Lawmakers from Maryland and Virginia rallied against a proposal to add new long-distance flights in and out of Reagan National Airport, warning that the issue could hold up passage of the Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization bill.

“When this gets inserted into the FAA, it just delays getting an FAA reauthorization bill done, and there are so many other equities in that bill that have to get done for the safety of the entire American public that flies and all the personnel,” Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) said during a press conference at the airport on Monday.

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At issue is the perimeter rule, which limits the number of flights that travel more than 1,250 miles from DCA. Both Reagan and Dulles International Airport are owned by the federal government, which means Congress has the power to decide how they operate. Over the years, lawmakers have carved out exemptions to allow a small number of flights at the airport that are beyond the 1,250-mile limit, including for flights to cities like Phoenix, Austin, Las Vegas, Seattle, and Denver. The 2012 FAA reauthorization allowed 16 more flights beyond that perimeter.

Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) has noted that previous FAA reauthorization bills were delayed as a result of previous attempts to change the rules.

“History has shown that in 2018, when this issue was not litigated, we got an FAA bill very quickly. Back in 2009, it took us an extra four to five years before we ended up with an FAA bill,” Warner said.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and ranking member Ted Cruz (R-TX) made a deal to introduce an amendment to the bill that would give the airport four more slots beyond the airport’s perimeter rule. The amendment still needs a vote in the Commerce Committee before it can be added to the legislation, but the panel delayed a recent markup amid an ongoing dispute on a different issue. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has already released its version of an FAA reauthorization bill, and it does not include the proposal.

Lawmakers from the Washington area continue to argue the airport is already strained by traffic and noise disruption, pointing to an internal FAA memo that found 20 more daily round-trip operations would increase delays by 25.9%, and an increase of 25 daily roundtrip operations would increase delays by 33.2% at DCA.

The Coalition to Protect America’s Regional Airports, which includes members like United Airlines, which has a hub at Dulles, and the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority continue to argue that the main runway at DCA is the busiest in the nation and does not have the capacity to handle more flights.

“This metropolitan area has the benefit of being served by three major airports,” said Jack Potter, Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority CEO. “Dulles has four runways 10,000 feet plus long 12,000 acres, BWI, 3,000 acres, a 10,000-foot runway, a 9,000-foot runway, and a 5,000-foot runway.”

“Here at Reagan National, we have a runway that’s under 8,000 feet long,” Potter added. “We do not have the capacity to handle this without constraints being thrust upon our neighbors and our passengers.”

Capital Access Alliance, a coalition of business groups including Delta Airlines argue the congestion issues addressed in the FAA memo are not a problem during certain parts of the day and can create an opening for new flights. The coalition released a study by Boston Consulting Group that estimated expanding the number of long-distance flights at Reagan could reduce ticket prices for passengers, contribute to millions of dollars in economic growth, and even add millions in federal and state revenue.

“They didn’t talk about how DC has the highest ticket prices in the country. They didn’t talk about how passengers have the highest carbon footprint of any airport in the country. They didn’t talk about how this would create 1000 new jobs for the DC area,” said Brian Walsh, a spokesman for the coalition who was at the airport following the press conference on Monday.

“They seem to be more focused on protecting the interests of United Airlines than standing up and protecting passengers who are flying in and out of these airports,” Walsh added.

The senators emphasized they would not be able to support an FAA reauthorization bill that includes any kind of proposal that would expand the perimeter, even if it would be a modest change.

“If the deal that was supposedly announced, you do a deal that’s partial, then the next time, it’s going to be another add on, right?" Kaine questioned rhetorically.

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The senators said the fight this year could be more difficult as they wage a messaging war with lobbyists, interest groups, and even fellow lawmakers who are looking for more options at the airport closest to the nation’s capital and to avoid inconvenient connecting flights.

“I expect [the fight] to last until proponents of this proposal decide to drop it because we’re in this fight until the end,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD). “We’ve made it clear that we want to work constructively as we always have with an FAA reauthorization. But, their decision to insert this issue into that bill will cause delay.”