FAA keeps flying during shutdown using insurance fund as backup

What it does

This bill allows the FAA to use money from its Aviation Insurance Revolving Fund to keep operating during a government shutdown, drawing down the fund balance above $1 billion to pay for ongoing FAA programs and employee salaries. It also extends the FAA's authority to provide war risk insurance for commercial aircraft.

Why we flagged it

The bill is a shutdown-contingency mechanism that preserves essential federal aviation safety functions by authorizing use of an existing insurance fund as a backstop appropriation source, not a permanent policy change or subsidy.

• Section 3 amends war risk insurance authority (44310 USC) with incomplete text; appears substantively unrelated to shutdown funding mechanism.

What the text implies

• The $1 billion floor on the Aviation Insurance Revolving Fund becomes a de facto minimum reserve, potentially constraining the FAA's ability to issue war risk insurance during normal operations if the fund approaches that threshold.
• Charging shutdown-period expenditures back to regular appropriations once enacted may create accounting complexity and potential disputes over which fiscal year bears the cost.
• The bill's prioritization of Air Traffic Organization employee compensation over other FAA programs (facilities, equipment, safety initiatives) during a shutdown may create operational bottlenecks if the fund depletes faster than expected.
• Extending the war risk insurance authority (Section 3) without clear sunset or review mechanism may lock in an open-ended federal backstop for aviation industry insurance costs.

Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.

Who it affects

The bill ensures critical aviation safety and air traffic control operations continue uninterrupted during shutdowns, protecting public safety and preventing economic disruption. Citizens depend on continuous FAA oversight of flight safety, and the bill's prioritization of employee compensation ensures the Air Traffic Organization remains staffed.

Who stands to gain

• commercial aviation industry (war risk insurance backstop)
• airlines (continuity of FAA oversight and air traffic control during shutdowns)

Named in the bill

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Aviation Insurance Revolving Fund, Air Traffic Organization, Congress, 49 USC Section 44307, 49 USC Section 44310

Where it stands

29 cosponsors: 15 Democrats, 14 Republicans.

• Nov 18, 2025 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
• Nov 18, 2025 — Referred to House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure”
• Dec 18, 2025 — Markup held in committee · Congress.gov: “Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held”
• Dec 18, 2025 — Reported out of committee · Congress.gov: “Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote”

Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.

Money around this bill

31 lobbying clients named this bill on 43 disclosure filings across 3 quarters, Dec 2025 to Jun 2026. Those filings disclosed $54,532,238 in lobbying spend. A filing names 13 bills on average, so that figure is what each filing reported, not a share belonging to this bill.

More lobbying clients named this bill than 98% of bills with at least one filing.

Sam Graves, the sponsor, reported $889,013 in PAC receipts in the 2026 cycle. $32,500 of that came from 7 PACs tied to these lobbying clients.

• Chamber of Commerce of the U.S.A. — $37,710,000 on 2 filings
• Fedex Corporation — $2,930,000 on 1 filing
• Airports Council International -- North America — $1,503,059 on 2 filings
• Delta Air Lines Inc — $1,460,000 on 1 filing
• Airbus Americas Inc — $1,240,000 on 1 filing

Lobbying Disclosure Act filings through Jul 21, 2026. A filing shows who paid to lobby on a bill it names, not what changed.