History
Missouri's role in aviation began in 1945 under the Department
of Resources and Development. Communities, under the Memorial
Airport Act, could receive a one time $10,000 grant for airport
establishment. In 1965, an aviation section was formed in
the Division of Commerce and Industrial Development. Airports
were eligible for grants up to $25,000 with a $150,000 annual
budget.
The section was moved in 1974 to the Transportation Department
and an Aviation Trust Fund was established to assist in airport
maintenance and publish an aeronautical chart. The annual
budget was increased to approximately $200,000 and the staff
increased from two to five. In 1980, the Highway Department
merged with the Transportation Department and in 1989, began
distributing federal airport funding to general aviation airports
under the state block grant program.
At present, the aviation section is in the Multimodal Operations
Division of MoDOT. The section has a staff of eight and administers
approximately $4,000,000 in state and $7,000,000 in federal
funding for airport maintenance and capital improvement projects
annually. Other duties include airport safety inspections,
maintaining a state airport system plan, airport traffic counts,
and promoting aviation education.
Statutory
Authority
Chapter 305 of the Missouri Revised Statutes establishes state
law related to Aircraft and Airports. It also includes specific
guidelines concerning MoDOT administration and eligibility
for state and federal aviation grants. http://www.moga.state.mo.us/statutes/c305.htm
Aviation Advisory Committee
The Missouri Highways and Transportation Commission formed
an Aviation Advisory Committee in 1987 to advise them on
aviation matters. The committee is made up of eleven members
representing pilot groups, airport management, aviation
education, business owners and aviation consulting firms.
The committee meets regularly to discuss and is involved
in state aviation legislation, airport funding, tall towers,
safety and aviation education issues.
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