Many stimulus-funded aviation projects didn't meet FAA's priority formula; most seem to be rural

The Federal Aviation Administration uses a priority system to determine what airport projects should be funded, but Christopher Conkey of The Wall Street Journal reports the FAA has awarded more than $270 million in stimulus funds to projects that didn't meet the agency's threshold. SubsidyScope, an initiative of the nonprofit Pew Charitable Trusts, released the data Wednesday. You can search the database here.

The $252 million directed at projects below the 62 percent threshold made up almost 25 percent of the $1.1 billion in stimulus funds given to the agency. The FAA usually requires project only meet a 41 percent threshold on its scale, but raised the level to 62 percent for stimulus money, Conkey reports. FAA spokeswoman Lisa Brown told her the priority scale is the first criterion for judging projects, but not the only one. A quick browse of the Subsidyscope database shows most of the funded projects under the 62 percent threshold are located in predominantly rural areas.

Virginia's $2.5 million grant for firefighter training equipment and Idaho's $1.85 million terminal expansion at Pocatello Regional Airport, bothat 31 percent, were the two lowest-ranked projects to be funded. The FAA had discretion in picking eligible projects, Conkey reports, but all eligible projects had to be ready to go immediately. (Read more)