Congressman Cohen Votes to Improve FAA Accountability

WASHINGTON – Congressman Steve Cohen (TN-09), a senior member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and its Subcommittee on Aviation, today voted to advance the Aircraft Certification Reform and Accountability Act. The measure, informed by an 18-month committee investigation of the fatal crashes of two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in 2018 and 2019 and the certification process by which the aircraft were authorized for flight by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), significantly improves aviation safety regulation and oversight.

Before the vote, Congressman Cohen noted that he had called for the resignation of Boeing's CEO in 2019, then added:

"I had some rather harsh things to say about Boeing and I think this report shows they were all well placed. It is important that government and the regulatory bodies have regulatory powers and enforcement that are independent and transparent and looking out for the public's interest. It didn't happen in this industry and it doesn't happen in other industries. We all need to be suspect when people say we don't need regulation and we don't need oversight because it's important…This is an important bill and it's an important function of Congress to do oversight and show we act in the public's interest.

"I want to express my regrets again to all of the families who have lost loved ones. This is totally regrettable."

Congressman Cohen also addressed initial reports that blamed the pilots of the Lion Air of Indonesia and Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max airplanes for the crashes:

"That's a nice way to pick on some non-American, non-Caucasian pilots and say they did it, not Boeing. They did the best they could in a death trap."

See those remarks here.

At an October 2019 Transportation and Infrastructure Committee hearing on the crashes, Congressman Cohen questioned then-Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg about accountability for the crashes and called for his resignation. See that exchange here.