Loretta Sanchez's Bill Wants John Wayne Airport to be 'Port of Entry' to Attract International Travel

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Puerto Vallarta, Jal.- A House bill introduced this week would ease airline costs for international flights into John Wayne Airport and could attract more such flights to the county.

The measure calls for the airport to be declared a “port of entry.” Currently, airlines there must reimburse U.S. Customs and Border Protection for the cost of checking travelers from abroad, but there is no such charge to carriers at official ports of entry.

“I have raised this issue several times with the administration, but we have seen no progress,” said Rep. Loretta Sanchez, D-Santa Ana.

“My bill mandates the secretary of homeland security to designate John Wayne Airport an official port of entry and remove it from the existing ‘user-fees’ system, which currently puts the burden of CBP operations unfairly on the back of travelers.”

Republican Reps. Mimi Walters of Laguna Niguel and Dana Rohrabacher of Costa Mesa are co-sponsors of the measure.

Courtney Wiercioch, a deputy airport director, said Interjet’s decision to leave John Wayne last year was due in part to the customs fees.

“Other international carriers have said that it’s a hindrance to them flying here as well,” she said.

Passengers arriving in the U.S. from abroad already pay a $17.50 fee to customs, regardless of the airport. Additionally, customs charged John Wayne carriers $1.4 million in 2014 to service the 277,000 passengers arriving on international flights.

While that surcharge only comes to about $5 per passenger, it amounts to hundreds of thousands of dollars to the international airlines flying to John Wayne — costs the carriers do not incur when flying to nearby port of entry airports including Los Angeles, San Diego and Palm Springs, Wiercioch said.

Carriers at John Wayne currently serve Cabo San Lucas, Mexico City and Vancouver, with flights to Puerto Vallarta scheduled to start in June.

The international flights contribute to the county’s economy, according to the bill, which cites a recent economic study that pegged air service from Mexico to Orange County as generating nearly $39 million in wages, salaries and benefits.

Airports must have at least 15,000 annual international passengers to qualify to port of entry status.

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