Latest news with #andTransportation
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
President Trump repeals overland supersonic flight ban
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WNCT) — N.C. Senator Ted Budd, a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, applaud President Trump executive order to repeal the prohibition on overland supersonic flight. According to a press release, it would 'establish an interim noise-based certification standard, and repeal other regulations that hinder supersonic flight.' The executive order follows Senator Budd and Representative Troy Nehls introduction of the Supersonic Aviation Modernization (SAM) Act, which would require the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator to issue regulations to legalize civil supersonic flight in the United States. President Trump's executive order directly aligns with the goals of this legislation. 'President Trump's swift leadership to unleash supersonic flight will boost America's ability to compete with China in the race for next-generation aircraft and revolutionize commercial air travel. For too long, outdated restrictions on civil supersonic flight have stifled innovation. I am grateful that President Trump has leaned in to legalize this vital technology in the United States and promote international engagement for international operations. I will continue to work with my colleagues in Washington, like my friend Rep. Nehls, to advance policies that unleash cutting-edge technologies like supersonic aviation,' said Senator Budd. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Trump hails deal between senators on government-owned spectrum
President Trump on Friday hailed Senate Republican committee chairs for reaching a deal with Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) on auctioning of government-owned spectrum. Rounds and Fischer had held up Trump's 'big, beautiful bill' because they feared the federal sale of spectrum to the private sector would deprive the Defense Department of critical bandwidth used for radar. Trump on Friday applauded GOP senators for working out their differences. 'Congratulations to Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Ted Cruz, Chairman of the Senate Armed Service Committee, Roger Wicker, and Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, Tom Cotton, for their amazing deal on Spectrum as posted last night,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'This is serious power for American Leadership on 6G,' he said, referring to the next phase of broadband infrastructure. 'We will have the World's Greatest Networks, and ensure the Highest Level of National Security for future Generations of Americans.' A source familiar with the deal said Rounds and Fischer got what they wanted, namely language in the bill to protect the Pentagon's use of prime spectrum frequencies for the entire length of the government auction period. The deal preserves the Defense Department's use of the 'lower three' 3.1 to 3.45 GHz band and 7.4 to 8.4 GHz, which would be exempted from general auction authority and the spectrum pipeline. The wireless industry got the restoration of auction authority. Rounds said Friday he appreciates the new national security protections and would continue to work on legislative language to align the broader bill with the 'intent of the agreement,' signaling some details may still need to be worked out. 'I appreciate the national security protections, and we are working on modifications that will align it with the spirit and intent of the agreement. Negotiations are ongoing and we look forward to reaching a conclusion that will both supercharge 5G as well as protect our national security, including the capabilities necessary to build President Trump's Golden Dome,' Rounds said in a statement. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), the ranking member on the Commerce Committee, slammed her Republican colleagues for 'rushing to sell off spectrum' and 'failing to fund' what she called 'essential safety upgrades.' Cantwell warned the Republican language in the budget reconciliation package would run ahead of work between the Federal Aviation Administration and wireless providers such as Verizon and AT&T to ensure that spectrum sales do not crowd out air-safety applications. 'At a moment when maintaining safe skies has never been more challenging, this proposal recklessly endangers national security and aviation safety by mandating spectrum auctions in the C-Band before new altimeter standards are even finalized, while providing zero resources to an already capacity-constrained FAA or to update vulnerable altimeters on DOD and government aircraft,' Cantwell said in a statement. 'By rushing to sell off spectrum and failing to fund these essential safety upgrades, we're setting ourselves up for a catastrophic repeat of the 5G C-band debacle—except this time we risk grounding the armed forces as well,' she said. Trump on Friday slammed Biden for failing to reach a deal on spectrum auctions during his term. 'Biden did nothing on Spectrum in four years but, thanks to 'THE GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL,' my Administration will beat all expectations, and show World the path forward!' he posted. Updated at 2:17 p.m. EDT Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
2 days ago
- Business
- The Hill
Trump hails deal between senators on government-owned spectrum
President Trump on Friday hailed Senate Republican committee chairmen for reaching a deal with Sens. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) and Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) on auctioning of government-owned spectrum. Rounds and Fischer had held up Trump's big, beautiful bill because they feared that the federal sale of spectrum to the private sector would deprive the Defense Department of critical bandwidth used for radar. Trump on Friday applauded GOP senators for working out their differences. 'Congratulations to Chairman of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, Ted Cruz, Chairman of the Senate Armed Service Committee, Roger Wicker, and Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, Tom Cotton, for their amazing deal on Spectrum as posted last night,' Trump posted on Truth Social. 'This is serious power for American Leadership on 6G,' he said, referring to the next phase of broadband infrastructure. 'We will have the World's Greatest Networks, and ensure the Highest Level of National Security for future Generations of Americans.' A source familiar with the deal said that Rounds and Fischer got what they wanted, namely language in the bill to protect the Pentagon's use of prime spectrum frequencies for the entire length of the government auction period. The deal preserves the Defense Department's use of the 'lower three' 3.1 to 3.45 GHz band and 7.4 to 8.4 GHz, which would be exempted from general auction authority and the spectrum pipeline. The wireless industry got the restoration of auction authority. Trump on Friday slammed Biden for failing to reach a deal on spectrum auctions during his term. 'Biden did nothing on Spectrum in four years but, thanks to 'THE GREAT BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL,' my Administration will beat all expectations, and show World the path forward!' he posted.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Check Call: Fight against freight fraud gets help in the Senate
