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The compromise, part of a $40 billion Federal Aviation Administration funding bill likely to go to the floor of both chambers for final approval as early as next week, would also allow more flights at Washington's Reagan National Airport, at Chicago's O'Hare International and at New York's LaGuardia and Kennedy International airports. It would phase out all federal restrictions on flights to the New York airports by 2007.

Contractors and construction firms lauded the compromise because the bill had been stalled since October, jeopardizing an estimated $1.2 billion in airport construction projects.

"This legislation will allow those projects to continue, and public construction will maintain its record-setting pace," said Stephen Sandherr, chief executive of the Associated General Contractors of America. Sandherr's group represents more than 33,000 U.S. contractors.

The version of the bill passed by the House last year would raise the cap on airport departure fees to $6 from the current $3. The Senate version contained no such increase. The compromise would cap the fees at $4.50 per segment. Passenger on multi-segment flights would not pay more than $18 in departure fees, under the proposal.