(1) The department of transportation may make available its engineering and other technical services, with or without charge, to any municipality or person desiring them in connection with the planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of airports or air navigation facilities.

(2)(a) The department may render financial assistance by grant or loan, or both, to the following entities out of appropriations made by the legislature for the following purposes:

(i) Any municipality or municipalities acting jointly in the planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of an airport owned or controlled, or to be owned or controlled by such municipality or municipalities;

(ii) Any Indian tribe recognized as such by the federal government or such tribes acting jointly in the planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of an airport, owned or controlled, or to be owned or controlled by such tribe or tribes, and to be held available for the general use of the public; or

(iii) Any person or persons acting jointly in the planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of an airport, owned or controlled, or to be owned or controlled by such person or persons, and to be held available for the general use of the public.

(b) Such financial assistance may be furnished in connection with federal or other financial aid for the same purposes: PROVIDED, That no grant or loan, or both, shall be in excess of $750,000 for any one project: PROVIDED FURTHER, That no grant or loan, or both, shall be granted unless the municipality or municipalities acting jointly, the tribe or tribes acting jointly, or the person or persons acting jointly shall from their own funds match any funds made available by the department upon such ratio as the department may prescribe.

(c) The requirements of (b) of this subsection do not apply for projects when directed to do so by the legislature during the 2023-2025 fiscal biennium in an omnibus transportation appropriations act.

(d) The department must establish, by rule, criteria for administering financial assistance to any entity.

(3) The department is authorized to act as agent of any municipality or municipalities acting jointly, any tribe or tribes acting jointly, or any person or persons acting jointly upon the request of such municipality or municipalities, tribe or tribes, or person or persons in accepting, receiving, receipting for, and disbursing federal moneys, and other moneys public or private, made available to finance, in whole or in part, the planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of an airport or air navigation facility; and if requested by such municipality or municipalities, tribe or tribes, or person or persons, may act as its or their agent in contracting for and supervising such planning, acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation; and all municipalities, tribes, and persons are authorized to designate the department as their agent for the foregoing purposes. The department, as principal on behalf of the state, and any municipality on its own behalf, may enter into any contracts, with each other or with the United States or with any person, which may be required in connection with a grant or loan of federal moneys for airport or air navigation facility purposes. All federal moneys accepted under this section shall be accepted and transferred or expended by the department upon such terms and conditions as are prescribed by the United States. All moneys received by the department pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the state treasury, and, unless otherwise prescribed by the authority from which such moneys were received, shall be kept in separate funds designated according to the purposes for which the moneys were made available, and held by the state in trust for such purposes. All such moneys are hereby appropriated for the purposes for which the same were made available, to be disbursed or expended in accordance with the terms and conditions upon which they were made available: PROVIDED, That any landing fee or charge imposed by any Indian tribe or tribes for the privilege of use of an airport facility planned, acquired, constructed, improved, maintained, or operated with financial assistance from the department pursuant to this section must apply equally to tribal and nontribal members: PROVIDED FURTHER, That in the event any municipality or municipalities, Indian tribe or tribes, or person or persons, or any distributor of aircraft fuel as defined by RCW 82.42.010 which operates in any airport facility which has received financial assistance pursuant to this section, fails to collect the aircraft fuel excise tax as specified in chapter 82.42 RCW, all funds or value of technical assistance given or paid to such municipality or municipalities, Indian tribe or tribes, or person or persons under the provisions of this section shall revert to the department, and shall be due and payable to the department immediately.

Effective date—2024 c 310: See note following RCW 14.40.020.

Finding—2017 c 48: "The legislature finds that the Washington state department of transportation airport investment study identified total statewide airport preservation and capital needs and included a list of recommended changes. One of the recommendations is to increase the maximum amount authorized by the airport aid program per grant to airports. This change can help smaller airports use the state grant to match federal funding." [ 2017 c 48 s 1.]

Effective date—2009 c 470: See note following RCW 46.68.170.

Distributor of aircraft fuel defined: RCW 82.42.010.