Minnesota Congressman to introduce airline aid bill WASHINGTON (AP) =97 Sen. Norm Coleman said Wednesday he plans to introduce= =20 legislation that would provide $2.7 billion in airline aid to help the=20 industry cope with financial losses from a war with Iraq. "I got a dog in=20 this hunt," said Coleman, a freshman Minnesota Republican, who plans to=20 introduce the bill Thursday. "I got Northwest Airlines laying off 4,900=20 people. The ex-mayor in me looks at unfunded mandates." Coleman said in a=20 telephone interview that his bill was not a bailout but rather a package=20 aimed at reimbursing airlines for security-related federal regulations. His legislation would direct the federal government to: =95 Reimburse airlines for security screenings and fortifying cockpit doors; =95 Purchase tickets for Federal Air Marshals, instead of having them ride= =20 for free; =95 Impose a 1-year moratorium on air carrier and air passenger fees, which= =20 would be picked up by the federal government; =95 Provide a $100 million limit for airline liability for third-party=20 damages, such as injuries to people in a building or on the ground. Eagan, Minn.-based Northwest Airlines announced last week that it will lay= =20 off 4,900 people due to the war in Iraq and a significant drop in=20 reservations. A Northwest spokesman, Kurt Ebenhoch, said, "We understand=20 that Senator Coleman is working on legislation, and we appreciate his=20 efforts on behalf of Northwest Airlines and our 44,000 employees." Coleman= =20 said he hoped his proposal could be included in the $75 billion=20 supplemental budget plan that President Bush has requested to help pay for= =20 the war. The White House proposal does not include any airline aid, but=20 several congressional leaders from both parties said they will push for=20 such assistance. Rep. Jim Oberstar of Minnesota, the ranking Democrat on=20 the House Transportation Committee, has already proposed a $4 billion= package. Oberstar's legislation would commit the federal government to reimbursing=20 airlines for any financial losses stemming from the war, extend their=20 war-risk insurance coverage and briefly offer federal loan guarantees so=20 carriers can absorb fuel price jumps. Coleman said he plans to work with Oberstar to get something through=20 Congress, but he said he didn't want to include loan guarantees."I wanted=20 to keep mine focused on homeland security measures," Coleman said.=20 Oberstar, meanwhile, said he didn't support Coleman's proposed moratorium=20 on the $2.50-per-passenger security surcharge, which the airline industry=20 has advocated. If the moratorium passed, Oberstar predicted, airlines would= =20 pocket the money, even as taxpayers picked up the cost of the security=20 through taxes. "Why should taxpayers pay twice?" he asked. After the Sept.= =20 11, 2001, attacks, Congress gave airlines $5 billion in cash and $10=20 billion in loan guarantees. Still, two of the largest carriers, United=20 Airlines and US Airways, are bankrupt, and American Airlines is teetering=20 on bankruptcy. "As security has increased, so have government mandates,"=20 Coleman said. "The purpose of my bill is to lighten the burden Washington=20 has placed on the airline industry." *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Site of the Week: http://www.thehummingbirdonline.com TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************