U.S. Department of Transportation Office ofthe Secretary OfTransportation
The Honorable JeffBingaman United States Senate Washington, DC 20510 Dear Senator Bingaman: 

## JUL 52012 1200 New Jersey Ave., S.E. Washington, DC 20590

Thankyou for your letter supporting the proposal submitted by Los Alamos County for a grant under the U.S. Department ofTransportation's Small Community Air Service Development Program. The Small Community 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 may be to communities in the same State. In order to provide communities with latitude in developing solutions to their air service deficiencies, the statute provides flexibility inthe types ofprojects that can be funded. On May 15, the Department issued an order requesting that communities interested in receiving a grant this year file their applications by .Tunc 11. As these grant requests are pending before the Department, I cannot comment on the merits orany particular proposal. I assure youthat the Department will give full and fair consideration to 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,

Aloha Ley Associate Director. Small Community

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### Ms. Aloha Ley Associate Director 

### Small Community Programs US Department**ofTran~-portation** 

### 1200 New Jersey A venue SE

- Washington, DC 20590



### DearMs. Ley: June 8, 2012

I am writing in support ofLos Alamos County's application for agrant from the Small

. Community AirService Development Program to secure replacement air service fortheir community. Foranumber ofyears the County has worked to return scheduled air service to Los Alamos Airport The 

### County has been without service since 1996 and during

## that time air travelers have driven 2 

### hours to Albuquerque's Sunportto catch flights. The staffofLos Alamos National Laboratory is quite dependent on outnation's air transportation system. With over 20.000 Laboratory passengers driving to Albuquerque each year to board aircraft at the Sunport**~-** 

### not to mention the many citizens and business travelers that make this same drive ww 

### it 

### is apparent that aneasier, more convenient way to get to 

### Albuquerque would work to everyone's advantage. 'lbe Small 

### Community Air Service 

### Development Program was 

### developed to suppOrtjust 

### this sort ofendeavor. 

### Simply stated, 

### its charge is to assist small communities like los 

### Alamos secure orenhance theircommercial air service by helping 

### overcome the financial burden associated with initiating new 

### service. l respectfully request yourcareful consideration ofthe SCASDP application from Los Alamos County. 

### Sincerely,



### ....

JeffBingaman United States Senator

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