49 U.S.C. § 47128 — State block grant program

(a) General Requirements. The Secretary of Transportation must issue guidance for a "State block grant program." Under it, the Secretary may pick up to 20 qualified states each year to take over managing all airport grant money under this subchapter — except money set aside for primary airports.

(b) Applications and Selection. A state that wants to join must apply to the Secretary, who can only pick it after: deciding the state has an organization able to run a block grant well; deciding its airport system planning process is satisfactory; deciding its programming process is acceptable; confirming the state has agreed to follow standard federal rules for running the grant, including the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, state and local environmental laws, executive orders, and other federal environmental rules; and confirming the state has agreed to give the Secretary any program information required.

(c) Safety and Security Needs and Needs of System. Before deciding whether a state's planning or programming process is good enough under subsection (b)(2) or (b)(3), the Secretary must make sure the process covers critical safety and security needs, and that the programming process makes sure the national airport system's needs are considered when picking which projects get federal money. The Secretary must let a state use its own priority system, as long as it doesn't conflict with the national priority system.

(d) Environmental Analysis and Coordination Requirements. When a different federal agency (not the FAA) must approve, license, or permit a project to meet a federal environmental requirement, and a state block grant is paying for that project, that agency must: coordinate and consult with the state; use the state's own environmental analysis if it's good enough; and, as needed, work with the state to describe what extra analysis it must provide to meet federal requirements.

(e) Training for Participating States.
(1) In general. The Secretary must give each participating state free training or updated training materials for the responsibilities it takes on under this program.
(2) Timing. That training must be given at least once every 2 years, and any time the program changes significantly.

(f) Roles and Responsibilities of Participating States.
(1) Airports. Unless a participating state formally agrees in a memorandum of agreement, the Secretary cannot make it manage airport actions or projects unrelated to the block grant program.
(2) Program documentation.
(A) In general. Any grant agreement for money the state manages must match the most recent memorandum of agreement between the state and the FAA.
(B) Parity. The FAA Administrator must treat participating states fairly, requiring the same kind and level of information and documentation the Administrator would require if the state weren't in the program.
(3) Responsibilities. Unless the state agrees to take them on, the Administrator keeps: grant-compliance investigations, determinations, and enforcement; obstruction evaluation and airport airspace analysis, determinations, and enforcement off airport property; non-rulemaking analysis, determinations, and enforcement for improvements on airport property not funded by this subchapter, or off airport property; land-use determinations, compatibility planning, and airport layout plan review and approval (consistent with section 47107(x)) for projects not funded by this subchapter; nonaeronautical and special-event recommendations and approvals; instrument approach procedure evaluations and determinations; environmental review for projects not funded by this subchapter; and review and approval of land leases, land releases, on-airport land-use changes, and through-the-fence agreements.