FAA tells Congress it has implemented many reauthorization requirements; GAO warns dozens of modernization recommendations remain open

The House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure heard competing accounts of progress implementing the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024, with FAA witnesses listing dozens of completed tasks while the Government Accountability Office said key modernization recommendations remain open.

Deputy Associate Administrator for Aviation Safety Miss Baker told the committee the FAA has ‘‘made significant progress in implementing the act’s several hundred requirements during the past year,’’ citing items such as reductions in aircraft registration backlog, shorter processing times for certificate applications, expanded safety-data tools and steps to integrate emerging technologies like advanced air mobility.

"We have made substantial progress implementing requirements aimed at eliminating dangerous runway incidents," Miss Baker said, noting the agency has added its surface awareness initiative at 18 sites and plans 30 additional sites to be operational by the end of 2025. She also described steps to accelerate hiring and onboarding of controllers and aviation safety inspectors and work to modernize the NOTAM system.

But GAO Director of Physical Infrastructure Mr. Collins told the same panel his office has identified continuing challenges. "In September 2024 we reported that 76 of FAA’s 138 air traffic control systems were unsustainable or potentially unsustainable," Collins said, and noted GAO made 11 recommendations across recent reports tied to NextGen and other modernization programs, of which nine have not been fully implemented.

Collins outlined GAO’s open work on controller staffing, workforce skills, simulator programs, and legacy IT systems and said GAO has 50 open recommendations to the FAA from reports issued since 2020. "Implementing these open recommendations will help position FAA to fulfill its commitment to ensuring that The United States has the safest, most efficient airspace system in the world," he said.

Lawmakers on the committee pressed FAA officials on timelines for several statutorily required reports and actions. Chairman Graves and Ranking Member Larson both framed the hearing as a check on implementation milestones and as oversight of agency response to multiple recent safety incidents and system outages.

The FAA said it awarded a contract in January 2025 for an independent review of type certification and that it expects to meet statutory timelines for other congressionally mandated studies. The FAA and GAO agreed to continue working with the committee on outstanding recommendations and timelines.

Why it matters: The reauthorization sets multi‑year direction and funding for aviation safety and modernization. GAO’s outstanding recommendations and the agency’s admitted dependence on legacy systems were central to lawmakers’ concerns that implementation must proceed faster to reduce safety and operational risk.

The hearing record will remain open for additional submissions; committee members said they will follow up on specific reports and implementation timelines as the FAA continues its rulemaking and modernization work.