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CONTENTS

Statement of-

Brundage, Percival F., Deputy Director, Bureau of the Budget (accom-

panied by Harold Seidman, staff expert on Government corpora-

tions)

Ceconi, Elmo J., Real Estate Division, Office of the Assistant Chief of
Staff for Installations, Headquarters, United States Air Force--

Kane, Owen A., legislative attorney, General Accounting Office (ac-

companied by Leo Milner, supervisory auditor, and John C. Fenton,

assistant to the Director of Audits) _.

Lee, Hon. Frederick B., Administrator, Civil Aeronautics Admininstra-
tion_.

Tipton, S. G., general counsel, Air Transport Association of America,
1107 16th St. NW., Washington, D. C..

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WASHINGTON NATIONAL AIRPORT INCORPORATION

TUESDAY, MAY 25, 1954

UNITED STATES SENATE,

COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE,

Washington, D. C.

The committee met at 10:55 a. m., pursuant to call, in room G-16 of the Capitol, Senator John W. Bricker (chairman) presiding.

Present: Senators Bricker (chairman) and Schoeppel.

Also present: Bertram O. Wissman, chief clerk; Edward C. Sweeney, counsel, and Edward Jarrett, assistant chief clerk. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order.

The committee will now consider S. 3435, a bill to amend the act relating to the administration of the Washington National Airport, to incorporate the Washington National Airport Corporation, and for other purposes.

At this point I will make a copy of S. 3435 a part of the record. (S. 3435 is as follows:)

[S. 3435, 83d Cong., 2d sess.]

A BILL To amend the act relating to the administration of the Washington National Airport, to incorporate the Washingtoon National Airport Corporation, and for other purposes

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the Act of June 29, 1940 (54 Stat. 686), as amended by the Act of May 15, 1947 (61 Stat. 94), relating to the administration of the Washington National Airport, and for other purposes, is hereby amended to read as follows:

"SECTION 1. For the purpose of operating the Washington National Airport, there is hereby created, subject to the direction of the Secretary of Commerce, a body corporate to be known as the Washington National Airport Corporation. "SEC. 2. The Corporation shall have perpetual succession unless sooner dissolved by Act of Congress.

"SEC. 3. The Corporation shall have its principal offices at the Washington National Airport in Arlington County, Virginia, and at such other place or places as the Secretary of Commerce may prescribe, and shall be deemed, for purposes of venue in civil actions, to be a resident of each of the jurisdictions in which such offices have been established.

"SEC. 4. To carry out the specific powers herein authorized, the Corporation shall have the following general powers:

"(a) To adopt, alter, and use a corporate seal.

"(b) To adopt, amend, and repeal bylaws governing the conduct of its business and the performance of the powers and duties granted to or imposed upon it by law.

"(c) To acquire, by purchase, lease, condemnation, or in any other lawful manner, any property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, or any interest therein; to hold, maintain, use, and operate the same; and to sell, lease, or otherwise dispose of the same at such time, in such manner, and to the extent deemed necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of the Corporation. "(d) To accept gifts or donations of services, or of property, real, personal, or mixed, tangible or intangible, in aid of any of the purposes herein authorized. "(e) To enter into and perform such contracts, leases, cooperative agreements, 1

or other transactions as may be necessary in the conduct of its business and on such terms as it may deem appropriate, with any agency or instrumentality of the United States, or with any State, Territory, or possession, or with any political subdivision thereof, or with any person, firm, association or corporation. "(f) To appoint, in accordance with the civil-service laws, such officers, attorneys, agents, and employees, to vest them with such powers and duties, and to pay such compensation to them for their services, as may be provided by law; to require bonds for the faithful performance of their duties, and to pay the premiums therefor; and to employ experts and consultants or organizations thereof, as authorized by section 15 of the Act of August 2, 1946 (5 U. S. C. 55 (a)).

"(g) To determine the character of and the necessity for its obligations and expenditures, and the manner in which they shall be incurred, allowed, and paid, subject to provisions of law specifically applicable to Government corporations.

"(h) To sue and be sued in its corporate name, except that the Corporation shall be entitled to and granted the same immunities and exemptions from the payment of costs, charges, and fees as those possessed by the United States. "(i) To have, in the payment of debts out of bankrupt, insolvent, or decedent's estates, the priority of the United States.

"(j) To use the United States mails in the same manner and under the same conditions as the executive departments of the Federal Government.

"(k) To execute, in accordance with its bylaws, all instruments necessary or appropriate in the exercise of any of its powers.

"(1) To take such action as may be necessary or appropriate to carry out the powers herein or hereafter specifically conferred upon it.

"(m) To settle and adjust claims held by it against other persons or parties and by other persons or parties against the Corporation.

"SEC. 5. Subject to the provisions of the Government Corporation Control Act, the Corporation shall have and may exercise such specific powers, in addition to those elsewhere conferred in this Act, as may be deemed necessary to protect, operate, improve, and maintain the Washington National Airport as a business enterprise and a public service facility.

"SEC. 6. (a) The management of the Corporation shall be vested in the Secretary of Commerce.

