<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Democratic and Republican lawmakers questioned Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Chief Bryan Bedford’s decision not to pay an annual raise to the nation’s 11,000 air traffic controllers for nearly five months since Congress passed the funding. This discussion took place during a congressional hearing on Tuesday, where lawmakers suggested that Bedford's decision may contradict their intentions.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">House appropriators responsible for funding the FAA criticized Bedford during an oversight hearing in Washington on Tuesday for not issuing a 2.8% pay increase to the nation’s air traffic controllers. Bedford, a former regional airline executive, argued that controllers are underperforming and that the raise would only be granted once productivity improves. He stated that mass hiring efforts would address low morale, airport delays, and staffing shortages.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Lawmakers on the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies, including Chairman Steve Womack (R-AR) and the top Democrat, Rep. James Clyburn (D-SC), expressed surprise at Bedford’s decision to withhold a modest pay raise from controllers.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“I don’t think the law gave you the authority to squeeze more work out of [an] overworked, overstressed workforce,” Clyburn stated. “It seems to me that this pay raise question involves some discretion not intended in the law, certainly not intended when Congress approved it.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Rep. Mike Quigley (D-IL), whose district includes O’Hare International Airport, noted that the airport’s controller positions are only 65% staffed, leading to employee burnout from years of overtime work.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“You seem to be putting a condition on something that we passed,” Quigley told Bedford.</p>
<div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft is-resized"><img alt="Rep. Bill Shuster said he would make moving air traffic control from the government to a nonprofit a key part of the FAA reauthorization bill. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)" class="wp-image-2560179" height="683" src="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/32481c0e38bb5022b7dfb17a9e64b148-e1787674355983.jpg?w=696" style="width: 465px; height: auto;" width="1024" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Rep. Bill Shuster said he would make moving air traffic control from the government to a nonprofit a key part of the FAA reauthorization bill. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig) | Seth Wenig</figcaption></figure> </div>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Bedford responded to a question from Rep. Jefferson Shreve (R-IN) by stating that the controller shortage is a long-standing issue and that the agency is focused on hiring to resolve it. Approximately 2,000 trainees were hired in fiscal 2025, 2,200 in 2026, and 2,300 are planned for the following year.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">However, new hires must complete training in Oklahoma and undergo a certification process that can take one to five years at their assigned facility. Bedford noted that only 30% of trainees typically complete their training within a year.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">The FAA has projected a loss of up to 6,900 controllers through 2028 due to retirements, resignations, transfers, and failures to complete training.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Despite the existing shortage, Bedford defended his decision to withhold the raise, citing legal language that he believes grants him the authority to do so.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“The language states that such adjustments have been implemented so that all employees, to the extent the administrator determines and has sole discretion, that improvements in workforce scheduling, staffing utilization, or other operational efficiencies are achieved,” Bedford recited.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) criticized Bedford's approach to low morale and understaffing, likening it to a “Catch-22.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“You don’t think they’ve met that efficiency,” Watson Coleman said. “But then you say you’re understaffed. They are working six days a week, sometimes 10 hours a day, and have training responsibilities. They contend that morale is very low, and you seem to be operating as if you’re focused on the bottom line.”</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Bedford countered that Watson Coleman was relying on anecdotal evidence and insisted that data would provide a different perspective.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“The complaints I’m hearing are legitimate. People are leaving before they can accumulate a full pension,” Watson Coleman remarked, asking Bedford for a specific date for the 2.8% raise and what conditions would need to be met for it to be issued.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Bedford did not provide a date or resolution, stating that he had visited three dozen of the 313 air traffic control facilities nationwide in his 14 months in the position and viewed hiring as the best solution to improve morale and reduce exhaustion.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“To improve morale in our controller workforce, we need to hire the necessary staff and invest in facilities that provide basic amenities,” Bedford said.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Bedford also noted that controller productivity has decreased compared to 15 years ago, indicating that time spent at work needs to increase before the raise can be issued.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“On an eight-hour shift, they come in and do assigned work, but we don’t know what they’re doing when there’s no work assigned,” he explained.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">However, an FAA chart from the agency’s 2026-2028 Air Traffic Controller Workforce Plan indicated that controllers in 2011 spent an average of four and a quarter hours in position per shift, while the average time in position per shift in 2025 was four hours.</p>
<div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="alignleft size-large is-resized"><img alt="Screenshot: Federal Aviation Administration " class="wp-image-4728554" height="602" src="https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/HSRyelJWgAAkXSQ-e1789505557560.jpeg?w=696" style="width: 484px; height: auto;" width="1024" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Screenshot: Federal Aviation Administration </figcaption></figure> </div>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Womack told Bedford that his explanation regarding underperformance and the need for more overtime was confusing.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“I can’t wrap my head around time on station going down while overtime increases,” Womack stated.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Quigley added that Bedford’s refusal to pay the 2.8% raise would discourage potential candidates and current employees, indicating a lack of concern for their stress levels.</p>
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<p class="wp-block-paragraph">Bedford asserted that he has “the utmost respect” for controllers and referenced the 1% raise that non-managerial controllers received in January and a separate 1.6% raise from their union-negotiated contract.</p>
<p class="wp-block-paragraph">“If they heard what you just said, they wouldn’t think that you’re showing them the full respect,” Quigley said. “Show them the full 3.8% to demonstrate the respect they deserve.”</p>