There now seems to be new reports that airports have been lobbying Congress to raise the cap on the passenger facility charge that fliers have to pay as part of their airline tickets. This charge, which is now at $4.50 for each leg of a trip, is used to fund things like runways, gates, and terminals.

Airports say that they would like to see this charge go up $3 to $7.50. The airports say that this increase is needed due to the inflationary cost of construction. Todd Hauptli, a member of the American Association of Airport Executives, said all they are trying to do is keep up with inflation. He went on to argue that the purchasing power of the facility charge has fallen by about 50 percent since 2000.

Of course airlines, which have to act as the collectors of the charge, oppose the increase. They are already under fire from customers for charging extra fees for services, and another increase could push customers over the limit.

James May, the CEO of the Air Transport Association, said that in increase in the cap would impose an additional and unwarranted $2 billion per year tax increase on commercial passengers. He went on to say that this charge is not only unwarranted, but it would further reduce the demand for travel overall.

Ever since Congress approved the facility charge in 1992, United States airports have been able to raise more than $27.5 billion. Experts say, with the other fees that airports charge, that it should be more than enough for them to keep up the runways, gates, and so on.