(ABC 6 News) – Senator Amy Klobuchar (DFL-M) is urging Congress to pass a bill she says will make air travel safer after a late 2023 National Transportation Safety Board report identified a surge in close calls between planes at airports.

The bill authorizes more than $107 billion in federal spending over five years.

A majority of it would go towards safety initiatives, including aircraft certification and oversight, as well as hiring key positions that Klobuchar says face shortages.

“[The bill] funds training for air traffic control and the ability to hire more air traffic control,” said Klobuchar. “They’ve been trying some innovate approaches, trying to get more people from the military, other ways to fill air traffic control slots.”

The bill passed a Senate committee earlier this month and will now head to the Senate floor.