Nov 19, 2018
As a Congressman from North Texas whose district includes Addison Airport and Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, Rep. Kenny Marchant has been a champion for general aviation and workforce development[./content-alert]
Q: Aviation is an important economic engine for many communities across the U.S., but particularly for your district. Why?
My district includes one of the nation’s largest commercial airline hubs – Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) – as well as one of the most important business aviation air-ports in the region – Addison Airport (ADS). DFW is a major economic engine for North Texas, and Addison Airport is one of the nation’s premier general aviation airports and home to more than 70 aviation businesses and 650 based aircraft, which support more than 1,000 high-paying jobs.
Both airports provide jobs for highly skilled workers, including maintenance technicians and logistics experts. For many years, I have worked with the mayor and city council of Addison to ensure that we continue to invest in this important general aviation facility.
In addition, the Dallas area is home to a variety of other aviation businesses that contribute to our local economy, including smaller enterprises such as Aircraft Inventory Management and Services.
Q: As a member of the House Ways & Means Committee you were instrumental in advancing tax-reform legislation. What provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 have helped business aviation the most?
I was honored to help pass the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Ever since this landmark legislation became law in December 2017, it has offered a variety of benefits for American businesses. The law not only lowers the corporate tax rate to 21 percent, it also provides for immediate expensing of capital investments and makes a host of other changes that encourage investment in aviation.
For example, the immediate expensing provision of the law has helped stimulate the aviation industry by allowing taxpayers to immediately write off the purchase price of both factory-new and pre-owned aircraft that are placed in service through 2022. After 2022, the bill provides for a phase down of bonus depreciation in increments of 20 percent each year for qualified property that is acquired and placed in service before Jan. 1, 2027.
Q: The continued viability of business aviation is contingent, in part, on the industry meeting its workforce challenges. How have you been involved in efforts to encourage young people to consider careers in aviation?
I have helped promote the ACE Academy, which provides unique summer education programs for elementary, middle, and high school students who are interested in aviation and aero-space. The regional programs, which are co-sponsored by the FAA and several industry groups, focus on science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects.
The academies provide students with a variety of aviation career exploration experiences – including lessons in flight planning, aviation history, aircraft design and maintenance, and the physics of flight. With projections indicating aviation will need nearly 800,000 new pilots by 2037, supporting and expanding these programs which inspire the next generation of aviation professionals is critical.
International Business Aviation Council Ltd.