An influential Washington, D.C. think tank that routinely targets corporations, the police, and private wealth has turned its focus to business aviation. The Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) is promoting its new study, “High Flyers 2023,” as an examination of “how ultra-rich private jet travel costs the rest of us and burns up our planet.” The report charges private aviation with creating a disproportionate environmental footprint and benefitting from unfair tax policy.
The report includes a variety of measures recommended by the organization, including a 10 percent sales tax on all preowned private aircraft sales and a 5 percent tax on new aircraft transactions; doubling the federal fuel tax on business aircraft; imposing a surcharge on “short hop” flights of less than 210 miles, with higher rates applying for flights less than 100 miles; blocking increases to passenger facility charges for airline passengers and instead raising additional tax revenues from private jet owners; creating a Sustainable Transportation Equity Trust Fund to fund rail infrastructure and bike lanes; increasing TSA security oversight of private jets; and enacting legislation requiring the FAA to provide full transparency on the ownership of U.S.-registered private aircraft.
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