Press Releases

Congressman Salud Carbajal (CA-24), a member of the House Aviation Subcommittee, is highlighting new federal attention to airport noise and investments in noise mitigation projects coming through the aviation policy legislation he helped write and get signed into law a few weeks ago.

“The Central Coast’s airports are hubs for our local economy, commerce, tourism, and our gateways to the wider world. But they cannot serve those critical functions at the expense of the wellbeing of its neighbors: our region’s hard-working families,” said Rep. Carbajal. “As a member of the House Aviation Subcommittee, I worked diligently this year to secure these provisions to renew the FAA’s attention and investment in mitigating airport noise to ensure Central Coast residents can exist in harmony with these hubs. I will continue to work with the FAA, our regional airport administrators, and the community advocates to ensure these provisions yield real results across our region.”

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) reauthorization signed into law by President Joe Biden last month contained provisions that Rep. Carbajal advocated for to address airport noise, including:

• Requiring the FAA to take action to reduce undesirable aircraft noise, assess how the FAA and local airports may reduce noise exposure to nearby neighborhoods, and encourage cooperation between airports and impacted neighborhoods to establish routes and procedures that reduce disruption.

• A requirement for the FAA to update its noise standards through input from both local airports and individuals living in nearby communities. Updates on this revised standard, which determine operational standards at all Central Coast airports, would be required multiple times a year through reports to Congress over the next five years.
• A reauthorization for five years of the Airport Environmental Mitigation Pilot Program, which provides grants to airport projects that mitigate airport noise and air or water quality.
• A minimum of $150 million a year to be allocated from the Airport Improvement Program (AIP) for projects related to either airport noise mitigation or environmental protection.

The aviation legislation approved by Congress this month authorized $4 billion a year for the next 5 years for AIP grants. Over the last two years, AIP has delivered more than $30 million investments for Central Coast airports, including $9 million to Santa Maria, $7 million to Lompoc, and $6 million to Santa Barbara.

The aviation policy package approved by President Biden also included Rep. Carbajal’s ‘Clean Airport Agenda’ aimed at addressing PFAS chemical contaminations at Central Coast airports.

More information on the Clean Airport Agenda can be found here.