Aviation Fuel Tax Program Grant

Aviation Fuel Tax Program Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Illinois Department of Transportation
Amount: Up to US $7,500,000
Last Updated: January 14, 2026

Summary

The Aviation Fuel Tax Program allows airport owners and sponsors to utilize funds for lawful airport revenue purposes. Grant recipients must adhere to the FAA's Revenue Use Policy, which outlines allowable uses of these funds. Eligibility includes registration and pre-qualification through the GATA Grantee Portal, ensuring compliance with federal and state regulations. Grants are specifically available for public-use, publicly-owned airports in Illinois, with distribution based on operational metrics.

Overview

Aviation Fuel Tax Program An airport owner/sponsor may use these funds for any purpose for which airport revenues may be lawfully used. Grant recipients should follow the FAA’s Policy and Procedures Concerning the Use of Airport Revenues (“Revenue Use Policy”), 64 Federal Register 7696 (64 FR 7696), as amended by 79 Federal Register 66282 (79 FR 66282). The Revenue Use Policy document defines permitted and prohibited uses of airport revenue.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. An entity may not apply for a grant until the entity has registered and pre-qualified through the Grant Accountability and Transparency Act (GATA) Grantee Portal.Each entity should check with their County or Municipalities' highest level (generally the treasurer, clerk, etc.) to see how they are currently registered in the GATA portal. Registration and pre-qualification are required annually. During pre-qualification, verifications are performed including a check of the federal SAM.gov Exclusion List and status on the Illinois Stop Payment List. The Grantee Portal alerts the entity of “qualified” status or informs how to remediate a negative verification (e.g., inactive DUNS, not in good standing with the Secretary of State). Inclusion on the SAM.gov Exclusion List cannot be remediated.Eligible applicants are public-use public-owned airports in Illinois. Grants to units of local government from the Fund shall be distributed proportionately based on equal part enplanements, total cargo, and airport operations. With regard to enplanements that occur within a municipality with a population of over 500,000, grants shall be distributed only to the municipality.