Congress: New FAA Cheating Revelations Mandate a Congressional Hearing, says Hultgren

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Washington, DC – Following new revelations that additional FAA or aviation-related employees may have assisted in giving potential air traffic controller recruits special access to answers on a key admissions test to help them gain jobs with the FAA, U.S. Representative Randy Hultgren (IL-14) restated his call, begun in December of last year, for FAA officials to appear before Congress to answer for their actions. Rep. Hultgren, a former member of the House Subcommittee on Aviation, has urged the House to act on his legislation, H.R. 1964, the Air Traffic Controllers Hiring Act of 2015 (previously known as the SAFE TOWERS Act), to reverse the effects of the FAA’s policies and restore safety and confidence to air travel.

“I am deeply disturbed that this alleged cheating may run deeper than first reported. If additional FAA or aviation-related employees helped applicants cheat on the Biographical Questionnaire (BQ), it is imperative we bring in those responsible and determine how widespread the misconduct is. Again, I urge Congress to hold a hearing and compel the FAA to appear before the American people to get to the bottom of this troubling discovery,” said Rep. Hultgren. “We need answers: Did the FAA know someone on the inside was helping people cheat, and did they cover it up? Was it a tactic with a purpose: to ensure targeted populations would pass the test? Who wrote the BQ, and who validated it (if anyone)?

“In addition, we still don’t know what will happen to those who have either failed the BQ, aged out of the hiring process, or both, for which they spent countless personal resources. I urge my colleagues to support my legislation to provide relief to those hurt by the FAA’s actions, and restore confidence in the air traffic controller hiring process.”

The FAA is under fire following a six month investigation into the agency’s new hiring practices which for months Rep. Hultgren has argued caused the agency to pass over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates, such as experienced veterans, and have raised concerns of air travel safety. The investigation also uncovered the alleged cheating, which Rep. Hultgren has called out. Illinois’ 14th Congressional District is home to the most air traffic controllers in Illinois.

Hultgren Reintroduces Legislation to Fix FAA’s Hiring Procedure for Air Traffic Controllers

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FAA Plows Ahead without Addressing Safety Concerns

Washington, DC – U.S. Representatives Randy Hultgren (R-IL-14), Dan Lipinski (D-IL-03), Vicky Hartzler (R-MO-04), Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17), Matt Salmon (R-AZ-05), Tim Ryan (D-OH-13), Keith Rothfus (R-PA-12) and Elizabeth Esty (D-CT-05) today introduced a bill, the Air Traffic Controllers Hiring Act of 2015 (H.R. 1964), to reverse the effects of the Federal Aviation Authority’s (FAA) interim hiring procedures which have passed over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates and raised concerns of safety and transparency. Rep. Hultgren introduced similar legislation, the SAFE TOWERS Act (H.R. 5675), last Congress.

“Although the FAA’s sudden change in hiring standards last year clearly jeopardized air travel safety, the FAA has refused to alter course on the obscure and illogical practices which have passed over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates. This legislation makes sure we have the best and brightest in our control towers, provides relief to those who were unjustly shunted out of the interim hiring process, and pushes the FAA to change course on their new hiring procedures which have exacerbated the problem,” said Rep. Hultgren. “The FAA’s new procedures still do not address our concerns with the questionable and uncertified Biographical Questionnaire (Bio Q). They do nothing to provide relief for those who ‘aged out’ of the process—our bill does. I urge its quick passage, and I thank my fellow co-sponsors for their support. I also encourage Chairman Shuster to compel the FAA to answer tough questions about the change in procedure.”

Rep. Hultgren has called upon Congressman Bill Shuster (R-PA), Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, to hold a hearing examining the FAA’s hiring practices.

Currently, there are 272 air traffic controllers living in the 14th Congressional District. For decades, the FAA has relied on qualified veterans and colleges and universities to prepare air traffic controllers through the Collegiate Training Initiative (CTI), ensuring candidates are well-trained for the position. Last year, the FAA suddenly changed its hiring practices with few details given about how the changes would be implemented and with little advance warning. There are strong signs that the procedures have resulted in unjust economic injury to candidates who have been disqualified by the opaque Bio Q. Further, many have “aged out” after turning 31 during the application process, thus becoming ineligible for the job for which they were specifically trained. In January, the FAA announced this year’s procedures which resemble those used during the interim hiring period.

