HIGHFILL -- Northwest Arkansas National Airport's attempt to de-annex from Highfill landed at the Legislature last week with the filing of a bill Highfill officials said they intend to fight.
Senate Bill 414, if passed, would allow regional airport authorities to de-annex from a city, levy their own taxes on airport property and create an infrastructure and development commission to then spend those tax proceeds on operating and improving the airport.
The measure would allow the board of directors of Northwest Arkansas National Airport to detach from Highfill by a two-thirds vote of the board.
"We worked the better part of two months with outside counsel to put together what I think is a pretty strong legislative bill," Brian Burke, the airport's attorney, said Tuesday. "If passed, it will put regional airport authorities on par with cities and counties and other subordinate political subdivisions. And it provides a detachment mechanism for the authority to implement, should it so choose."
Burke urged the airport board in December to consider trying to get the law changed during this legislative session by pursuing an amendment to the state's Regional Airport Authority Act to allow regional airports to de-annex.
Highfill Mayor Chris Holland said he opposes the bill because it would hurt Highfill.
"I don't like it. It's one-sided, the way I'm reading it," Holland said Thursday. "We've had no input in writing it."
Holland said Highfill budgeted for just over $1 million in revenue this year and it expected to get about $600,000 of that from its 2% sales tax on businesses at the airport.
"That would put a big dent in our budget," Holland said.
City officials intend to fight the bill, he said.
"We're going to Little Rock the week after spring break to testify on it," Holland said.
He said he'd like to see the airport remain in Highfill.
"I think there are avenues that we can work with them to help them save some of their money. Some of the services they're offering over there, we could do to help them save money," Holland said. "Obviously, I don't think it's good for any business to leave a city. And, we'll lose a big chunk of sales tax."
Holland said the bill wouldn't hurt just Highfill.
"It hurts the state of Arkansas. It's basically taxation without representation," he said. "The way I read the bill, they're going to allow the board to impose a tax out there and none of them are going to be elected by the people."
The bill was filed Monday by Sen. Jim Petty, R-Van Buren, and Rep. Mindy McAlindon, R-Centerton. It has 14 bipartisan cosponsors, most from Northwest Arkansas. The bill was read twice this week and referred to the Senate City, County and Local Affairs Committee for consideration.
BONDS AN ISSUE
Airport Authority officials began exploring how to amicably leave Highfill in September. Airport Authority board members said they never wanted the airport to be annexed into any city in the first place.
"Annexation of the airport by Highfill was never in the airport's interest but the airport had no say and no vote when that occurred," said Aaron Burkes, Northwest Arkansas National Airport CEO. "This legislation gives the airport board the ability to determine what is best for the airport and its customers."
Airport officials also don't like losing a big chunk of revenue to the city when they provide most of their own services, including police and fire.
"Our passengers deserve to get the best possible value from us," Burkes said Friday. "It's hard to justify taxing all of our customers exclusively for the benefit of one single community within our service area."
A potential sticking point is Highfill has issued bonds based at least in part on revenue the city collects from businesses operating at the airport. The city has two water and sewer improvement bond issues of about $5.8 million that rely on sales tax revenue from the airport for payment.
The Arkansas Constitution prohibits any law that impairs the obligations of contracts. The proposed change in the law would require the Airport Authority to pay the city for lost revenue that would have gone toward repaying those bonds as part of any de-annexation.
"This bill provides a very generous detachment process, should the airport board elect to pursue it, where sales tax revenues will continue to go to Highfill until all currently outstanding debts of the city are paid off," Burkes said.
SEEKING MORE FROM THE CITY
Highfill gets sales tax money from seven or eight food vendors at the airport, six car rental companies and other various retailers. The city also sells water to the airport. The city spends $700,000 a year in bond debt service.
"While the airport's growth and use has increased dramatically over the last decade, Highfill has invested little -- if anything -- to the cost of constructing or maintaining the airport's essential infrastructure, such as roads or parking lots, and XNA has no ability whatsoever to force Highfill to contribute to those costs," Burkes said.
"This bill will put XNA on more equal footing to negotiate a good faith agreement with Highfill so they can pay a fair share of infrastructure costs in relation to the sales tax revenue they receive and we look forward to having those discussions."
The bill also clarifies that regional airport authorities are entitled to statutory immunity from being sued and establishes a conflict of interest policy for regional airport authority board members that is similar to cities, counties and other state boards and authorities.
A de-annexation would also have to be approved by state and county officials.
Under current law, there would be only one option: de-annex from Highfill and annex into another city, according to airport officials. But that would be complicated and it would be unlikely the airport could detach the entirety of the property it owns without creating "islands" within Highfill, which are prohibited by current state law.
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