Duckworth, Perdue introduce bipartisan bill to expand investments in airport infrastructure

published November 16 2018 9:42 AM

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WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) and David Perdue (R-GA) today introduced bipartisan legislation to improve airport infrastructure by allowing airport projects to access cheaper public and private capital financing. The TIFIA for Airports Act would expand eligibility for Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) credit assistance to state and local airport projects, including passenger terminals and runways.

“This bipartisan legislation is a step in the right direction to modernize our nation’s aging airport infrastructure, create good-paying jobs and generate economic development,” Duckworth said. “I’m proud to be working across the aisle with Senator Perdue to make sure airport improvement projects, like O’Hare Modernization, maximize taxpayers’ investment by reducing costs and improving project deliverability.”

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“Atlanta is home to the world’s busiest airport, making Georgia a hub of innovation and a gateway to the rest of the world,” said Perdue. “Infrastructure improvements are needed at airports across the country to keep American aviation competitive. By increasing access to capital financing, airports will be able to modernize passenger terminals, update runways, and complete important infrastructure projects quicker and more efficiently.”

Airport projects have limited access to traditional TIFIA funding that finances surface transportation projects like highways, transit, intermodal freight and port access all over the country. TIFIA for Airports Act would provide a $10 million credit subsidy through the existing TIFIA program, allowing airports to potentially leverage more than $200 million in capital investment.

In October, Duckworth and Perdue successfully included a bipartisan amendment in the FAA Reauthorization Act requiring the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to report to Congress within 9 months on the potential benefits of extending the TIFIA low-cost financing mechanism to airports, such as reduced capital costs, jobs created, and faster and cheaper facility modernization.