Bills to carry airport construction grants and other aviation programs through the next four years are making progress on Capitol Hill, but they're far from complete and the clock is ticking. The programs, and the taxes that help finance them, expire Sept. 30. So far, chairmen of House and Senate tax-writing committees aren't saying what changes, if any, in aviation levies they support.
Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) says he wants to find "a good, fair, equitable solution." That won't be easy, because large airlines and general aviation groups representing those who fly smaller private planes and corporate jets are battling over how much they should pay in taxes and fees.