Small Community Air Service Development Program

The Small Community Program was established by the Wendell H. Ford Aviation Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (Pub. L. No. 106-181), reauthorized by the Vision 100-Century of Aviation Reauthorization Act (Pub. L. No. 108-176), and subsequently reauthorized by the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 (Pub. L. No. 112-95) (FAA 2012), as amended. The program is designed to provide financial assistance to small communities in order to help them enhance their air service. The Department provides this assistance in the form of monetary grants that are disbursed on a reimbursable basis....

Eligible applicants are small communities that meet the following statutory criteria under 49 U.S.C. § 41743, as amended by Pub. L. No. 114-113: 1. (a) The airport serving the community or consortium is not larger than a small hub airport, according to FAA hub classifications effective on the date of service of this Order, or (b) As of calendar year 1997, the airport serving the community or consortium was not larger than a small hub airport, and 2. It has insufficient air carrier service or unreasonably high air fares; and 3. The airport serving the community presents characteristics, such as geographic diversity or unique circumstances that demonstrate the need for, and feasibility of, grant assistance from the Small Community Program. No more than four communities or consortia of communities, or a combination thereof, from the same State may be selected to participate in the program in any fiscal year. No more than 40 communities or consortia of communities, or a combination thereof, may be selected to participate in the program in each year for which the funds are appropriated. Consortium Applications: Both individual communities and consortia of communities are eligible for SCASDP funds. An application from a consortium of communities must be one that seeks to facilitate the efforts of the communities working together toward one joint grant project, with one joint objective, including the establishment of one entity to ensure that the joint objective is accomplished. Communities Without Existing Air Service: Communities that do not currently have commercial air service are eligible for SCASDP funds. Essential Air Service Communities: Small communities that currently receive subsidized air service under the Essential Air Service (“EAS”) or Alternate Essential Air Service (“AEAS”) program will not be considered for SCASDP funds. The EAS statute (49 U.S.C. § 41733(c)(E)) now includes a provision requiring that the Department consider whether an air carrier has included a marketing proposal in its proposal to provide subsidized EAS as part of the carrier selection criteria. In light of this and the scarcity of SCASDP funds, the Department will not consider awarding additional Federal support under SCASDP for the marketing of subsidized EAS air service. Applicants should also keep in mind the following statutory restrictions on eligible projects: • An applicant may not receive an additional grant to support the same project from a previous grant. • An applicant may not receive an additional grant, prior to the completion of its previous grant. See the full Order for more information on these 2 conditions.

Vince Corsaro Transportation Industry Analyst Phone 202-366-1842