FEDERAL COOPERATION IN DEVELOPMENT OF AIRPORTS MONDAY, MAY 20, 1940 UNITED STATES SENATE, SUBCOMMITTEE OF THE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, Washington, D. C. The committee met, pursuant to call, at 10 a. m., in the Commerce Committee room, Capitol Building, Senator Bennett Champ Clark (chairman) presiding. Present Senators Clark (chairman) and McCarran. Senator CLARK. The committee will come to order. We have under consideration this morning Senate bill 3620. (The bill is as follows:) [S. 3620, 76th Cong., 3d sess.] A BILL To provide for Federal cooperation with the States in the development of aircraft landing areas adequate to provide for the national defense, the Postal Service, and civil aeronautics Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That this Act may be cited as the "Aircraft Landing Area Development Act." DEFINITIONS SEC. 2. As used in this Act (1) The term "Authority" means the Civil Aeronautics Authority. (2) The term "Administrator" means the Administrator of the Civil Aeronautics Authority. (3) The term "landing area” means any area of either land or water (including the air-navigation facilities located thereon) which is regularly used or intended to be regularly used for the landing and take-off of aircraft. (4) The term "development of a landing area" means the doing of any work, or the construction or reconstruction of any improvements, upon a landing area which may be necessary or advisable in order to make such landing area an adequate place for the landing and take-off of such aircraft as are potential users thereof, but does not include the purchase of any land or the construction of any building upon a landing area except a building essential for the efficient conduct of Federal activities in the interest of air navigation. (5) The term "State agency" means the agency or official of a State, Territory, or possession of the United States, authorized by law or designated by the Governor of such State, Territory, or possession to foster and encourage the development of airports therein. (6) The term “civil airway” means a path through the navigable air space of the United States, identified by an area on the surface of the earth, designated or approved by the Administrator as suitable for interstate, overseas, or foreign air commerce. APPROPRIATION FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LANDING AREAS AUTHORIZED SEC. 3. In order to meet the needs of national defense, the Postal Service, and civil aeronautics, there is hereby authorized to be appropriated to the Authority the sum of $125,000,000, to be expended for the development of landing areas in accordance with the provisions of this Act. 1 APPORTIONMENT AMONG THE STATES, TERRITORIES, AND POSSESSIONS OF FUNDS APPROPRIATED SEC. 4. Of the sums appropriated during any fiscal year pursuant to the authorization contained in section 3, such amounts, not to exceed 5 per centum thereof, as the Authority may deem necessary, shall be available for expenditure by the Authority to defray its expenses in the administration of this Act. The remainder of such sums shall be apportioned by the Authority among the States, Territories, and possessions of the United States in the following manner: (1) Not less than 1 per centum and not more than 2 per centum of such remainder shall be apportioned to the various Territories and the possessions of the United States in such manner as the Authority may determine to be in the best interests of national defense, the Postal Service, and civil aeronautics. (2) All of such remainder, unapportioned after the apportionment provided for in clause (1) of this subsection, shall be apportioned among the several States in the following manner: (A) 33% per centum upon the basis of the proportion which the population of each State bears to the population of all the States as shown by the latest available census figures, (B) 33% per centum upon the basis of the proportion which the total mileage of civil airways in each State bears to the total mileage of civil airways in all of the States, as determined by the Administrator as of January 1 of the year in which the apportionment is made, and (C) 33% per centum upon the basis of the proportion which the area of each State bears to the total of the areas of all the States. All sums apportioned to any State, Territory, or possession under the provisions of this subsection shall remain available for allocation to such State until the end of the fiscal year in which such apportionment is made. All sums apportioned to a State, Territory, or possession but not allocated to such State, Territory, or possession before the end of the fiscal year next succeeding that in which they are apportioned, shall be reapportioned among the several States, Territories, and possessions in the manner provided for by this section. ALLOCATION OF FUNDS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF PARTICULAR LANDING AREAS SEC. 5. (a) The sums apportioned to any State, Territory, or possession under the provisions of section 4 of this Act shall be available for allotment by the Authority to the State agency for such State, Territory, or possession, or, upon request by such State agency, for allotment to a political subdivision thereof for expenditure on projects for the development of landing areas within such State, Territory, or possession. (b) No funds shall be allocated by the Authority to any State agency, or political subdivision, for any project for the development of a landing area unless (1) An application for such project, accompanied by such surveys, plans, specifications, and estimates, as the Authority may prescribe, has been filed with, and approved by, the Authority; (2) The funds allocated by the Authority are not in excess of 80 per centum of the total cost of such project; except that the funds allocated may be in excess of 80 per centum in the case of any project found by the Secretary of War or the Secretary of the Navy to be necessary or requisite for purposes of national defense; (3) The State agency or political subdivision sponsoring