SECTIONS 21631-21646 - California Statutes

PUBLIC UTILITIES CODE

SECTION 21631-21646

21631. From appropriations or other money made available for the
purpose, the department, on behalf of and in the name of the state,
may plan, establish, construct, enlarge, improve, maintain, equip,
operate, regulate, and protect airports and air navigation
facilities, either within or without the state, including the
construction, installation, equipment, maintenance, and operation at
the airports of buildings and other facilities for the servicing of
aircraft or for the comfort and accommodation of air travelers.

21632. (a) The department may also acquire existing airports and
air navigation facilities, but it shall not acquire any airport or
air navigation facility owned or controlled by a political
subdivision of this or any other state without the consent of the
political subdivision.
(b) Whenever an airport owned or operated by the United States in
this state ceases to be so owned or operated, the department, in
consultation with local and regional transportation planning
agencies, may evaluate the present and future need for the airport in
the state's public-use airport system, including the need for both
the transportation of people and goods. The purpose of the evaluation
is to determine aviation needs and does not eliminate any
requirement of the California Environmental Quality Act, Division 13
(commencing with Section 21000) of the Public Resources Code.
(c) Prior to finalizing the evaluation, the department shall
submit a copy of its report to the commission for review and comment.
The commission shall complete its review and forward any comments to
the department not later than 45 days after receiving the
evaluation.
(d) Upon completion of its evaluation, the department may make a
recommendation to the Legislature, the commission, the affected local
agencies, and the appropriate federal agency for the airport's
ownership and type of operation as a public-use airport, if the
department determines that the airport would be of significant
benefit to the state's airport system. It is the intent of the
Legislature that the department, in making its recommendation, give
priority for ownership and operation of these public-use airports to
a local political subdivision or subdivisions acting jointly.
(e) Notwithstanding Section 21606, if a political subdivision or
subdivisions acting jointly notify the department of their intentions
to prepare a reuse plan for the airport, and simultaneously apply to
the Federal Aviation Administration for a federal grant to develop
an airport master plan for the airport, the department shall not make
its recommendation pursuant to subdivision (d). If the department's
evaluation determines that the airport would be of significant
benefit to the state's airport system, and the political subdivision
or subdivisions acting jointly fail to convert the federal airport to
a civil public-use airport in accordance with the department's
evaluation within five years of notification to the department, or
fail to evidence substantial progress toward that purpose as
determined by the department, then the department may take action in
accordance with subdivision (f).
(f) If the department determines the airport is of present or
future benefit to the state's public-use airport system, and no
political subdivision applies to the appropriate federal agency to
acquire or operate the airport, or has notified the department of its
intention to prepare a reuse plan for the airport and thereafter
fails to act upon its application pursuant to subdivision (e), the
department may, subject to subdivision (g), assist in the formation
of a public entity to own and operate the airport which shall be
representative of political subdivisions in the area which surrounds
and is served by the airport, as determined by the department. If
established, the owning and operating entity may, subject to
subdivision (g), prepare and submit an application to the appropriate
federal agency to acquire or operate, or acquire and operate, the
airport as a public airport.
(g) Notwithstanding subdivision (f), if any political subdivision
has previously applied to the appropriate federal agency to acquire
and operate the airport as a public airport, has completed all
required environmental and fiscal evaluations, and subsequently
withdrew its application prior to December 31, 1988, the department
shall not file any application to acquire or operate the airport or
assist in the formation of a public entity to own and operate the
airport.

21633. For the purposes of this article, the department, by
purchase, gift, devise, lease, condemnation, or otherwise, may
acquire real or personal property, or any interest therein, including
any property described in Section 21652.

21636. The department may dispose of any property, airport, air
navigation facility, or portion or interest, acquired pursuant to
this article, by sale, lease, or otherwise. The disposal shall be in
accordance with the laws of this state governing the disposition of
other state property, except that in the case of disposals to any
political subdivision or government or the United States for
aeronautical purposes, the disposal may be effected in the manner and
upon the terms the department deems in the best interests of the
state.

21637. In operating an airport or air navigation facility owned or
controlled by the state, the department may enter into contracts,
leases, and other arrangements for a term not exceeding 20 years with
any person, granting the privilege of using or improving the airport
or air navigation facility or space therein for commercial purposes,
conferring the privilege of supplying goods, commodities, things,
services, or facilities at the airport or air navigation facility, or
making available services to be furnished by the department or its
agents at the airport or air navigation facility. In each case the
department may establish the terms and conditions and fix the
charges, rentals, or fees for the privileges or services, which shall
be reasonable and uniform for the same class of privilege or service
and shall be established with regard to the property and improvement
used and the expenses of operation to the state. In no case shall
the public be deprived of its rightful, equal, and uniform use of the
airport, air navigation facility, or portion of either. The
department shall grant no exclusive privilege for the sale or
delivery of gasoline or other petroleum products.

21638. The department shall call for bids for the operation of any
state-owned airport and shall lease the airport for a term not to
exceed five years to the highest qualified bidder or bidders. No
person shall be granted any authority to operate the airport other
than as a public airport or to enter into any contracts, leases, or
other arrangements in connection with the operation of the airport
which the department might not have undertaken under Section 21637.
The state may operate an airport only if no acceptable bid is
received.

21639. The department shall grant no exclusive right for the use of
any airport or air navigation facility under its jurisdiction. This
section shall not be construed to prevent the making of contracts,
leases, and other arrangements pursuant to this article.

21640. To enforce the payment of any charges for repairs,
improvements, storage, or care of any personal property by the
department or its agents in connection with the operation of an
airport or air navigation facility owned or operated by the state,
the state has a lien on the property, which is enforceable by the
department as provided by law.

21646. It shall be a misdemeanor for any person to release or fly
or cause to be released or flown, within five miles of any airport,
any moored balloon, kite, unmanned rocket, or unmanned free balloon
which might be ingested by an aircraft engine or might cause a pilot'
s view of the airport and zone approach to be obstructed, or which
could be used to suspend an object capable of endangering airborne
aircraft or impairing a pilot's vision.