Overview
- The initiative funds terminal projects such as children’s play areas, mothers’ rooms or nursing pods, family screening lanes, sensory rooms, and optional exercise zones.
- Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy described eligibility as broadly flexible, saying airports can propose their own ideas beyond the examples provided.
- The launch at Reagan National doubled as a publicity event featuring a pull-up contest in which HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. did 20 reps and Duffy did 10.
- Public reaction included ridicule and criticism from figures like California Governor Gavin Newsom, who faulted the focus on amenities over persistent flight delays and air-traffic controller shortages.
- Officials highlighted healthier food options and showcased Farmer’s Fridge as a model, while Duffy acknowledged he has no plan to reduce high airport food prices.