such project agrees to comply with such rules and regulations as the Authority may prescribe with respect to the development of landing areas under the provisions of this Act; and (4) In case such project is sponsored by a political subdivision of a State, Territory, or possession, the State agency for such State, Territory, or possession has certified to the Authority its approval of the plans, specifications, estimates, contracts, and similar documents with respect to such project. PAYMENT OF FUNDS ALLOCATED FOR DEVELOPMENT OF LANDING AREAS SEC. 6. (a) The Authority, upon approving the allocation of funds for a project for the development of a landing area, shall promptly notify the State agency of the State, Territory, or possession in which such landing area is located, and in case such project is one sponsored by a political subdivision shall likewise notify the proper official of such political subdivision. There after the Authority shall either (1) upon completion of such project, certify to the Secretary of the Treasury for payment the total amount allocated to such State agency or political subdivision for such project, or (2) if requested by the State agency or political subdivision, from time to time during the prosecution of such project and upon the completion thereof certify to the Secretary of the Treasury for payment an amount, which when added to any amounts previously certified with respect to such project, is not in excess of the proportionate share to be defrayed by the United States of the total amounts expended up to the time of such certification upon such project. (b) Any amount certified to the Secretary of the Treasury under the provisions of subsection (a) shall be paid by the Secretary to the appropriate official of the State or political subdivision. ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE AUTHORITY SEC. 7. (a) The Authority is authorized (1) to employ such officers and employees as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act, (2) to make expenditures in carrying out the provisions of this Act for the same purposes for which expenditures may be made under the provisions of section 204 (a) of the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938, and (3) to prescribe such rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the provisions of this Act. (b) The Authority shall include in its annual report to the Congress information with respect to its operations under the provisions of this Act, including a list of the projects for which allocations have been made during the period covered by such report, the status of all projects then in course of prosecution, and a list of officers and employees employed under the provisions of this Act and their salaries. The Authority shall also include in its annual report any recommendations which it may deem appropriate with respect to Federal aid in the development of landing areas or with respect to amending or supplementing the provisions of this Act. SECTION 303 OF CIVIL AERONAUTICS ACT OF 1938 INAPPLICABLE TO EXPENDITURES UNDER THIS ACT SEC. 8. Section 303 of the Civil Aeronautics Act of 1938 shall not be applicable with respect to the expenditure of any funds appropriated to carry out the provisions of this Act. Senator CLARK. Senator McCarran, will you present this bill? Senator MCCARRAN. I beg to apologize in that at 10:30, due to a meeting of the Appropriations Committee on an important subject, I must ask to be excused. May I lay before the committee Senate 3620, a bill to provide for Federal cooperation with the States in the development of aircraft landing areas adequate to provide for the national defense, the Postal Service, and civil aeronautics. I understand that your committee has requested a report from the Civil Aeronautics Authority. Senator CLARK. That is correct. Senator MCCARRAN. And that report has not yet arrived, although I understand it is prepared. At the outset, Mr. Chairman, I beg leave to submit to the committee the report of the airport survey-letter from the Civil Aeronautics. Authority transmitting recommendations as to the desirability of Federal participation in the construction, improvement, development, operation, and maintenance of a national system of airports, and as of March 24, 1939, referred to the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce and ordered to be printed with illustrations. The illustrations constitute by far the largest part of the bulletin. Mr. Chairman, while I leave this report with the committee, I respectfully request that the lines I have underscored in red pencil, on certain pages of the bill, be inserted in the record. Senator CLARK. They may be inserted. Senator MCCARRAN. It will not make the record cumbersome. Senator CLARK. We are glad to insert anything that you require. (The matter referred to is as follows:) If the ideal of uniform geographical distribution were to be assumed, airports could be so distributed that every point in the United States would be within 15 miles of an airport if just over 5,000 fields were maintained. An actual airport plan, based on a separate study of a very large number of possible locations, has also led to the conclusion that a system of about 3,500 airports would be a reasonably complete one for the United States. The comparison of these plans with the listing of existing airports shows the present system much more deficient in quality than in quantity. * * * the total net cost for the completion of the system of 3,500 airports would be approximately $435,000,000. 