State’s airport managers told of their fiscalwoes

A letter is being sent to detail the reason for a $12 million shortfall in a grant program that funds improvements.

Colorado’s 74 airport managers will usher in the holiday season by receiving a letter detailing the fiscal hole they face in 2015 and the plan to dig them out of it.

The letter — approved Tuesday by the ColoradoAeronautical Board— will go out almost immediately. It explains the reason behind the $12 million shortfall in theColorado Discretionary Grant Program.

The annual grants fund critical improvements at the state’s public-use airports, including runway repairs and expansions along with other safety projects.

The state originally planned to have $15 million in the grant program to give out next year. But because of faulty revenue forecasts, only $3 million will be available.

Airports were told of the cut this month on the eve of submitting their grant applications to the state.

The letter tells the airport managers that only grants that match FAA grants will be approved. David Gordon, director of the Colorado Division of Aeronautics, also apologized for the division’s mistakes.

“The timing is incredibly unfortunate: and again, we apologize that this situation has placed you in very difficult positions with your communities and stakeholders as you complete your budget and planning cycles,” Gordon says.

Officials say a rapid fall in jet fuel prices is the primary culprit behind the division’s woes. Revenue from fuel sales funds the