Alliance Vows To Fight Tampa Airport Plans

Tampa International Airport Director Louis Miller has announced plans to start imposing fees upon the consumers that utilize nonpublic forms of transportation in their interstate travels to and from the Tampa Airport. The Florida Intrastate Transportation Alliance (FITA) plans an aggressive public campaign to bring this move to an abrupt end.

Says Kozak President of FITA, "under Florida Law (chapter 2001-299 Laws of Florida) that created the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission (HCPTC) which regulates limousines, no public entity within the county may require a

person to pay a fee for the priviliges granted by chapter 2001-299." Kozak continues, "the Tampa Airport is a Special District and deemed to be a governmental entity and any attempt to levy fees upon HCPTC licensed limousines or other nonpublic motor carriers is in violation of the law".

"Currently the airport requires HCPTC licensed van/small bus services to obtain airport permits and this has not created enough heartburn within the industry to make a move challenging such in the courts even though Kozak has been in consultation with his attorney on bringing suit challenging the airports policy of allowing HCPTC personnel aboard property to harass and arrest motor carriers providing intrastate chartered bus transportation."

Tampa International Airport services the central west coast of Florida and the travelers of whom many are physically challenged senior citizens on fixed incomes are reliant on nonpublic forms of transportation for travel to and from this interstate transportation hub and the placement of fees upon the motor carriers will be placed on the backs of the travelers.

Kozak emphasizes, "It's bad enough that the HCPTC forces and penalizes the 70 year old widow on a fixed income residing in Citrus County to pay for luxury transportation on her interstate journey, now the airport wants to add to this cost! This is not a luxury for the citizens but a necessity that has been corrupted by the Tampa Taxi Industry and crooked politicians. The FITA will be consulting with attorney's to bring a consumer class action lawsuit against the Tampa Airport Authority. The practice in Hillsborough County and its' rogue politicos of ignoring Federal and State laws needs to be put in front of a Federal Judge to end this abuse once and for all".