Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao announced Tuesday that $10 billion in grants is headed to American airports.
Part of the Coronavirus, Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, the money will help keep commercial and general aviation airports across the country open.
“This $10 billion in emergency resources will help fund the continued operations of our nation’s airports during this crisis and save workers’ jobs,” Chao said.
On March 27, President Donald Trump signed the CARES Act, a $2.2 trillion stimulus package developed by Congress and Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin, into law. The act provides funding for corporations, small businesses, industries, and individuals to help as efforts to combat the coronavirus through social distancing and stay-at-home orders hinder travel and other retail activity.
The grants will support operations and replace revenue lost as a result of the sharp passenger decline due to COVID-19. Funds can be used for airport capital expenditures, airport operating expenses like payroll and utilities, and airport debt payments.
“Thank you to the dedicated men and women from the FAA’s Office of Airports for creating an entirely new program in record time to assist airport sponsors in desperate need of these funds,” said FAA Administrator Steve Dickson.
FAA officials encouraged airports to work with their local FAA Office of Airports field offices to process applications and to spend the grant funds immediately. Officials said the applications will be streamlined to make funding available immediately for critical airport needs and will be available as soon as airports sign a grant agreement with the FAA.
According to the FAA, nearly $1.1 billion in airport aid will go to 188 airports in California, including as little as $1,000 in Independence Airport in Independence, Calif., to as much as $323,636,269 for Los Angeles International Airport. Florida’s 100 airports will receive more than $896,000,000 in aid, while 210 airports in Texas will receive more than $811,000,000 in funding, and 76 airports in New York will receive more than $411,000,000 in support.
The CARES Act will also increase to 100 percent the federal share of grants awarded under the 2020 appropriations for Airport Improvement Program and Supplemental Discretionary grants. Previously, grant recipients under AIP contributed a matching percentage of project costs. Eliminating this requirement will allow critical safety and capacity projects to move forward regardless of the airport’s current financial situation.