To amend title 49, United States Code, to permit the use of State highway standards for airfield pavement construction and improvement under certain circumstances, and for other purposes.
Sponsors
Legislative Progress
IntroducedMr. Begich (for himself, Mr. Case, Mr. Taylor, and Ms. …
Summary
What This Bill Does
This bill allows small airports to use state highway specifications instead of federal FAA standards for airfield pavement construction and repair. It applies to nonprimary airports that serve aircraft weighing 60,000 pounds or less, provided the state notifies the Secretary of Transportation and the Secretary determines the specifications are safe.
Who Benefits and How
Small airport operators and rural communities benefit by having access to potentially cheaper and more familiar highway pavement standards instead of specialized FAA requirements. State transportation departments gain more control over construction standards at small airports. Construction contractors may benefit from using highway specs they already know, potentially reducing costs.
Who Bears the Burden and How
The Federal Aviation Administration must review and approve state highway specifications to ensure they meet safety standards. This adds administrative burden to FAA staff. There is also a potential (though unquantified) risk if state highway standards prove less durable than FAA standards for aircraft use.
Key Provisions
- States can use their highway pavement specifications for airfield construction at nonprimary airports
- Only applies to airports serving aircraft under 60,000 pounds gross weight
- States must notify the Secretary of Transportation of their intent to use highway specs
- The Secretary must determine the specifications will not negatively affect safety
- Applies to construction funded through specific federal airport improvement programs
Evidence Chain:
This summary is derived from the structured analysis below. See "Detailed Analysis" for per-title beneficiaries/burden bearers with clause-level evidence links.
Primary Purpose
Allows states to use their existing highway pavement specifications for construction and improvements at small nonprimary airports, reducing regulatory requirements for airports serving aircraft under 60,000 pounds.
Policy Domains
Legislative Strategy
"Reduce federal regulatory burden on small airports by allowing use of existing state highway standards for pavement construction"
Likely Beneficiaries
- Small/nonprimary airport operators
- State transportation departments
- Rural communities with small airports
- General aviation operators
- Airport construction contractors
Likely Burden Bearers
- FAA (must review and approve state specifications)
- Federal aviation safety oversight (potential reduced uniformity)
Bill Structure & Actor Mappings
Who is "The Secretary" in each section?
- "the_secretary"
- → Secretary of Transportation
Key Definitions
Terms defined in this bill
The maximum aircraft weight threshold for airports eligible to use state highway specifications under this provision
Airports that do not meet the threshold for primary airport designation (generally those with less than 10,000 annual passenger boardings)
We use a combination of our own taxonomy and classification in addition to large language models to assess meaning and potential beneficiaries. High confidence means strong textual evidence. Always verify with the original bill text.
Learn more about our methodology