Among other provisions, the bill would:

  • Restore preferred status for CTI graduates with school recommendations and qualified veterans back into the hiring process. A qualified individual maintaining practical air traffic control experience obtained at FAA air traffic control facilities and civilian installations of the Department of Defense would also receive preferential consideration.
  • Eliminate the use of a Biographical Assessment that unduly disqualifies applicants, and require public disclosure of the assessment’s validation and criteria used before implementation.
  • Allow candidates who will have aged out from the interim hiring process, or were deemed unqualified by the Bio Q, the chance to reapply.

http://hultgren.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-reintroduces-legislation-to-fix-faa-s-hiring-procedure-for-air

Hultgren Calls for Transportation Committee Hearing on Nonsensical FAA Hiring Procedures

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FAA Skirts Questions about Air Safety under New, Flawed Process

Washington, DC — U.S. Representative Randy Hultgren (IL-14) today called upon Congressman Bill Shuster (R-PA), Chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, to hold a hearing on the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) recent decision to suddenly alter its process for hiring air traffic controllers. These new hiring practices have caused the FAA to pass over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates, such as experienced veterans, and have raised concerns of air travel safety. In light of a lack of transparency at the FAA’s actions, and out of concern for airline passenger safety, Congressman Hultgren has introduced the SAFE TOWERS Act. Learn more about the FAA’s recent hiring changes and the SAFE TOWERS Act here.

In his letter to Chairman Shuster, Congressman Hultgren wrote that he believes the American public should have answers and details relating to, among other concerns, the incorporation of a Biographical Questionnaire (BQ), used in the new application process, which:

  • Disqualifies qualified candidates with specialized degrees and military air traffic control experience because of arbitrary multiple choice test questions and responses the FAA deemed ‘wrong.’
  • Does not require applicants to show IDs on-site, or sit in a secured testing site, raising questions of confidence in the fairness of the application process.
  • Does not allow numerous applicants who have ‘failed’ the BQ to reapply for future air traffic controller positions. Applicants did not receive their score, were not informed what score was needed to pass, were not given the metrics used for scoring the BQ, and were thus left in the dark as to how to prepare themselves to reapply for future openings.

Furthermore, an October 2014 report released by the FAA found that the use of BQ data did not adequately contribute to the prediction of air traffic controller success—so why were applicants disqualified under a flawed metric?

Unfortunately, correspondence from the FAA has been thin on details about the FAA’s plans for revising the hiring process moving forward, and how the process purports to enhance aviation safety.

“The agency’s lack of transparency continues to erode my confidence that it places the safety of our skies as a top priority,” said Congressman Hultgren. “The American people need assurance that conditions and processes in place at the FAA remain safe and security-focused.”

http://hultgren.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-calls-for-transportation-committee-hearing-on-nonsensical-faa

Hultgren to FAA Administrator: Address Control Tower Safety Now

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Washington, DC — U.S. Representative Randy Hultgren (IL-14) called on FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, who today plans to visit the crippled FAA facility in Aurora, Illinois, to address his agency’s new hiring procedures for air traffic controllers which puts the safety of American airline passengers at risk. Along with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx, he has refused to give any answers to inquiries from Rep. Hultgren, the Illinois delegation or other Members of Congress about the new, obscure and illogical hiring practices.

“I am glad Administrator Huerta and the FAA are taking the incident at the FAA facility in Aurora seriously. But I am disappointed he and Secretary Foxx have ignored repeated requests from me and other Members of Congress for answers about the FAA’s new hiring procedures,” said Rep. Hultgren. “I believe the new procedures jeopardize airline safety and risk putting lesser qualified candidates into our towers. Many qualified applicants have been rejected from the process by an illogical personality test which asked such irrelevant questions as whether you played a high school sport. Just because someone was a star athlete in high school doesn’t mean they have the skills or training for us to trust them in our towers.

“I would hope that with the introduction of my legislation, the SAFE TOWERS Act, Administrator Huerta would respond to this troubling situation and take action as he is in Aurora. I will be pressing leadership in the House of Representatives to bring my bill up for a vote before the end of the year. We must all work together to ensure we have the best, brightest and most qualified air traffic controllers in our towers.”

