After a delay of more than seven months, a two-year, $34.6-billion Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization finally has made it to the Senate floor. For construction, the bill’s key item is the $8.1 billion it would provide for Airport Improvement Program (AIP) grants, which finance runway work and other infrastructure projects.
Of the bill’s $8.1 billion, $4 billion would be for 2010 and $4.1 billion would be for 2011. Funds would be subject to annual appropriations. This year’s AIP appropriation is $3.5 billion.