Approved by the Transportation Policy Committee on January 31, 2024
Approved by the Public Policy and Practice Committee on May 15, 2024 
Adopted by the Board Policy Committee on July 18, 2024

Policy  

The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) supports:

  • Permanent extension and increase of user fees to adequately fund the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) through the Airport and Airway Trust Fund (AATF). 
  • Removal of the federally imposed $4.50 cap on Passenger Facility Charges (PFC) to properly fund safety, security, and capacity enhancements, noise reduction, and increases in air carrier competition and other airport improvements not funded through the AIP. 
  • The five-year Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) to fund, among other needs, new eligibility for airport projects that have historically received little or no AIP funding, including airport terminal projects, on-airport rail access projects, and airport-owned air traffic control towers.
  • Timely multi-year reauthorization of aviation programs to ensure predictability and stability in airport improvement funding.
  • The continued and accelerated implementation of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), FAA’s large-scale initiative to modernize the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS).

AIP and AATF funds should be used specifically for enhancing airport safety, capacity, and maintenance and not for security. 

Furthermore, all monies collected from these user fees should be deposited in the AATF with budgetary firewalls to prohibit the diversion of transportation revenues to other purposes. AAFT balances should not exceed the necessary funds to meet obligations plus an appropriate reserve. Budget protections, such as firewalls or spending guarantees and supporting mechanisms prohibiting Congress from appropriations less than the amount authorized for the AIP, should be part of the reauthorization of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) programs to maximize investment in the nation's aviation infrastructure. 

Issue

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the need to provide resilient revenue streams to support air transportation programs and when appropriate, have federal support to preserve AATF viability.  AIP is the major airport infrastructure investment program of the FAA and provides grants to the nation's airports for capital projects such as capacity enhancements, airfield and airport access improvements, facility enhancements to meet current design standards, and major aviation projects. It is important that all the AATF receipts collected in the fiscal year are timely allocated to projects and not used to create an uncommitted surplus. The expenditure of Trust Fund monies for airport improvements is critical to meeting both existing and anticipated future demands of the national aviation system. Additionally, Congress needs to provide continued but separate funding for security operations that are not reliant on AIP or PFC funds. 

According to the FAA Aerospace Forecast for fiscal years 20230-20430, the total system revenue passenger miles (RPMs) are expected to recover to pre-pandemic levels by 2024. The FAA projects an RPM growth of 3.0% per year for the 2023 to 2043 time period, while total revenue ton miles (RTMs) are predicted to increase 3.2% annually. 

Congestion continues to cause delays at the nation's busiest airports, currently affecting about 20% of commercial flights. Delays are due to national aviation system delays including runway closure, heavy traffic volumes, air traffic control reasons as well as airfield capacity constraints at key points throughout the system. 

In general, AIP grants have primarily been used for eligible airfield projects, while revenue generated through PFCs and tenant rents and fees support terminal gate baggage system, banking, security, checkpoint, intermodal ground access and runway improvement projects. These demand and service-based funding elements are critical for a safe, efficient, and globally competitive aviation system. Although being a major source of revenue for airport improvements, the Government Accountability Office acknowledges that the PFC’s are not sufficient to meet capital needs of the nation’s airports. 

The Airport Council International-North America (ACI-NA) estimates that United States airports currently have nearly $115 billion in infrastructure needs in the next five years to accommodate growth in passenger and cargo activity, rehabilitate existing facilities, and support aircraft innovation. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems (NPIAS) estimates that over the next five years (2023-2027) approximately $62.4 billion of AIP-eligible and IIJA-funded infrastructure development will be needed at 3,287 public-use airports an increase of $19 billion or 44% from the 2021-2023 plan, to meet the needs of all segments of civil aviation. 

The viability of the AATF Trust Fund and outdated PFCs amount used to fund aviation system costs are dependent on revenues derived from passenger fees. In 2020 due primarily to the COVID-19 pandemic, passenger counts declined by more than 50% when compared to 2019 levels, resulting in a significant loss of program revenues. While the system is recovering to pre-pandemic levels, the need for economic resilience to withstand future shocks must be bolstered. 

Rationale

Under pre-COVID-19 conditions, the FAA forecasts total annual U.S. commercial air carrier domestic passenger enplanements would surpass 1.2 billion by 2043. In order to increase capacity and reduce congestion, the nation must continue to increase funding for airport development and upgrades, and for the modernization of the national air traffic control system. Additionally, the FAA, estimated that the total cost of air transportation delays in the U.S. in 2019 was $33 billion, 55% of which was borne by passengers for lost time due to airline schedule buffers, flight delays, and cancellations, and missed flight connections. 

Airports also face the challenges of accommodating a variety of existing and evolving aircraft, urban air mobility (UAM) and advanced air mobility (AAM), integrating drones and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), managing increasing communication, data, and cyber security needs, and implementing infrastructure and operational changes that capture NextGen benefits (airspace usage). ASCE continues to support the use of dedicated user fees and trust funds to fund infrastructure needs.

ASCE Policy Statement 445 
First Approved in 1996

Other ASCE policies that relate to aviation transportation program are:
PS 404 - Endorsement of infrastructure projects 
PS 434 - Transportation trust funds
PS 471 - Aviation infrastructure research
PS 549 - Unmanned aircraft systems