LOUISIANA RECEIVES $14 MILLION FROM FAA

Fourteen Louisiana airports recently received a combined $14 million in grant funds through the FAA’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP). The tranche of grants for Louisiana was contained within the larger $845 million fourth-round disbursements announced by the FAA in July.

One of the key revisions for AIP grants this year is that no local match will be required because of augmented funding through the Airport Rescue Plan signed in March; thus all AIP grants are funded at 100% federal share. Local matches are typically 5-10% of total project costs for small primary, reliever, and general aviation airports and 25% for large and medium primary hub airports.

Airports will use the funds to increase accessibility and expand capacity while mitigating environmental impacts. Grant amounts ranged from $69,000 to install perimeter fencing at Oakdale (ACP) and $120,000 to improve airport drainage and erosion control at Jonesville (L32); $1.1 million to Lake Charles Regional (LCH) for construction of a terminal building; up to $3.3 million to purchase land for the acquisition of land for noise compatibility at Alexandria International (AEX) and $8.8 million at Monroe Regional for drainage improvement and erosion control.