"(b) There is hereby established the Advisory Board of the Washington National Airport Corporation which shall be composed of seven members appointed by the Secretary without regard to the civil-service laws, who will hold office at the Secretary's pleasure. The Advisory Board shall meet at the call of the Secretary, who shall require it to meet no less often than once each six months; shall review the general policies of the Corporation, including but not limited to its policies in connection with design and construction of facilities and the administration of existing facilities, and shall advise the Secretary with respect thereto. The members of the Board who are in the executive branch of the Government shall receive no additional compensation for their services on the Board. The members from private life shall each receive $50 per diem when engaged in the performance of duties vested in the Board. All members of the Board shall be reimbursed in accordance with the Travel Expense Act of 1949, as amended for travel, subsistence, and other necessary expenses incurred by them in the performance of duties vested in the Board.

"SEC. 7. (a) There is hereby established in the Treasury of the United States a Washington National Airport Fund (referred to hereinafter as the 'fund'). The capital of the fund shall consist of such amounts as may be advanced to it from appropriations made for that purpose, together with the unexpended balance of the appropriation for 'Construction, Washington National Airport' and the obligated balances of the appropriation, 'Maintenance and operation, Washington National Airport', provided by the Department of Commerce Appropriation Act, 1954, together with the value of the assets of the airport, less liabilities as of July 1, 1954. The value of the assets shall be determined by the Secretary of Commerce, subject to the approval of the Director of the Bureau of the Budget, taking into consideration original cost, less depreciation, the usable value to the airport if clearly less than cost, obsolete and unusable facilities and equipment, and other reasonably determinable factors which would reduce the value of the assets of the airport.

"(b) Unless the Congress otherwise directs, the Secretary shall pay into miscellaneous receipts of the Treasury at the close of each fiscal year, interest at a rate determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, taking into consideration

the average yield to maturity (on the basis of daily closing market bid quotations during the month of June of the preceding fiscal year) on outstanding marketable obligations of the United States having a maturity date of fifteen or more years from the first day of such month of June, on that portion of the capital which the Secretary determines to be equivalent to the local share that would have been supplied by the project sponsor had the airport been built and developed in its entirety subsequent to the enactment of the Federal Airport Act and under its provisions by a local public agency with maximum Federal grants-in-aid.

"(c) Whenever any capital in the fund is determined by the Secretary to be in excess of the current needs of the airport, such capital shall be credited to the appropriation from which it was advanced, where it shall be held for future advances. The capital of the fund shall be considered reduced by the net amount of such credits.

"(d) Recepits from operations under this Act shall be credited to the fund. Except as hereinafter provided, the Corporation is authorized to charge any Government agency for facilities and services at the rates charged to the public, or to charge a lump sum which in the aggregate would approximate the total of the individual charges incurred by the using Government agency. The fund shall be available for payment of all expenditures of the Secretary under this Act.

"(e) Such sums as may be required to carry out the purposes of this Act are authorized to be appropriated without fiscal year limitations. Advances shall be made to the fund from the appropriations made therefor when requested by the Secretary.

"SEC. 8. The Corporation is hereby authorized to use its funds, from whatever sources derived, in the exercise of its corporate powers and functions. "SEC. 9. (a) The Corporation shall contribute—

"(1) to the civil-service retirement and disability fund, on the basis of annual billings as determined by the Civil Service Commission, for the Government's share of the cost of the civil-service retirement system applicable to the Corporation's officers and employees and their beneficiaries; and

"(2) to the employees' compensation fund, on the basis of annual billings as determined by the Secretary of Labor, for the benefit payments made from such fund on account of the Corporation's officers and employees and their beneficiaries.

"Each such annual billing shall include a statement of the fair portion of the cost of the administration of the fund with respect to which such billing is made, and a sum equal to such fair portion of the cost shall be paid by the Corporation into the Treasury as miscellaneous receipts.

"(b) The Corporation shall not be liable under this section (1) for contributions with respect to the service of any officer or employee for any period prior to the effective date of this section, and (2) for payments for administrative costs with respect to any period prior to such effective date.

"SEC. 10. All the facilities of the airport which are analogous to the facilities developed with Federal aid by comparable public airports in the State of Virginia and all those usable for the landing and takeoff of aircraft will be available to the United States for use by military and naval aircraft in common with other aircraft at all times without charge, except, if the use by military and naval aircraft shall be substantial, a reasonable share, proportional to such use, of the cost of operating and maintaining the facilities so used, shall be charged.

"SEC. 11. The Corporation will furnish to any civil agency of the Government, without charge (except for light, heat, janitor service, and similar facilities and services at the reasonable cost thereof), such space in airport buildings as may be reasonably adequate for use in connection with any air traffic-control activities, or weather-reporting activities and communications activities related to air traffic control, which such agency may deem it necessary to establish and maintain at the airport.

"SEC. 12. The Corporation, in carrying on the activities authorized by this Act, shall utilize, to the extent practicable, the available services and facilities of other agencies and instrumentalities of the Federal Government on a reimbursable basis.

"SEC. 13. No individual, association, partnership, or corporation shall use the words 'Washington National Airport', or a combination of these three words, as

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