## u.s.Departmentof 

### Transportation Office

### otthe Secretary ofTransportation



### The Honorable Timothy V. Johnson U.S. House ofRepresentatives Washington, DC 20515 Dear Congressman Johnson: 

# JUL 52DI2 I200 NewJersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590



### Thank you for your letter supporting the proposal submitted by the BloomingtonNormal Airport Authority for a grant underthe U.S. Department ofTransportation's Small Community Air Service Development Program. The Small Community Air Service Development Program was established to help smaller communities address air service deficiencies, particularly issues related to high airfares or insufficient service. Underthe statute, the Department may make a maximum of40 grant awards each year, although no more than 4 awards maybe to communities in the same State. In orderto provide communities with latitude in developing solutions to their air service deficiencies, the statute provides flexibility in the types ofprojects that canbe funded. On May 15, the Department issued an orderrequesting that communities interested inreceiving a grant this year file their applications by June 11. As these grant requests are pending before the Department, I cannot commentonthe merits ofany particularproposal. I assure you thatthe Department will give full and fair considerationto all proposals that have beenproperly filed. As is our normal practice, I am placing a copy ofyour letter and this response in Docket DOT-OST-2012-0069 as a contact outside the record ofthis matter. I appreciate your interest in this program. Sincerely yours,

# ~ AlohaLey Associate Director Small Community ProgramTIMOTHY V. JOHNSON 15TH DISTRICT, ILLINOIS

AGRICULTURE CHAIRMAN, RURAL DEVELOPMENT, RESEARCH, BIOTECHNOLOGY, AND FOREIGN AGRICULTURE DEPARTMENT OPERATIONS OF

OVERSIGHT AND CREDIT TRANSPORTATION AND INFRASTRUCTURE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, PUBLIC

BUILDINGS, AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT HIGHWAYS AND TRANSIT WATER RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT Ms. Aloha Ley Associate Director 

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### 20515-1315 June 8, 2012

Small CommunityAir Service Development Program (SCASDP) 1200 NewJersey Avenue Southeast W86-310 Washington, DC 20590 Re: Docket OST 2012-0069; Bloomington Normal AirportAuthority Central Illinois Regional Airport, Bloomington, Illinois Dear Ms. Ley, REPlYTo: WASHINGTON OFFICE: 0 1207 LONGWORTH HoUSE OFFICE BUILDING WASHINGTON, DC 20515

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DISTRICT OFFICES: 2004 fOX DRIVE CHAMPAIGN, IL 61820

{217) 403-4690 202 NoRTH PROSPECT ROAD SuJTE 203 BLOOMINGTON, fl 61704 {309) 663--7049 655 WEST LINCOLN UNJT8 CHARLESTON, ll 61920 {217) 348-6759 1001 MARKET STREET Sum 102 MOUNT CARMEL, ll 62863 {618) 262-8719

The Central Illinois Regional Airport (BMI) is critical to the regional economy ofdownstate Illinois. This airport has beeh avital transportation link for employees of Fortune 100 and Fortune 1000 companies, students at state and private universities, and countless families. On June 2, 2012, SouthwestAirlines discontinued all AirTranAirways service from BMt resulting in the abrupt Joss of more than thirty-five percent ofthe daily seat capacity atthe airport. The departure of these routes along with the consolidation ofcompeting airlines compromises the access and fare competition that is necessary to maintain and grow central Illinois' economy, particularly to primary Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern markets. The CommunityAir Service Initiative (CASI) is a non-airport community-based initiative created to attract new service to central Illinois through BMI. Building on the local success of previous publicprivate partnerships, CASI is prepared to responsibly administerthis award to attract badly needed eastbound service and generate a return on federal resources. The central Illinois region is continuously responding to new challenges presented to it. A positive award from your office empowersthe community to continue battling back against a strained economic climate while responsibly managing federal resources.

.Thank you foryour consideration.

TimothyV. Johnson