Tucson International Airport will get $15.7 million in federal relief funding from the economic-stimulus bill passed last March to help the airport and its concessionaires recover from the disruption of COVID-19.
The Tucson airport will get about $14.2 million from the U.S. Department of Transportation through the American Rescue Plan Act to be used for costs related to airport operations and sanitization to prevent the spread of pathogens.
Another $1.5 million in funding will provide large and small airport concessions stands at the airport with economic relief from rent and minimum annual guarantees, the Tucson Airport Authority said in a joint announcement with Rep. Raúl Grijalva, D-Arizona.
“This funding will allow the Tucson International Airport to continue operating with excellence in safety, security, and customer service during what is one of the most challenging times for the aviation industry,” Tucson Airport Authority President and CEO Danette Bewley said.
Citing the importance of the stimulus bill to help the nation recover from the pandemic, Grijalva said airports “serve a vital function in our connected society and were severely impacted by the pandemic.”
At the outset of the pandemic in March 2020, TIA was awarded a $22.6 million emergency federal grant from a Federal Aviation Administration program to help airports respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The grant was part of $225 million in aid to 59 Arizona airports under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Airport Grant Program, which allocated $10 billion nationwide to help airports weather the public health emergency amid mass flight cancellations and plummeting passenger counts.
In addition, the stimulus and earlier emergency relief funding has allowed the FAA to increase to 100% the federal share of FAA grants awarded under appropriations for airport improvement projects.
The FAA’s Airport Improvement Program and related supplemental discretionary grant program normally cover 75% to 80% of project costs, with the airports paying the rest.
The change benefits TIA as it recently began initial construction on a $350 million airfield safety enhancement project including construction of a new parallel main runway — the biggest project in the airport's history.
