Zeldin Seeks to Block F.A.A. Action Against East Hampton Town
East Hampton Town’s efforts to enact restrictions on the use of East Hampton Airport in order to reduce aircraft noise have a backer in Representative Lee Zeldin, who this week successfully added an amendment to a Congressional transportation appropriations bill that would block the Federal Aviation Administration from using its money to “institute an administrative or civil action against the sponsor (Town of East Hampton) of the East Hampton Airport.”
In a press release issued Wednesday afternoon, the East Hampton Town Board applauded him.
"Congressman Zeldin supports local control,” Town Supervisor Larry Cantwell said in the release, “and I want to thank him by sending a clear message to the F.A.A.: Stand down. Allow the Town of East Hampton and its residents to determine how best to support our airport and reasonably reduce aircraft noise.”
“Local control is the heart of the issue over East Hampton Airport and helicopter noise,” Mr. Cantwell wrote.
"Will the people of East Hampton, through their elected representatives, be able to reasonably regulate our municipal airport, or will the bureaucrats in Washington and the national aviation interest groups control it?”
The town officials called on New York’s senators, Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand, to support the adoption of the transportation bill amendment in the Senate.
The F.A.A. had said in a 2012 letter to former Representative Tim Bishop that it would not challenge “reasonable restrictions” on airport use imposed by the town. However, a United States attorney representing the agency recently told the district court judge reviewing two lawsuits challenging the town’s airport restrictions that the agency is not beholden to that stance, which it called “simply a response to a hypothetical posed by Congressman Bishop.” The town’s restrictions were adopted but are on hold pending a court determination.
The response does not “in any way waive the F.A.A.’s ability to seek an injunction or to enforce anything under the appropriate regulation,” the attorney said.