FAA probes LAX funds to visitors bureau

The operator of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) has provided as much as $6.8 million annually to L.A. Inc., a nonprofit marketing group, to bolster regional tourism and encourage travelers to use Los Angeles, Ontario, and Palmdale airports. There are federal regulations about how the funds can be used, and that it cannot be used for purposes of general promotion, for example.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has made a preliminary ruling that the funds transfer violated federal law. L.A. Inc. has said that it is reviewing its records, but believes that it has operated legally.

The FAA, which learned about the funds during a routine airport expense audit in July, has tentatively determined that the allocation of the money by Los Angeles World Airports was in violation of federal laws restricting how airport revenues are allowed to be spent.

L.A. Inc. received up to $6.8 million annually from the airports operator for marketing and promotion efforts aimed at boosting regional tourism and at encouraging travelers to fly into LAX, Ontario and Palmdale airports.

“The FAA notified us that the expenditures involving L.A. Inc. need to have more documentation to make sure they comply with FAA policies,” said the director of the airport, Gina Marie Lindsey. “We are scrambling back into the boxes to get that documentation.”

She continued, saying that the federal law involved is “very general, with lots of gray areas subject to interpretation.”

Thanks to www.latimes.com for the quotes above, for more information on this article please visit their website.

www.faa.gov