09.18.18

Sen. Cantwell Announces Additional $7 Million for New Runway at Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), the top Democrat on the Senate Aviation Subcommittee, announced that the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport will receive an additional $7 million in funding for the ongoing construction of a new runway. This additional funding comes after Senator Cantwell helped secure $16 million in July of this year to begin the construction.

“Securing this additional funding is critical to getting the new runway project done and creating more economic opportunity for everyone on the Palouse,” Senator Cantwell said. “I will continue to fight for Washington’s small airports and making smart investments in infrastructure throughout the Northwest, especially in our rural communities.”

The $7 million the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport will receive comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Airport Improvement Program (AIP), which provides funding for airport development and planning. The grant will help the airport pave, flight check, and open the new runway for full service in the fall of 2019.

The impact of air service on the economy cannot be overstated. In Washington state, 97% of Gross Business Income is generated by businesses within 10 miles of an airport, and 70% by businesses within five miles of an airport.

As the former Chair and current top Democrat on the Senate Aviation Subcommittee, Senator Cantwell has been a strong advocate of federal grant money to help Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport, as well as for airport projects throughout the state of Washington. Earlier this year, Cantwell helped secure $10 million to help fund the ongoing realignment project of the existing runway at the airport. In 2017, she secured $5.2 million for Pullman-Moscow to begin the runway realignment project.

Since 2014, Senator Cantwell has helped secure more than $50 million in funding for airport improvements in the state. And in March 2018, she worked with her colleagues to secure a $1 billion increase in funding for the Airport Improvement Grant program, which has provided funding for Pullman-Moscow and many other projects throughout the state.

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