Federal grant programs / Department of Transportation

Payments for Small Community Air Service Development (20.930)

Also known as Small Community Program or SCASDP Payments for Small Community Air Service Development

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$58.7 million
• Grant awards81
• Typical award$760,000
• Awarded in FY 2025$12.0 million
• Size rank981 of 1,823
• Type of assistanceProject grants

Key findings

• Annual funding fell from $18.0 million in fiscal 2021 to $12.0 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 981st largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 35% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 37 states and territories.

What the program funds

The SCASDP program is designed to provide financial assistance to small communities, on a competitive basis, to help them enhance their air service. Grant monies are disbursed to grantees on a reimbursable basis.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

The Small Community Program is authorized to receive appropriations under 49 U.S.C. § 41743(e)(2). Appropriations were provided for this program for award selection in FY 2023 pursuant to the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2023 (Pub. L. No. 117-328). The Department (DOT) made up to $12 million available for CY 2024 grant awards to carry out this program. When selecting applicants to participate in the Small Community Program, DOT is statutorily required to apply the following criteria for participation: 1. The airport serving the community or consortium is not larger than a small hub airport, as determined using the FAA’s most recently published classification effective on DOT’s set application deadline (due date). 2.The airport has insufficient air carrier service or unreasonably high airfares. 3.The airport presents characteristics, such as geographic diversity or unique circumstances, that demonstrate the need for, and feasibility of, the Small Community Program. 4. An applicant may not receive an additional grant to support the same project more than once in a 5-year period, except that, in certain circumstances provided under 49 U.S.C. § 41743(c)(4)(C), DOT may waive the same project limitation. 5. An applicant may not receive an additional grant, prior to the completion of its previous grant.

Continue reading on SAM.gov

What the money can and cannot pay for

Grants for specified use, provided on a reimbursable basis. Grant funds can be used to cover a variety of expenses depending on the approved project. For example, grant funds may be used for financial incentives, including revenue guarantees to cover the air carrier's prospective operating loss while introducing new air service to a community, or to ground service providers in providing access to air transportation services. Funds can also be expended for marketing, advertising or promotional activities associated with new or existing air service or for studies designed to measure air service deficiencies at a community, or to measure traffic loss or diversion to other communities. Airport capital improvement projects, including, but not limited to, runway expansions and enhancements, the construction of additional aircraft gates, and other airport terminal expansions and reconfigurations are ineligible for funding under this program.;

Matching requirements

This program has no statutory formula. Matching requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing. MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Deadlines

For CY 2026, application dates are to be determined.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

Range: $20,000 to $1.6 million

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

State and local governments received 83% of the money, nonprofits 1.3% and colleges and universities 0.6%.

By state

27 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.