II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4634 

To provide support for air carrier workers, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 21, 2020 

Mr. WICKER (for himself and Ms. COLLINS) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, 

Science, and Transportation 

A BILL 

To provide support for air carrier workers, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Air Carrier Worker 

5 Support Extension Act of 2020’’. 

6 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

7 Unless otherwise specified, the terms in section 

8 40102(a) of title 49, United States Code, shall apply to 

9 this Act, except that— 


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1 (1) the term ‘‘airline catering employee’’ means 

2 an employee who performs airline catering services; 

3 (2) the term ‘‘airline catering services’’ means 

4 preparation, assembly, or both, of food, beverages, 

5 provisions and related supplies for delivery, and the 

6 delivery of such items, directly to aircraft or to a lo7 cation on or near airport property for subsequent 

8 delivery to aircraft; 

9 (3) the term ‘‘contractor’’ means— 

10 (A) a person that performs, under contract 

11 with a passenger air carrier conducting oper12 ations under part 121 of title 14, Code of Fed13 eral Regulations— 

14 (i) catering functions; or 

15 (ii) functions on the property of an 

16 airport that are directly related to the air 

17 transportation of persons, property, or 

18 mail, including but not limited to the load19 ing and unloading of property on aircraft; 

20 assistance to passengers under part 382 of 

21 title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; se22 curity; airport ticketing and check-in func23 tions; ground-handling of aircraft; or air24 craft cleaning and sanitization functions 

25 and waste removal; or 


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1 (B) a subcontractor that performs such 

2 functions; 

3 (4) the term ‘‘employee’’ means an individual, 

4 other than a corporate officer, who is employed by 

5 an air carrier or a contractor; and 

6 (5) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

7 of the Treasury. 

8 SEC. 3. PANDEMIC RELIEF FOR AVIATION WORKERS. 

9 (a) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR EMPLOYEE WAGES, 

10 SALARIES, AND BENEFITS.—Notwithstanding any other 

11 provision of law, to preserve aviation jobs and compensate 

12 air carrier industry workers, the Secretary shall provide 

13 financial assistance that shall exclusively be used for the 

14 continuation of payment of employee wages, salaries, and 

15 benefits to— 

16 (1) passenger air carriers, in an aggregate 

17 amount up to $25,500,000,000; 

18 (2) cargo air carriers, in the aggregate amount 

19 up to $300,000,000; and 

20 (3) contractors, in an aggregate amount up to 

21 $3,000,000,000. 

22 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Notwithstanding 

23 any other provision of law, the Secretary may use 

24 $100,000,000 of the funds made available under section 


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1 11(a) for costs and administrative expenses associated 

2 with providing financial assistance under this Act. 

3 SEC. 4. PROCEDURES FOR PROVIDING PAYROLL SUPPORT. 

4 (a) AWARDABLE AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall 

5 provide financial assistance under this Act— 

6 (1) to an air carrier required to file reports pur7 suant to part 241 of title 14, Code of Federal Regu8 lations, as of March 27, 2020, in an amount equal 

9 to— 

10 (A) the amount such air carrier received 

11 under section 4113 of the CARES Act (15 

12 U.S.C. 9073); or 

13 (B) at the request of such air carrier, the 

14 amount of the salaries and benefits reported by 

15 the air carrier to the Department of Transpor16 tation pursuant to such part 241, for the period 

17 from October 1, 2019, through March 31, 

18 2020; 

19 (2) to an air carrier that did not transmit re20 ports under such part 241, as of March 27, 2020, 

21 in an amount equal to— 

22 (A) the amount such air carrier received 

23 under section 4113 of the CARES Act (15 

24 U.S.C. 9073), plus an additional 15 percent of 

25 such amount; or 


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1 (B) at the request of such carrier, the sum 

2 of— 

3 (i) the amount that such air carrier 

4 certifies, using sworn financial statements 

5 or other appropriate data, as the amount 

6 of total salaries and related fringe benefits 

7 that such air carrier incurred and would be 

8 required to be reported to the Department 

9 of Transportation pursuant to such part 

10 241, if the carrier were required to trans11 mit such information during the period 

12 from April 1, 2019, through September 30, 

13 2019; and 

14 (ii) an additional amount equal to the 

15 difference between the amount certified 

16 under clause (i) and the amount the air 

17 carrier received under section 4113 of the 

18 CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073); and 

19 (3) to a contractor in an amount equal to the 

20 amount such contractor received under section 4113 

21 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073). 

22 (b) ADDITIONAL AWARDABLE AMOUNTS.—The Sec23 retary shall provide financial assistance under this Act to 

24 an air carrier that did not receive assistance under section 

25 4113 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073) and does not 


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1 transmit reports under such part 241 in an amount that 

2 such an air carrier certifies, using sworn financial state3 ments or other appropriate data, as the amount of total 

4 salaries and related fringe benefits that such air carrier 

5 incurred and would be required to be reported to the De6 partment of Transportation pursuant to such part 241, 

7 if the carrier were required to transmit such information 

8 during the period from April 1, 2019, through September 

9 30, 2019. 

