DOTD presents airport priority list: $20.5 million in proposed state share for 97 projects

Brad Brandt, aviation director in DOTD’s Office of Multimodal Commerce, told the Joint Transportation Committee that the Airport Construction and Development Priority Program recommended list for fiscal 2025–26 contains 97 projects with a total investment close to $293 million and a state share of about $20.5 million.

“[The program] is governed by Louisiana aeronautical statutes Title 2, paragraphs 801 to 814,” Brandt said, citing the statutory framework that DOTD used to prioritize applications. He said the packet includes 25 air-carrier recommended projects across seven commercial airports and 72 general-aviation projects. Brandt said the program application deadline is Nov. 1 each year and the packet also includes a backlog of 648 unfunded projects totaling just over $1 billion.

Commissioner Julia Fisher Cormier and committee members discussed how the program is financed. Cormier noted the aviation program is funded by the aviation fuel tax, and she warned that Revenue Estimating Conference (REC) projections have not followed a new law’s calculation the department advocated. She said the REC’s lower projections could reduce available state funds and hamper matching federal grants in the program.

Senator Cloud asked whether lower REC numbers would hamper critical projects; Cormier replied the department hopes to revisit numbers at the May REC meeting and that better REC estimates would allow DOTD to leverage larger federal matches. Brandt noted that some projects require a 10% state match because of how FAA grants were written, while others require a 5% state match or different matching arrangements.

Kevin Melton of Chennault International Airport and John McMullen, facilities director at Chennault, told the committee that the state airport program is critical for general aviation airports that do not receive the same federal funding as commercial airports. McMullen said Chennault supports “over a thousand employees,” contributes “$240 million in economic output to the region” and provides “$11.4 million in state tax revenues,” and he argued state funding helps general-aviation airports remain safe and economically viable.

Committee members asked about backlog age and project scoring; DOTD staff said they scrubbed very old projects about three years ago, most projects have been on the list at least two years, and DOTD will annotate application dates on future spreadsheets. There was no vote at the hearing; DOTD requested committee consideration of the recommended program in the packet.