II 

Calendar No. 563 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4774 

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

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 30 (legislative day, SEPTEMBER 29), 2020 

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

which was read the first time 

OCTOBER 1, 2020 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 

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’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 

2 Unless otherwise specified, the terms in section 

3 40102(a) of title 49, United States Code, shall apply to 

4 this Act, except that— 

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

6 an employee who performs airline catering services; 

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

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

9 provisions and related supplies for delivery, and the 

10 delivery of such items, directly to aircraft or to a lo11 cation on or near airport property for subsequent 

12 delivery to aircraft; 

13 (3) the term ‘‘contractor’’ means— 

14 (A) a person that performs, under contract 

15 with a passenger air carrier conducting oper16 ations under part 121 of title 14, Code of Fed17 eral Regulations— 

18 (i) catering functions; or 

19 (ii) functions on the property of an 

20 airport that are directly related to the air 

21 transportation of persons, property, or 

22 mail, including but not limited to the load23 ing and unloading of property on aircraft; 

24 assistance to passengers under part 382 of 

25 title 14, Code of Federal Regulations; se26 curity; airport ticketing and check-in funcVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 Oct 02, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4774.PCS S4774

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1 tions; ground-handling of aircraft; or air2 craft cleaning and sanitization functions 

3 and waste removal; or 

4 (B) a subcontractor that performs such 

5 functions; 

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

7 other than a corporate officer, who is employed by 

8 an air carrier or a contractor; and 

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

10 of the Treasury. 

11 SEC. 3. PANDEMIC RELIEF FOR AVIATION WORKERS. 

12 (a) FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR EMPLOYEE WAGES, 

13 SALARIES, AND BENEFITS.—Notwithstanding any other 

14 provision of law, to preserve aviation jobs and compensate 

15 air carrier industry workers, the Secretary shall provide 

16 financial assistance that shall exclusively be used for the 

17 continuation of payment of employee wages, salaries, and 

18 benefits to— 

19 (1) passenger air carriers, in an aggregate 

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

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

22 up to $300,000,000; and 

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

24 $3,000,000,000. 


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1 (b) ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES.—Notwithstanding 

2 any other provision of law, the Secretary, may use 

3 $100,000,000 of the funds made available under section 

4 11(a) for costs and administrative expenses associated 

5 with providing financial assistance under this Act. 

6 SEC. 4. PROCEDURES FOR PROVIDING PAYROLL SUPPORT. 

7 (a) AWARDABLE AMOUNTS.—The Secretary shall 

8 provide financial assistance under this Act— 

9 (1) to an air carrier required to file reports pur10 suant to part 241 of title 14, Code of Federal Regu11 lations, as of March 27, 2020, in an amount equal 

12 to— 

13 (A) the amount such air carrier received 

14 under section 4113 of the CARES Act (15 

15 U.S.C. 9073); or 

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

17 amount of the salaries and benefits reported by 

18 the air carrier to the Department of Transpor19 tation pursuant to such part 241, for the period 

20 from October 1, 2019, through March 31, 

21 2020; 

22 (2) to an air carrier that did not transmit re23 ports under such part 241, as of March 27, 2020, 

24 in an amount equal to— 


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1 (A) the amount such air carrier received 

2 under section 4113 of the CARES Act (15 

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

4 such amount; or 

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

6 of— 

7 (i) the amount that such air carrier 

8 certifies, using sworn financial statements 

9 or other appropriate data, as the amount 

10 of total salaries and related fringe benefits 

11 that such air carrier incurred and would be 

12 required to be reported to the Department 

13 of Transportation pursuant to such part 

14 241, if the carrier were required to trans15 mit such information during the period 

16 from April 1, 2019, through September 30, 

17 2019; and 

18 (ii) an additional amount equal to the 

19 difference between the amount certified 

20 under clause (i) and the amount the air 

21 carrier received under section 4113 of the 

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

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

24 amount such contractor received under section 4113 

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


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1 (b) ADDITIONAL AWARDABLE AMOUNTS.—The Sec2 retary shall provide financial assistance under this Act to 

3 an air carrier that did not receive assistance under section 

4 4113 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073) and does not 

5 transmit reports under such part 241 in an amount that 

6 such an air carrier certifies, using sworn financial state7 ments or other appropriate data, as the amount of total 

8 salaries and related fringe benefits that such air carrier 

9 incurred and would be required to be reported to the De10 partment of Transportation pursuant to such part 241, 

11 if the carrier were required to transmit such information 

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

13 30, 2019. 