10 (c) DEADLINES AND PROCEDURES.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

12 (A) FORMS; TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Fi13 nancial assistance provided to an air carrier or 

14 contractor under this Act shall be in such form, 

15 on such terms and conditions (including re16 quirements for audits and the clawback of any 

17 financial assistance provided upon failure by a 

18 passenger air carrier, cargo air carrier, or con19 tractor to honor the assurances specified in sec20 tion 5), as agreed to by the Secretary and the 

21 recipient for assistance received under section 

22 4113 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073), ex23 cept where inconsistent with this Act. 

24 (B) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall 

25 publish streamlined and expedited procedures 


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1 not later than 5 days after the date of enact2 ment of this Act for air carriers and contractors 

3 to submit requests for financial assistance 

4 under this Act. 

5 (2) DEADLINE FOR IMMEDIATE PAYROLL AS6 SISTANCE.—Not later than 10 days after the date of 

7 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall make ini8 tial payments to air carriers and contractors that 

9 submit requests for financial assistance approved by 

10 to the Secretary. 

11 (3) SUBSEQUENT PAYMENTS.—The Secretary 

12 shall determine an appropriate method for timely 

13 distribution of payments to air carriers and contrac14 tors with approved requests for financial assistance 

15 from any funds remaining available after providing 

16 initial financial assistance payments under para17 graph (2). 

18 (d) PRO RATA REDUCTIONS.—The amounts under 

19 subsections (a)(1)(B), (a)(2)(B)(i), and (b) shall, to the 

20 maximum extent practicable, be subject to the same pro 

21 rata reduction applied by the Secretary to passenger or 

22 cargo air carriers, as applicable, that received assistance 

23 under section 4113 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073). 


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1 (e) AUDITS.—The Inspector General of the Depart2 ment of the Treasury shall audit certifications made under 

3 subsection (a) or (b). 

4 SEC. 5. REQUIRED ASSURANCES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for financial assist6 ance under this Act, an air carrier or contractor shall 

7 enter into an agreement with the Secretary, or otherwise 

8 certify in such form and manner as the Secretary shall 

9 prescribe, that the air carrier or contractor shall— 

10 (1) refrain from conducting involuntary fur11 loughs or reducing pay rates and benefits until 

12 March 31, 2021; 

13 (2) through March 31, 2022, ensure that nei14 ther the air carrier or contractor nor any affiliate of 

15 the air carrier or contractor may, in any transaction, 

16 purchase an equity security of the air carrier or con17 tractor or the parent company of the air carrier or 

18 contractor that is listed on a national securities ex19 change; 

20 (3) through March 31, 2022, ensure that the 

21 air carrier or contractor shall not pay dividends, or 

22 make other capital distributions, with respect to the 

23 common stock (or equivalent interest) of the air car24 rier or contractor; and 

25 (4) meet the requirements of sections 6 and 7. 


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1 (b) DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY

2 TO CONDITION ASSISTANCE ON CONTINUATION OF SERV3 ICE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor5 tation is authorized to require, to the extent reason6 able and practicable, an air carrier provided finan7 cial assistance under this Act to maintain scheduled 

8 air transportation service, as the Secretary of Trans9 portation deems necessary, to ensure services to any 

10 point served by that carrier before March 1, 2020. 

11 (2) REQUIRED CONSIDERATIONS.—When con12 sidering whether to exercise the authority provided 

13 by this subsection, the Secretary of Transportation 

14 shall take into consideration the air transportation 

15 needs of small and remote communities and the need 

16 to maintain well-functioning health care supply 

17 chains, including medical devices and supplies, and 

18 pharmaceutical supply chains. 

19 (3) SUNSET.—The authority provided under 

20 this subsection shall terminate on April 1, 2022, and 

21 any requirements issued by the Secretary of Trans22 portation under this subsection shall cease to apply 

23 after that date. 


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1 SEC. 6. PROTECTION OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE2 MENT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Neither the Secretary, nor any 

4 other actor, department, or agency of the Federal Govern5 ment, shall condition the issuance of financial assistance 

6 under this Act on an air carrier’s or contractor’s imple7 mentation of measures to enter into negotiations with the 

8 certified bargaining representative of a craft or class of 

9 employees of the air carrier or contractor under the Rail10 way Labor Act (45 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) or the National 

11 Labor Relations Act (29 U.S.C. 151 et seq.), regarding 

12 pay or other terms and conditions of employment. 

13 (b) PERIOD OF EFFECT.—With respect to an air car14 rier or contractor to which financial assistance is provided 

15 under this Act, this section shall be in effect with respect 

16 to the air carrier or contractor beginning on the date on 

17 which the air carrier or contractor is first issued such fi18 nancial assistance and ending on March 31, 2021. 

