Federal Money to Merced Airport Slashed from $16.9M to $3.4M. What Happened?
Following the news last week that the Federal Aviation Administration was set to grant a whopping $16.9 million to the Merced Regional Airport/Macready Field — the FAA later revised the grant to a more conservative number of just under $3.4 million.
The FAA has yet to give an official answer for why the grant was cut so significantly, City of Merced officials say.
“We felt really, really rich,” Merced City Manager Steve Carrigan told the Sun-Star. “No one’s feelings are hurt,” he added.
City officials are in contact with Congressman Jim Costa’s office, who is also trying to get to the bottom of the reduction, Carrigan said.
Carrigan said he believes staff likely made an honest mistake while dishing out the $2.2 trillion pie Congress passed in March as part of its coronavirus relief legislation.
He said it was not surprising when FAA staff told city officials on a call that the grant would be revised, given its significant dollar amount.
Of those trillions, $32 million were set to benefit airports in Merced, Fresno and other San Joaquin Valley communities. They are among more than 3,200 large, mid-sized and small airports nationwide receiving $9 billion from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act.
Several other small and mid size airports have now had their grants reduced as well, Carrigan noted.
The reduced amounts are equal to four times airports’ annual operating expenses, which allows Congress to address airports’ needs while promoting effective management of CARES Act funds, according to a FAA spokesperson.
“For most airport sponsors, this cap results in no practical effect on the initial grant amount available to them,” the spokesperson said in an email to the Sun-Star.
The nearly $3.4 million now going to Merced will still allow the airport to achieve the updates officials had initially planned with the $16.9 million, Carrigan said.
“We are not unhappy at all,” he said. “I’m not disappointed with $3.4 million,” Carrigan added.
Those updates include maintaining existing airport services and allowing for additional resources to make airport terminal improvements, according to a city news release.
The money will also go toward resurfacing the terminal parking lots, performing taxiway crack and slurry seal projects and replacing the airport security camera system.
Airports that can show a need for additional funds and demonstrate use of those funds within the four-year period of performance may request more, up to their announced amount from their Airport District Office, according to the FFA.
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