75-5061. Public use general aviation airports; development fund; grants; duties of secretary of transportation; funding. (a) The secretary of transportation is hereby authorized and empowered to: (1) Solicit and receive moneys from any public or private sources; and (2) establish and administer a grant program for public use general aviation airports for the purpose of planning, constructing, reconstructing or rehabilitating the facilities of such public use general aviation airports.

(b) Such grants shall be made upon such terms and conditions as the secretary deems appropriate, and such grants shall be made from funds credited to the public use general aviation airport development fund.

(c) The public use general aviation airport development fund is hereby established in the state treasury which shall be for the purpose of planning, constructing, reconstructing or rehabilitating the facilities of public use general aviation airports pursuant to subsection (a) of this section. All moneys received pursuant to subsection (a) shall be remitted to the state treasurer at least monthly and deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the public use general aviation airport development fund. The secretary shall administer the public use general aviation airport development fund. All expenditures from the public use general aviation airport development fund shall be made in accordance with appropriation acts upon warrants of the director of accounts and reports issued pursuant to vouchers approved by the secretary or by a person or persons designated by the secretary.

(d) (1) On July 1, 1999, and each July 1 thereafter through July 1, 2012, the director of accounts and reports shall transfer $3,000,000 from the state highway fund to the public use general aviation airport development fund.

(2) On July 1, 2013, and each July 1 thereafter, the director of accounts and reports shall transfer $5,000,000 from the state highway fund to the public use general aviation airport development fund. The secretary is hereby authorized to transfer additional moneys to the public use general aviation airport development fund from the state highway fund, and moneys from the public use general aviation airport development fund to the state highway fund. In no event shall the amount remaining in the public use general aviation airport development fund and the amount spent or dedicated for grants in each fiscal year be less than $5,000,000.

(e) As used in this section, "public use general aviation airport" means any airport available for use by the general public for the landing and taking off of aircraft, but shall not include any airport classified as a primary airport by the federal aviation administration.

(f) The secretary may adopt rules and regulations for the purpose of implementing the provisions of this section.

History: L. 1994, ch. 191, § 1; L. 1999, ch. 137, § 27; L. 2010, ch. 156, § 31; L. 2020, ch. 8, § 12; July 1.