It's not very often the transportation industry gets a win on Capitol Hill. But it seems the conversation around fraud has gotten national attention as the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation advanced the Household Goods Shipping Consumer Protection Act (S. 337). Championed by Sens. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., and Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., the bill seeks to restore and enhance the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's authority to address fraud and deceptive practices in freight transportation. Specifically, the bill grants FMCSA essential enforcement powers to: Assess civil penalties for unauthorized brokerage activity. Enforce the principal-place-of-business requirement. Examine commonalities among companies registering for operating authority. 'This bipartisan legislation gives FMCSA much-needed tools to protect consumers from fraud in the interstate shipment of goods,' said Transportation Intermediaries Association President and CEO Chris Burroughs in a news release. 'With freight fraud costing the industry an estimated $35 billion annually, this bill equips the agency to protect consumers, businesses, and the supply chain. We thank Senators Fischer and Duckworth for their leadership in addressing this growing crisis and helping restore integrity to the freight network.' The bill has been added to the Senate legislative calendar, marking a crucial first step in the legislative process. The journey to becoming a law has only just begun, but important steps have been taken to protect the industry and attempt to get a handle on other piece of legislation, which has been referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary, is the Combating Organized Retail Crime Act. The bill seeks to improve coordination and information sharing among federal, state and local law enforcement agencies while increasing penalties for those found guilty of committing fraud. Currently, there is little victims of fraud can do. Motor carrier numbers under which fraud is committed should always be reported to the FMCSA. If cargo theft is involved, police reports should be filed. There are few long-term ramifications that fraudsters face at present. If the MC gets flagged as fraudulent, they disappear and come back with another. It's a hopeful sign that legislation is being introduced to help address the issue, especially since the Household Goods Shipping Consumer Protection Act has left committee – arguably one of the biggest hurdles in the entire process. Meanwhile, even if these measures succeed, it will be an industrywide effort to get freight fraud under the full edition of Check Call in your inbox every Tuesday by subscribing down below. The post Check Call: Fight against freight fraud gets help in the Senate appeared first on FreightWaves.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Watch: Senate holds hearing on daylight saving time — will the US ‘lock the clocks?'
(NEXSTAR) — The U.S. has had a back-and-forth relationship with daylight saving time, and another chapter is apparently set to unfold on Thursday. The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation is holding a hearing on Thursday — titled 'If I Could Turn Back Time: Should We Lock The Clock?' — to 'examine the various issues around whether the country should continue 'springing forward' and 'falling back' each year with time.' 'The antiquated tradition of changing our clocks has a very real impact on Americans' businesses, health, and happiness, particularly for parents of young children,' committee chairman Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) recently said. 'People on both sides of the aisle have supported previous legislative efforts to 'lock the clock,' and understanding the implications of the time change is a priority for me as Chairman. I'm looking forward to a thoughtful discussion on the benefits and challenges to sticking with one national method for keeping time.' Daylight saving time 2025: These states are trying to 'lock the clocks' Witnesses scheduled to appear during the hearing include representatives from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the National Golf Course Owners Association, and the Lock the Clock Movement — all of which have previously expressed interest in the changing of the clocks. You can watch the full hearing in the video player at the top of this story starting at 10 a.m. ET. Companion bills to make daylight saving time permanent have been introduced in Congress, including one bill referred to Cruz's committee, while another bill would give states the power to observe daylight saving year-round — more on that in a moment. The U.S.'s back-and-forth relationship with daylight saving time has been ongoing for over a century. It started as a wartime measure in 1918, only to be rolled back after a year. It returned in 1942 during World War II but was vastly more chaotic than it is today. Seasonal clock changes were enacted in 1966, but seven years later, the U.S. again observed year-round daylight saving time due to a national energy crisis. What would change if daylight saving time became permanent? Americans broadly supported the practice at first, until dark winter mornings prompted safety concerns, especially among parents. The nation returned to twice-a-year clock changes in 1974 and has largely stayed on the same schedule. Over the last several years, there have been efforts to put the U.S. back on permanent daylight saving time, a move with which many health experts disagree. They instead recommend permanent standard time, which would provide us more sunlight in the mornings — a factor that can positively impact our sleep and circadian rhythm, which have further been connected to other health outcomes. States that have proposed or enacted legislation targeting the changing of the clocks have generally split between locking them on permanent standard time or daylight saving time. Only two states observe year-round standard time, an option afforded them by Congress' 1966 Uniform Time Act. States cannot opt for permanent daylight saving time. In most cases, the states standing on that side of the clock have introduced or passed measures calling on Congress to enact permanent daylight saving time or outlining conditions in which the state would observe daylight saving time permanently (typically based on actions by Congress or neighboring states). A House bill to give states the power to observe daylight saving time all year has been introduced and referred to committee. Multiple other states, however, have seen legislation introduced during their current legislative session to put the state on permanent standard time or exempt it from daylight saving time. None have passed as of early April. Any current widespread action regarding daylight saving time would depend on Congress taking action. President Donald Trump previously expressed support for ending daylight saving time but signaled in March that he would not push for it, calling it 'a 50/50 issue.' 'It's a 50/50 issue, and if something is a 50/50 issue, it's hard to get excited about it,' Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. 'It's something I can do, but a lot of people like it one way. A lot of people like it the other way. It's very even. And usually, I find when that's the case, what else do we have to do?' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