The SAFE TOWERS (Standards Addressing Federal Transparency and Oversight With Evolving Recruitment Specifications) Act, H.R. 5675, reverses the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) new hiring practices which have passed over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates and raised concerns of safety and transparency because they divert the time-tested hiring process around highly-qualified, CTI-certified trainees and qualified veterans maintaining aviation experience.

Learn more about the SAFE TOWERS Act here.

http://hultgren.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-to-faa-administrator-address-control-tower-safety-now

Hultgren, Lipinski Introduce SAFE TOWERS Act to Fix FAA’s Illogical Hiring Procedure for Air Traffic Controllers

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Allows Most Qualified Candidates to Re-Apply in Restored Common Sense Hiring Process

Washington, DC – U.S. Representatives Randy Hultgren (IL-14) and Dan Lipinski (IL-03) today introduced the Standards Addressing Federal Transparency and Oversight With Evolving Recruitment Specifications (SAFE TOWERS) Act. The bill reverses the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) new, obscure and illogical hiring practices which have passed over the most qualified air traffic controller candidates and raised concerns of safety and transparency.

“The SAFE TOWERS Act is targeted at making sure we have the best and brightest in our control towers. When you climb into an airliner, you trust the pilot, the crew and air traffic controllers will keep you safe,” said Rep. Hultgren. “The new hiring standards jeopardize air travel safety because they divert the hiring process around highly-qualified, CTI-certified trainees and elevate off-the-street candidates. I have met with air traffic controllers in my district, collegiate training initiative (CTI) students, teachers and administrators who were blindsided by the FAA’s decision after spending tens of thousands of dollars and hours in specialized training courses. The FAA has been non-responsive to my inquiries about how their new hiring practices make our skies safer. We still have more questions than answers.

“Psychological assessments are important, especially for high-stress jobs. But disqualifying highly-trained, certified graduates because they did or did not play sports in high school, as one Bio Q question asked, is ridiculous. The SAFE TOWERS Act ensures our towers are again operated by qualified veterans and graduates with specialized aviation degrees, and provides relief for those who ‘aged out’ of the process. Further, it makes sure the FAA is open and transparent about their hiring procedures.”

“Lewis University in Romeoville has one of the premier CTI programs in the nation,” said Rep Lipinski. “For years its graduates, along with our military controllers, have gone on to proudly work for the FAA. Now, with these hastily implemented hiring procedures, the FAA is turning its back on the students and brave veterans that should be the backbone of our air traffic control system, in favor of a process that lacks transparency. Safety must be the number one concern for the FAA and we shouldn’t be tinkering with this proven system.”

Currently, there are 272 air traffic controllers living in the 14th Congressional District. For decades, the FAA has relied on colleges and universities to prepare air traffic controllers through the CTI, ensuring candidates are well-trained for the position. This year the FAA changed its hiring practices with few details given about how the changes would be implemented and with little advance warning. There are strong signs that the new procedures have resulted in unjust economic injury to candidates who have been disqualified by the opaque Biographical Questionnaire (Bio Q). Further, many have “aged out” after turning 31 during the application process, thus becoming ineligible for the job for which they were specifically trained.

Previously, Rep. Hultgren led a bipartisan group of the Illinois delegation in pressing U.S. Secretary of Transportation Anthony Foxx for answers regarding the FAA’s new hiring procedures. The letter is available here.

Among other provisions, the SAFE TOWERS Act would:

  • Restore preferred status for CTI graduates with school recommendations and qualified veterans back into the hiring process.
  • Eliminate the use of a Biographical Assessment that unduly disqualifies applicants.
  • Allow candidates who will have aged out from the interim hiring process, or were deemed unqualified by the Bio Q, the chance to reapply.
  • Establish an ATC Advisory Committee, composed of relevant educational institutions and organizations, to provide advice and recommendations to the Administrator of the FAA in regards to needs, objectives, plans, and content of air traffic control training programs.
    • Requires an annual report from the Advisory Committee to Congress citing recommendations. The FAA must respond within 60 days explaining why they did or did not comply.
    • Requires the FAA to notify Advisory Committee and CTI schools prior to any future changes in the hiring process and allow the schools an opportunity to comment.
    • Requires the FAA take into consideration locally developed training initiatives at CTI schools when establishing best practices nationwide.

http://hultgren.house.gov/newsroom/press-releases/hultgren-lipinski-introduce-safe-towers-act-to-fix-faa-s-illogical-hiring