Newhouse Announces $2.3 Million in Grants to Central Washington Airports, Supporting Local Jobs

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA) announced that municipal airports in Washington's 4^th Congressional District received $2.3 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Aviation Administration for needed improvements:

"Local airports spur a significant amount of economic development throughout our district and provide a steady source of income for our communities," said Rep. Newhouse. "These grants are a substantial federal investment that will allow these airports to implement important safety measures and continue to support local jobs."

The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the following grants:

• $300,000 to the Port of Ephrata (Ephrata Municipal) for sealing runway pavement surface/pavement joints and sealing taxiway pavement surface/pavement joints to extend the pavement's useful life.
• $407,582 to the Port of Benton (Prosser) for constructing a new taxiway to provide access to aircraft hangars.
• $750,000 to the Port of Pasco (Tri-Cities) to construct a taxiway to meet FAA standards.
• $300,000 to the City of Sunnyside (Sunnyside Municipal) to update the airport master plan study to reflect the future needs of the airport.
• $150,000 to the Port of Benton (Richland) to install replacement airfield guidance sign fixtures and reconstruct existing runway lighting systems to meet current FAA standards to enhance visual guidance of aircraft.
• $450,000 to the Port of Othello (Othello Municipal) to construct a taxilane for aircraft access to and from public use airfield areas and facilities.