Senate Leaders Reach Deal to Resolve FAA Shutdown

Leaders in Congress worked out a deal on Thursday to put an end to a partisan dispute and a two-week-old partial shutdown of the Federal Aviation Authority.

"I am pleased to announce that we have been able to broker a bipartisan compromise between the House and the Senate," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said in a statement.

There is an extension to allow the FAA to tap available funds in a federal trust account funded by ticket taxes to cover some of the agency's costs. The temporary extensions aim to bridge the gap to a long-delayed bill still being negotiated on long-term FAA budgeting and aviation priorities.

On his Twitter account, Reid wrote that the bipartisan compromise is to put 74,000 transportation and construction workers back to work.

The partisan differences began July 22 regarding the full funding of the agency through the middle of next month. Construction projects were idled and airlines stopped collecting more than $30 million per day in ticket taxes, which left a hole in the government revenue for aviation priorities but giving carriers a big windfall, according to Reuters.

But Reid said the deal didn't resolve underlying differences.

"This agreement does not resolve the important differences that still remain," Reid said in a statement. "But I believe we should keep Americans working while Congress settles its differences, and this agreement will do exactly that."

Reuters said transportation secretary Ray LaHood called the prospect of passage a "tremendous victory" for workers.

The compromise came after President Barack Obama put down pressure on lawmakers who were already weary from weeks of partisan bickering over legislation to raise the U.S. debt limit.