SB 747, as amended, McGuire. Airports: financial assistance.
The State Aeronautics Act establishes the Aeronautics Account in the State Transportation Fund, and continuously appropriates the moneys in the account for expenditure for airport purposes by the Division of Aeronautics within the Department of Transportation and the California Transportation Commission.
This bill would require that the revenues from the imposition of statebegin delete saleend deletebegin insert salesend insert and use taxes, at the rate of 4.1875%, on the sale, storage, use, or other consumption of aviation fuel, as defined, be transferred to the Aeronautics Account for allocation in specified percentages to airports and for aviation-related purposes.
The bill would require the division to allocate 27% of these revenues for grants to be made available for nonhub commercial airports, as defined, with less than 300,000 enplanements annually to attract, establish, and expand air service through incentives, marketing, passenger studies, route analysis, and the acquisition of consultants, as specified. The bill would also require the division to provide at least 1% of these revenues annually in specified grants for aviation education. By increasing the sources of funding for and expanding the purposes for which money may be used from a continuously appropriated fund, the Aeronautics Account, the bill would make an appropriation.
Vote: 2⁄3. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
(a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:
3(1) It is the intent of the Legislature to return state sales and use
4tax revenue on aviation fuels to the Division of Aeronautics of the
5Department of Transportation, as directed by the Federal Aviation
6Administration (FAA) in “Policy and Procedures Concerning the
7Use of Airport Revenue” (Docket No. FAA-2013-0988) to operate
8the California Aid to Airports Program (Chapter 4 (commencing
9with Section 4050) of Title 21 of the California Code of
10Regulations).
11(2) The directive of the FAA requires that, bybegin delete January 1, 2018,end delete
12begin insert
December 8, 2017,end insert all airport revenues, including state sales taxes,
13shall be used for aviation-related purposes or for a state aviation
14program.
15(3) The intent of this act is to begin the process of transitioning
16the state into compliance with the FAA directive by allocating
17revenues of statebegin delete saleend deletebegin insert salesend insert and use taxes on aviation fuel to the
18Aeronautics Account in order to provide financial assistance to
19the state’s airports and state aviation programs.
Section 21689 is added to the Public Utilities Code,
21to read:
(a) Notwithstanding the provisions of this article, from
23the funds deposited into the Aeronautics Account in the State
24Transportation Fund pursuant to Section 7102.1 of the Revenue
25and Taxation Code, the Division of Aeronautics shall allocate
26annually to eligiblebegin delete recepientsend deletebegin insert recipientsend insert the following percentages
27of available funds for airports and aviation-related purposes:
P3 1(1) Twelve percent for qualifying general aviation airports, to
2be credited to individual airport subaccounts in a manner consistent
3
with the process established in Section 21682.
4(2) Forty percent to be divided among large, medium, and small
5hub commercial airports and nonhub commercial airports, each as
6defined in Section 47102 of Title 49 of the United States Code, in
7the following percentages:
8(A) Twenty-one percent for nonhub commercial airports.
9(B) Thirty-one percent for small hub commercial airports.
10(C) Fourteen percent for medium hub commercial airports.
11(D) Thirty-four percent for large hub commercial airports.
12(3) Twenty-seven percent for grants to be made available
to
13nonhub commercial airports with less than 300,000 enplanements
14annually to attract, establish, and expand air service through
15incentives, marketing, passenger studies, route analysis, and the
16acquisition of consultants. Expenditures under this paragraph shall
17be consistent with the Federal Register, Volume 64, Number 30,
18on February 16, 1999.
19(4) One percent to provide grants for aviation education that
20includes, but is not limited to, programs, projects, or initiatives
21that improve or enrich aviation within the California aviation
22community. Grants may include, but are not limited to, scholarships
23for flight training and aviation-related degrees from accredited
24universities. Priority for grants shall be given to underrepresented
25students, women, veterans, and persons ofbegin delete low-income,end deletebegin insert
low income,end insert
26 as defined in Section 3413 of the Health and Safety Code.
27(5) Fifteen percent for other state aviation programs and
28aviation-related purposes as authorized pursuant to this article.
29(6) Not more than 5 percent for the division’s administrative
30costs. Any unused funds shall be allocated pursuant to paragraphs
31(1) to (5), inclusive, on abegin delete pro-rataend deletebegin insert pro rataend insert basis.
32(b) Sections 21686 to 21688, inclusive, shall apply to allocations
33of funds pursuant to this section.
Section 7102.1 is added to the Revenue and Taxation
35Code, to read:
(a) Notwithstanding Section 7102, revenues in the
37fund, less refunds, derived under this part from the imposition of
38state sales and use taxes pursuant to Sections 6051, 6051.3, 6201,
39and 6201.3, at the rate of 4.1875 percent, with respect to the sale,
40storage, use, or other consumption of aviation fuel shall be
P4 1transferred to the Aeronautics Account in the State Transportation
2Fund for allocation to airports and aviation-related purposes in
3accordance with Section 21689 of the Public Utilities Code.
4(b) As used in this section, “aviation fuel” means jet fuel and
5aviation gasoline.
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