Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Pease Development Authority topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Pease Development Authority officials outline port and airport finances; committee approves PDA budget
Summary
Pease Development Authority executive staff told the committee that the Division of Ports & Harbors and Pease Tradeport Industrial Commerce Park are self-sustaining, supported largely by fees and leases; the committee voted unanimously to approve the PDA budget as presented.
Paul Breen, executive director of the Pease Development Authority (PDA), and Susie Anzalone, finance director, briefed the committee on the operating budget for the Division of Ports and Harbors and related Pease properties, including Portsmouth International Airport at Pease and Skyhaven Airport.
Breen described the division's portfolio: Market Street deepwater berth (New Hampshire's only deepwater berth), harbors in Hampton and Rye, the Portsmouth Fish Pier and navigational waters in the Piscataqua and Great Bay. He described PDA's role as airport sponsor for Portsmouth International Airport at Pease and as manager of the Pease Tradeport industrial park, explaining that airport and non-aeronautical revenues are used to maintain the Air National Guard-supported airfield.
Susie Anzalone said the division's operating budget is largely wages and benefits, reimbursed to the state quarterly, and that the division is self-sustaining: revenue comes from warpage and dockage, parking, registration and mooring fees. She explained a recent rise in overtime estimates tied to port activity and vessel schedules, such as increased salt shipments that require additional security coverage. Anzalone said equipment and insurance lines were adjusted and noted that the division had modernized its fleet to hybrids, reducing repair and fuel spending.
Breen described airport enterprise funds and capital planning. He said federal airport entitlement and discretionary grants contribute to the airport's capital projects, but that the airport also anticipates significant internally-funded capital needs, including runway and taxiway rehabilitation and an air traffic control tower rehabilitation. PDA staff said they have not relied heavily on bonding since the initial land transfer but expect large pavement and infrastructure investments in coming years.
Committee members questioned personnel and budget lines including overtime, workers' compensation and retiree benefit spikes; PDA and administrative staff answered that some numbers were estimates provided by DAS (Department of Administrative Services) and that grant timing and construction reimbursements explain some volatility.
After the presentation Representative Ebel moved to approve the Pease Development Authority budget as presented; a second was recorded and the committee took a voice/show-of-hands vote, which the chair described as unanimous.
Votes at a glance
- Motion: "Approve the Pease Development Authority budget as presented." Moved by Representative Ebel; seconded; committee vote recorded as unanimous.
What it means
PDA officials told the committee the division operates on user fees and long-term ground leases rather than general-state revenue; capital needs at the airport and tradeport are substantial and will affect future enterprise fund balances. Officials said the enterprises are managed as closed systems under FAA grant assurances and that airport/non-aeronautical revenues fund facility operations and capital needs rather than the state's general fund.
