The Senate transportation appropriations subcommittee today approved $17.7 billion in budgetary resources for the FAA in Fiscal Year 2019, matching the total funding signed off last month by the committee’s counterpart in the House. The budget is included in a $71.4 billion transportation, housing and urban development (THUD) appropriations bill for FY2019. Both THUD subcommittee chairman Susan Collins (R-Maine) and ranking Democrat Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island) touted the bill as a bipartisan effort that avoids “poison pills” or controversial riders.

The FAA funding would accommodate 14,000 air traffic controllers and more than 25,000 engineers, maintenance technicians, safety inspectors, and operational support personnel, the Senate committee said.

Also included are $1 billion for NextGen programs, $168 million for contract towers, and $750 million for airport improvements, in addition to the traditional annual Airport Improvement Program funding, for a total of $4.1 billion.

 The $750 million is part of $10 billion in infrastructure funding included in the transportation appropriations bill across all modes.