HB 1370 Summary

• Establishes the Kawaihapai Airfield Authority (also known as Dillingham Airfield) as an independent state agency to operate and maintain the airfield after the Department of Transportation terminated its lease in 2020.

• Creates a five-member board of directors appointed by the governor, with two members nominated by the House District 45 representative and Senate District 23 senator, to manage the authority with business expertise in fields including aviation, finance, tourism, and law.

• Grants the authority broad powers to manage airport operations, collect fees and rental income, issue revenue bonds, enter contracts, and exercise eminent domain while maintaining accountability through biennial audits by the state auditor.

• Exempts the authority from standard state procurement rules (Chapter 103D) if it adopts rules meeting specified requirements, and allows the chief executive officer and up to seven specialized employees to operate outside civil service protections.

• Appropriates $100,000 from the airfield revenue fund for fiscal year 2021-2022 to implement the transfer of operations from the Department of Transportation and takes effect July 1, 2021.