## u.s. Department ofTransportation Office ofthe Secretary ofTransportation The Honorable Jason Isaac State ofTexas House ofRepresentatives P.O. Box 2910 AustinTexas, 78768-2910 Dear Representative Isaac: Assistant Secretary April 20, 2012 1200 New Jersey Avenue. SE Washington, DC 20590

Thankyou for your letterto Secretary ofTransportation Ray LaHood, supporting the award of beyond-perimeter slotexemptions atRonald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to be used for nonstop service to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS), Austin, Texas. Secretary LaHood asked me to respond to your letter. Underauthority granted in the FAA Modernization and Reform Actof2012,the U.S. Department ofTransportation will be awarding to new entrant orlimited incumbent carriers atotal ofeight slotexemptions atDCA, which would supportfour daily round trips. Wereceived applications proposing to serve AUS from two carriers, SouthwestAirlines and JetBlue Airways. Each soughttwo slotexemptions, which would supportone daily DCA-AUS round trip; JetBlue also applied for two slotexemptions to serve San Juan, Puerto Rico. Other timely applications were received from Air Canada, proposing one round trip to Vancouver, British Columbia; Alaska Airlines, one round trip to Portland, Oregon, and one round trip to San Diego; FrontierAirlines, one round trip to Colorado Springs and beyond to San Diego; Sun Country Airlines, one round trip to Las Vegas; and Virgin America, Inc., two round trips to San Francisco. As the matteris still pending, Icannot comment on the merits ofthe points raised in your letter. However, Ican assure you that all applications the Departmentreceived will begiven full and fairconsideration and will be evaluated againstthe selection criteria specified in the statute. The Department's action on this matteris being administered through apublic docket, which allows all interested parties the opportunity to comment. Following ournormal practice, Iam placing acopy ofyour letter and this response in docket number DOT-2012-0029. Iappreciate your interest in this matter. Sincerely yours,

usan L. Kurland Assistant Secretary for Aviation and International AffairsCAPITOL OFFICE P.O. Box 2910 AUSTIN,TEXAS 78768-2910 ( 5I 2) 463-0647

March 20, 20 12 The Honorable Ray LaHood Secretary ofTranspmtation 1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E. Washington, D.C. 20590 Dear Mr. Secretary: STATE REPRESENTATIVE DISTRICT 45

This letter is submitted in support ofnonstop service between the Nation's capital from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) to the Texas capital at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS). Austin is the 14th largest- and the third fastest-growing- city in the United States with an MSA population of 1.8 million. This is a 37 increase percent since 2000. Moreover, this population is projected to reach 2 million injustthree years. AUS has grown right along with the city. Clean, safe, reliable nonstop air transportation is vital to Austin's continued growth. Austin has been ranked as "America's No. I Boom Town'' by Forbes magazine. It has been named as one of the "Top 10 American Cities of the Future" by tDi Intelligence. Austin's unique blend of easy-going vibe and energetic capitalism has attracted residents and visitors from across the country and around the world. While the SXSW and ACL musical festivals and other entertainment events draw an ever-increasing number of leisure visitors, the SXSW Interactiye Conference and leading research institutions examine pressing issues of technology and public policy that also attract and retain leading figures in business and academia. Consistent cont•·ibutions to America's cultural, political, and intellectual life by Austin have helped many. Your award ofthe necessary slots for nonstop AUS-DCA service will ensure these contributions continue. Thank you for your consideration of Austin during this process. Please contact me if I may provide any further assistance to you during this process.

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## ~son Isaac / State Representative



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