal year 2020 transportation appropriations bill that would direct the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to prioritize combating airplane and helicopter noise. The amendment is cosponsored by Representatives Don Beyer (D-MD), Ruben Gallego (D-AZ), Ro Khanna (D-CA), Jimmy Panetta (D-CA), Mike Quigley (D-IL), Jamie Raskin (D-MD), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), Brad Sherman (D-CA), and Tom Suozzi (D-NY). The House Rules Committee will consider the amendment this week.

"This amendment to get the FAA to prioritize airplane and helicopter noise is critical to our city and region," Norton said. "This is an important step toward getting much-needed information to deliver relief to our communities and making sure we minimize disruptions to neighborhoods and families."

Norton has been leading the effort to combat airplane and helicopter noise in D.C. and across the country. Most recently, she successfully led National Capital Region (NCR) members in getting the Government Accountability Office to agree to conduct a study of helicopter noise within the NCR. Norton was also able to get several provisions included in the enacted FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 to combat airplane noise, including requiring the FAA to study ways to phase out noisier, older aircraft, review the relationship between aircraft noise exposure and its effects on communities around airports, update airport noise exposure maps, and ensure community involvement in FAA NextGen projects located in metroplexes. Norton also got funding for institutions of higher education to conduct studies on the health impacts of prolonged exposure to airplane noise and emissions, and she got the District added to a list of cities where the health studies are to be conducted.

Norton has held community meetings focused on airplane and helicopter noise. Residents have shared stories of interrupted sleep patterns, homes shaking, and difficulty having conservations outside.