19 SEC. 7. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN EMPLOYEE COMPENSA20 TION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may only provide 

22 financial assistance under this Act to an air carrier or con23 tractor after such carrier or contractor enters into an 

24 agreement with the Secretary which provides that, during 

25 the 2-year period beginning March 24, 2020, and ending 

26 March 24, 2022, no officer or employee of the air carrier 


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1 or contractor whose total compensation exceeded 

2 $425,000 in calendar year 2019 (other than an employee 

3 whose compensation is determined through an existing col4 lective bargaining agreement entered into prior to enact5 ment of this Act)— 

6 (1) will receive from the air carrier or con7 tractor total compensation which exceeds, during 

8 any 12 consecutive months of such 2-year period, 

9 the total compensation received by the officer or em10 ployee from the air carrier or contractor in calendar 

11 year 2019; 

12 (2) will receive from the air carrier or con13 tractor severance pay or other benefits upon termi14 nation of employment with the air carrier or con15 tractor which exceeds twice the maximum total com16 pensation received by the officer or employee from 

17 the air carrier or contractor in calendar year 2019; 

18 and 

19 (3) no officer or employee of the eligible busi20 ness whose total compensation exceeded $3,000,000 

21 in calendar year 2019 may receive during any 12 

22 consecutive months of such period total compensa23 tion in excess of the sum of— 

24 (A) $3,000,000; and 


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1 (B) 50 percent of the excess over 

2 $3,000,000 of the total compensation received 

3 by the officer or employee from the eligible 

4 business in calendar year 2019. 

5 (b) TOTAL COMPENSATION DEFINED.—In this sec6 tion, the term ‘‘total compensation’’ includes salary, bo7 nuses, awards of stock, and other financial benefits pro8 vided by an air carrier or contractor to an officer or em9 ployee of the air carrier or contractor. 

10 SEC. 8. TAX PAYER PROTECTION. 

11 (a) CARES ACT ASSISTANCE RECIPIENTS.—With 

12 respect to a recipient of assistance under section 4113 of 

13 the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073) that receives assistance 

14 under this Act, the Secretary may receive warrants, op15 tions, preferred stock, debt securities, notes, or other fi16 nancial instruments issued by such recipient in the same 

17 form and amount, and under the same terms and condi18 tions, as agreed to by the Secretary and the recipient for 

19 assistance received under such section 4113 to provide ap20 propriate compensation to the Federal Government for the 

21 provision of the financial assistance under this Act. 

22 (b) OTHER APPLICANTS.—With respect to an appli23 cant that did not receive assistance under such section 

24 4113, the Secretary may receive warrants, options, pre25 ferred stock, debt securities, notes, or other financial inVerDate Sep 11 2014 19:31 Oct 05, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4634.IS S4634

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1 struments issued by an applicant that receives assistance 

2 under this Act in a form and amount that are, to the max3 imum extent practicable, the same as the terms and condi4 tions as agreed to by the Secretary and similarly situated 

5 recipients of assistance under such section 4113 to provide 

6 appropriate compensation to the Federal Government for 

7 the provision of the financial assistance under this Act. 

8 SEC. 9. REPORTS. 

9 (a) REPORT.—Not later than May 1, 2021, the Sec10 retary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

11 and Infrastructure and the Committee on Financial Serv12 ices of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

13 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Com14 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 

15 Senate a report on the financial assistance provided to air 

16 carriers and contractors under this Act, including a de17 scription of any financial assistance provided. 

18 (b) UPDATE.—Not later than the last day of the 1- 

19 year period following the date of enactment of this Act, 

20 the Secretary shall update and submit to the Committee 

21 on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee 

22 on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and 

23 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

24 and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Af25 fairs of the Senate the report described in subsection (a). 


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1 SEC. 10. COORDINATION. 

2 In implementing this Act, the Secretary shall coordi3 nate with the Secretary of Transportation. 

4 SEC. 11. FUNDING. 

5 (a) DIRECT APPROPRIATION.—Notwithstanding any 

6 other provision of law, there is appropriated, out of 

7 amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

8 $11,400,000,000 to carry out this Act. 

9 (b) TRANSFER OF UNOBLIGATED CARES ACT

10 FUNDS.—In addition to the amount appropriated under 

11 subsection (a) to carry out this Act, the amounts made 

12 available under the following provisions of law are hereby 

13 transferred and made available to the Secretary to carry 

14 out this Act: 

15 (1) $3,100,000,000 from subsection (b)(2) of 

16 section 4003 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9042). 

17 (2) $11,100,000,000 from subsection (b)(3) of 

18 section 4003 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9042). 

19 (3) $3,200,000,000 from subsection (a)(2) of 

20 section 4112 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9072). 

Æ 


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