8. The amount of the allocation from public-works or work-relief funds, and the size of any supplementary appropriation to enable the Federal Government to insure the execution of the most urgent projects and those of greatest national importance, should be suitably proportioned to the need for improvement of the present airport system as described in chapter VI of this report. At the present time there could be efficient use of $100,000,000 of such regular public-works or work-relief funds, together with $25,000,000 of supplementary funds * * * Senator MCCARRAN. Now, Mr. Chairman, I beg leave to insert in the record a communication captioned, "A Federal Airport Program-A Report to the Civil Aeronautics Authority submitted by the Working Subcommittee of the Airport Advisory Committee," of date December 19, 1938. Senator CLARK. Who is the Airport Advisory Committee? We have got so many committees that it is impossible to keep up with them, and that is one that I am not familiar with. Senator MCCARRAN. Neither am I, but this letter is addressed to the administrator, the board of inquiry, Civil Aeronautics Authority, Washington, D. C. Mr. Chairman, you will recall that the present Civil Aeronautics Authority Act provided for a survey to be made by the Civil Aeronautics Authority and a report to be made by Congress. It also provided against the acquisition of airports by the Civil Aeronautics Authority. It was pursuant to the act known as the Civil Aeronautics Authority Act of 1938 that this report that I hold in my hand, and that I have already referred to, was filed with the Congress for its consideration, looking to the program for the construction of an airport. Senator CLARK. The report to the Civil Aeronautics Authority by the working subcommittee of the Airport Advisory Committee may be incorporated in the record. (The report is as follows:) THE ADMINISTRATOR, WASHINGTON, D. C., December 20, 1938. The Board of Inquiry, Civil Aeronautics Authority, Washington, D. C. GENTLEMEN: The members of the working subcommittee of the Airport Survey Advisory Committee submit herewith their report containing recommendations for Federal policy in meeting the present airport problem. It is suggested that you forward copies of our report to all of the groups represented on the advisory committee. This report represents unanimous action on the part of all members of the subcommittee. Mr. Morris was unable to be present at the meeting at which the final report was formally adopted, but he has informed us of his general approval of the recommendations made. It has been a pleasure and an opportunity to cooperate with the Civil Aeronautics Authority on this important matter, and we trust our report may be of value to you. Respectfully submitted. (Signed) RICHARD ALDWORTH, Chairman, New Jersey State Aviation Commission. President, American Association of Airport Executives. PAUL V. BETTERS, Executive Director, United States Conference of Mayors. Washington Manager, American Municipal Association. President, National Association of State Aviation Officials. O. M. MOSIER, Chairman, Airport Committee, Air Transport Association of America. REPORT OF WORKING SUBCOMMITTEE Your subcommittee has given careful consideration to many phases of the general airport problem. Specifically, the Committee has directed its attention to the two major questions presented in the section of the Civil Aeronautics Act authorizing the airport survey: (1) Whether the Government should participate in the construction, improvement, development, operation, or maintenance of a national system of airports; and (2) if participation is recommended, the basis for such participation. In this connection, at a series of meetings held by the subcommittee, careful study has been made of the evidence presented at the board of inquiry hearings. Additional data developed by the subcommittee itself have been reviewed. This report, therefore, represents the conclusions of the working subcommittee. The Committee is unanimously of the opinion that the cities of the country are financially unable to provide further these airport facilities necessary: (1) to the Postal Service; (2) to the proper development of commercial air transport; and (3) to the national defense. The testimony on this aspect of the problem is clear and includes the following points: 1. Most municipalities are financially unable properly to maintain present facilities and to make necessary extensions. 2. Cities have limited tax-levying and debt-incurring powers. Relief expenditures have exhausted the resources of many communities. 3. Local taxpayers are increasingly opposed to further airport expenditures for the reason that their purposes and services and utility extend beyond the jurisdictional scope of tax-levying power of the community. 4. Owing to increasing traffic, larger aircraft, stricter Federal standards, and air-line requirements, many communities will lose their present airport investments unless further expenditures are made for expansion and improvement. 5. Lacking increased Federal participation, communities will have to defray expenditures by increased charges on the transport industry, private flying, and on various military and civil branches of the Federal Government, and thus discourage increased usage and development of aircraft. 6. Units of the Federal Government that use municipal airports seldom pay adequate rental and other charges. The cities are, therefore, in effect, subsidizing the National Government. The proposed development of schools of instruction for civilian flyers and mechanisms will require further expenditures at local airports which expenditures should be assumed by the whole economy where they have benefit. 7. Almost without exception, airports are operating at deficits. With these points we are in complete agreement. Further, there is need for a more complete exposition of point No. 3, that the service rendered by an airport extends beyond the taxing jurisdiction of the local community. It must be stated that even if the municipal financial situation were such as to make possible additional expenditures for airports, the status of public opinion in most of our cities is unfavorable_toward community responsibility for the entire burden of air terminals. Taxpayers point to the well-known fact that any adequate civil airport must serve largely, perhaps principally, purposes far beyond the jurisdictional scope or the tax-levying power of the local civil division. The airport has taken on more and more a character comparable to the harbors, the inland waterways, and the network of Federalaid highways of the Nation. |