14 (c) DEADLINES AND PROCEDURES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

16 (A) FORMS; TERMS AND CONDITIONS.—Fi17 nancial assistance provided to an air carrier or 

18 contractor under this Act shall be in such form, 

19 on such terms and conditions (including re20 quirements for audits and the clawback of any 

21 financial assistance provided upon failure by a 

22 passenger air carrier, cargo air carrier, or con23 tractor to honor the assurances specified in sec24 tion 5), as agreed to by the Secretary and the 

25 recipient for assistance received under section 


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1 4113 of the CARES Act (15 U.S.C. 9073), ex2 cept where inconsistent with this Act. 

3 (B) PROCEDURES.—The Secretary shall 

4 publish streamlined and expedited procedures 

5 not later than 5 days after the date of enact6 ment of this Act for air carriers and contractors 

7 to submit requests for financial assistance 

8 under this Act. 

9 (2) DEADLINE FOR IMMEDIATE PAYROLL AS10 SISTANCE.—Not later than 10 days after the date of 

11 enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall make ini12 tial payments to air carriers and contractors that 

13 submit requests for financial assistance approved by 

14 to the Secretary. 

15 (3) SUBSEQUENT PAYMENTS.—The Secretary 

16 shall determine an appropriate method for timely 

17 distribution of payments to air carriers and contrac18 tors with approved requests for financial assistance 

19 from any funds remaining available after providing 

20 initial financial assistance payments under para21 graph (2). 

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

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

24 maximum extent practicable, be subject to the same pro 

25 rata reduction applied by the Secretary to passenger or 


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1 cargo air carriers, as applicable, that received assistance 

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

3 (e) AUDITS.—The Inspector General of the Depart4 ment of the Treasury shall audit certifications made under 

5 subsection (a) or (b). 

6 SEC. 5. REQUIRED ASSURANCES. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—To be eligible for financial assist8 ance under this Act, an air carrier or contractor shall 

9 enter into an agreement with the Secretary, or otherwise 

10 certify in such form and manner as the Secretary shall 

11 prescribe, that the air carrier or contractor shall— 

12 (1) refrain from conducting involuntary fur13 loughs or reducing pay rates and benefits until 

14 March 31, 2021; 

15 (2) through March 31, 2022, ensure that nei16 ther the air carrier or contractor nor any affiliate of 

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

18 purchase an equity security of the air carrier or con19 tractor or the parent company of the air carrier or 

20 contractor that is listed on a national securities ex21 change; 

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

23 air carrier or contractor shall not pay dividends, or 

24 make other capital distributions, with respect to the 


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1 common stock (or equivalent interest) of the air car2 rier or contractor; and 

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

4 (b) DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY

5 TO CONDITION ASSISTANCE ON CONTINUATION OF SERV6 ICE.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Transpor8 tation is authorized to require, to the extent reason9 able and practicable, an air carrier provided finan10 cial assistance under this Act to maintain scheduled 

11 air transportation service, as the Secretary of Trans12 portation deems necessary, to ensure services to any 

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

14 (2) REQUIRED CONSIDERATIONS.—When con15 sidering whether to exercise the authority provided 

16 by this subsection, the Secretary of Transportation 

17 shall take into consideration the air transportation 

18 needs of small and remote communities and the need 

19 to maintain well-functioning health care supply 

20 chains, including medical devices and supplies, and 

21 pharmaceutical supply chains. 

22 (3) SUNSET.—The authority provided under 

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

24 any requirements issued by the Secretary of TransVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:48 Oct 02, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4774.PCS S4774

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1 portation under this subsection shall cease to apply 

2 after that date. 

3 SEC. 6. PROTECTION OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE4 MENT. 

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

6 other actor, department, or agency of the Federal Govern7 ment, shall condition the issuance of financial assistance 

8 under this Act on an air carrier’s or contractor’s imple9 mentation of measures to enter into negotiations with the 

10 certified bargaining representative of a craft or class of 

11 employees of the air carrier or contractor under the Rail12 way Labor Act (45 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) or the National 

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

14 pay or other terms and conditions of employment. 

15 (b) PERIOD OF EFFECT.—With respect to an air car16 rier or contractor to which financial assistance is provided 

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

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

19 which the air carrier or contractor is first issued such fi20 nancial assistance and ending on March 31, 2021. 

21 SEC. 7. LIMITATION ON CERTAIN EMPLOYEE COMPENSA22 TION. 

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

24 financial assistance under this Act to an air carrier or con25 tractor after such carrier or contractor enters into an 


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1 agreement with the Secretary which provides that, during 

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

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

4 or contractor whose total compensation exceeded 

5 $425,000 in calendar year 2019 (other than an employee 

6 whose compensation is determined through an existing col7 lective bargaining agreement entered into prior to enact8 ment of this Act)— 

9 (1) will receive from the air carrier or con10 tractor total compensation which exceeds, during 

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

12 the total compensation received by the officer or em13 ployee from the air carrier or contractor in calendar 

14 year 2019; 

15 (2) will receive from the air carrier or con16 tractor severance pay or other benefits upon termi17 nation of employment with the air carrier or con18 tractor which exceeds twice the maximum total com19 pensation received by the officer or employee from 

20 the air carrier or contractor in calendar year 2019; 

21 and 

22 (3) no officer or employee of the eligible busi23 ness whose total compensation exceeded $3,000,000 

24 in calendar year 2019 may receive during any 12 


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1 consecutive months of such period total compensa2 tion in excess of the sum of— 

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

4 (B) 50 percent of the excess over 

5 $3,000,000 of the total compensation received 

6 by the officer or employee from the eligible 

7 business in calendar year 2019. 

8 (b) TOTAL COMPENSATION DEFINED.—In this sec9 tion, the term ‘‘total compensation’’ includes salary, bo10 nuses, awards of stock, and other financial benefits pro11 vided by an air carrier or contractor to an officer or em12 ployee of the air carrier or contractor. 

13 SEC. 8. TAX PAYER PROTECTION. 

14 (a) CARES ACT ASSISTANCE RECIPIENTS.—With 

15 respect to a recipient of assistance under section 4113 of 

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

17 under this Act, the Secretary may receive warrants, op18 tions, preferred stock, debt securities, notes, or other fi19 nancial instruments issued by such recipient in the same 

20 form and amount, and under the same terms and condi21 tions, as agreed to by the Secretary and the recipient for 

22 assistance received under such section 4113 to provide ap23 propriate compensation to the Federal Government for the 

24 provision of the financial assistance under this Act. 


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1 (b) OTHER APPLICANTS.—With respect to an appli2 cant that did not receive assistance under such section 

3 4113, the Secretary may receive warrants, options, pre4 ferred stock, debt securities, notes, or other financial in5 struments issued by an applicant that receives assistance 

6 under this Act in a form and amount that are, to the max7 imum extent practicable, the same as the terms and condi8 tions as agreed to by the Secretary and similarly situated 

9 recipients of assistance under such section 4113 to provide 

10 appropriate compensation to the Federal Government for 

11 the provision of the financial assistance under this Act. 

12 SEC. 9. REPORTS. 

13 (a) REPORT.—Not later than May 1, 2021, the Sec14 retary shall submit to the Committee on Transportation 

15 and Infrastructure and the Committee on Financial Serv16 ices of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

17 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Com18 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 

19 Senate a report on the financial assistance provided to air 

20 carriers and contractors under this Act, including a de21 scription of any financial assistance provided. 

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

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

24 the Secretary shall update and submit to the Committee 

25 on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Committee 


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1 on Financial Services of the House of Representatives and 

2 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation 

3 and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Af4 fairs of the Senate the report described in subsection (a). 

5 SEC. 10. COORDINATION. 

6 In implementing this Act, the Secretary shall coordi7 nate with the Secretary of Transportation. 

8 SEC. 11. FUNDING. 

9 (a) DIRECT APPROPRIATION.—Notwithstanding any 

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

11 amounts in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, 

12 $11,400,000,000 to carry out this Act. 

13 (b) TRANSFER OF UNOBLIGATED CARES ACT

14 FUNDS.—In addition to the amount appropriated under 

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

16 available under the following provisions of law are hereby 

17 transferred and made available to the Secretary to carry 

18 out this Act: 

19 (1) $3,100,000,000 from subsection (b)(2) of 

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

21 (2) $11,100,000,000 from subsection (b)(3) of 

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

23 (3) $3,200,000,000 from subsection (a)(2) of 

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


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1 SEC. 12. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 This Act shall take effect one day after enactment. 


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Calendar No. 563 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4774 

A BILL 

To provide support for air carrier workers, and for 

O

other purposes. 

CTOBER 1, 2020 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 


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