Sec. 11. (a) The board may do all acts necessary or reasonably incident to carrying out the purposes of this chapter, including the following:

(1) As a municipal corporation, to sue and be sued in its own name.

(2) To have all the powers and duties conferred by statute upon boards of aviation commissioners. The board supersedes all boards of aviation commissioners within the district. The board has exclusive jurisdiction within the district.

(3) To protect all property owned or managed by the board.

(4) To adopt an annual budget and levy taxes in accordance with this chapter.

(A) The board may not levy taxes on property in excess of the tax rate specified in subsection (b), except as provided in sections 17 and 25 of this chapter.

(B) Clause (A) and subsection (b) do not apply to an authority that was established under IC 19-6-2 or IC 19-6-3 (before their repeal on April 1, 1980).

(C) The board of an authority that was established under IC 19-6-3 (before its repeal on April 1, 1980) may levy taxes on property not in excess of six and sixty-seven hundredths cents ($0.0667) on each one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation.

(5) To incur indebtedness in the name of the authority in accordance with this chapter.

(6) To adopt administrative procedures, rules, and regulations.

(7) To acquire property, real, personal, or mixed, by deed, purchase, lease, condemnation, or otherwise and dispose of it for use or in connection with or for administrative purposes of the airport; to receive gifts, donations, bequests, and public trusts and to agree to conditions and terms accompanying them and to bind the authority to carry them out; to receive and administer federal or state aid; and to erect buildings or structures that may be needed to administer and carry out this chapter.

(8) To determine matters of policy regarding internal organization and operating procedures not specifically provided for otherwise.

(9) To adopt a schedule of reasonable charges and to collect them from all users of facilities and services within the district.

(10) To purchase supplies, materials, and equipment to carry out the duties and functions of the board in accordance with procedures adopted by the board.

(11) To employ personnel that are necessary to carry out the duties, functions, and powers of the board.

(12) To establish an employee pension plan. The board may, upon due investigation, authorize and begin a fair and reasonable pension or retirement plan and program for personnel, the cost to be borne by either the authority or by the employee or by both, as the board determines. If the authority was established under IC 19-6-2 (before its repeal on April 1, 1980), the entire cost must be borne by the authority, and ordinances creating the plan or making changes in it must be approved by the mayor of the city. The plan may be administered and funded by a trust fund or by insurance purchased from an insurance company licensed to do business in Indiana or by a combination of them. The board may also include in the plan provisions for life insurance, disability insurance, or both.

(13) To sell surplus real or personal property in accordance with law. If the board negotiates an agreement to sell trees situated in woods or forest areas owned by the board, the trees are considered to be personal property of the board for severance or sale.

(14) To adopt and use a seal.

(15) To acquire, establish, construct, improve, equip, maintain, control, lease, and regulate municipal airports, landing fields, and other air navigation facilities, either inside or outside the district; to acquire by lease (with or without the option to purchase) airports, landing fields, or navigation facilities, and any structures, equipment, or related improvements; and to erect, install, construct, and maintain at the airport or airports facilities for the servicing of aircraft and for the comfort and accommodation of air travelers and the public. The Indiana department of transportation must grant its approval before land may be purchased for the establishment of an airport or landing field and before an airport or landing field may be established.

(16) To fix and determine exclusively the uses to which the airport lands may be put, including land use planning and zoning. All uses must be necessary or desirable to the airport or the aviation industry and must be compatible with the uses of the surrounding lands as far as practicable. The jurisdiction granted under this subdivision is superior to that of any other local government unit or entity with respect to airport lands.

(17) To elect a secretary from its membership, or to employ a secretary, an airport director, superintendents, managers, a treasurer, engineers, surveyors, attorneys, clerks, guards, mechanics, laborers, and all employees the board considers expedient, and to prescribe and assign their respective duties and authorities and to fix and regulate the compensation to be paid to the persons employed by it in accordance with the authority’s appropriations. All employees shall be selected irrespective of their political affiliations.

(18) To make all rules and regulations, consistent with laws regarding air commerce, for the management and control of its airports, landing fields, air navigation facilities, and other property under its control.

(19) To acquire by lease the use of an airport or landing field for aircraft pending the acquisition and improvement of an airport or landing field.

(20) To manage and operate airports, landing fields, and other air navigation facilities acquired or maintained by an authority; to lease all or part of an airport, landing field, or any buildings or other structures, and to fix, charge, and collect rentals, tolls, fees, and charges to be paid for the use of the whole or a part of the airports, landing fields, or other air navigation facilities by aircraft landing there and for the servicing of the aircraft; to construct public recreational facilities that will not interfere with air operational facilities; to fix, charge, and collect fees for public admissions and privileges; and to make contracts for the operation and management of the airports, landing fields, and other air navigation facilities; and to provide for the use, management, and operation of the air navigation facilities through lessees, its own employees, or otherwise. Contracts for the maintenance, operation, or use of the airport or any part of it may be made for a term not exceeding fifteen (15) years and may be extended for similar terms of years. However, the airport, including all or part of its land, facilities, or structures, may be leased for any use connected with the operation and convenience of the airport for an initial term not exceeding forty (40) years and may be extended for a period not to exceed ten (10) years. If a person whose character, experience, and financial responsibility have been determined satisfactory by the board offers to erect a permanent structure that facilitates and is consistent with the operation, use, and purpose of the airport on land belonging to the airport, a lease may be entered into for a period not to exceed ninety-nine (99) years. However, the board must pass an ordinance to enter into such a lease. The board may not grant an exclusive right for the use of a landing area under its jurisdiction. However, this does not prevent the making of leases in accordance with other provisions of this chapter. All contracts, and leases, are subject to restrictions and conditions that the board prescribes. The authority may lease its property and facilities for any commercial or industrial use it considers necessary and proper, including the use of providing airport motel facilities. For the airport authority established by the city of Gary, the board may approve a lease, management agreement, or other contract:

(A) with a person:

(i) who is selected by the board using the procedures under IC 36-1-9.5; and

(ii) whose character, experience, and financial responsibility have been determined satisfactory by the board; and

(B) to use, plan, design, acquire, construct, reconstruct, improve, extend, expand, lease, operate, repair, manage, maintain, or finance all or any part of the airport and its landing fields, air navigation facilities, and other buildings and structures for a period not to exceed ninety-nine (99) years. However, the board must pass an ordinance to enter into such a lease, management agreement, or other contract. All contracts, leases, and management agreements are subject to restrictions and conditions that the board prescribes. The authority may lease its property and facilities for any commercial or industrial use it considers necessary and proper, including the use of providing airport motel facilities. A lease, management agreement, or other contract entered into under this section or any other provision of this chapter may be entered into without complying with IC 5-23.

(21) To sell machinery, equipment, or material that is not required for aviation purposes. The proceeds shall be deposited with the treasurer of the authority.

(22) To negotiate and execute contracts for sale or purchase, lease, personal services, materials, supplies, equipment, or any other transaction or business relative to an airport under the board’s control and operation. However, whenever the board determines to sell part or all of aviation lands, buildings, or improvements owned by the authority, the sale must be in accordance with law.

(23) To vacate all or parts of roads, highways, streets, or alleys, whether inside or outside the district, in the manner provided by statute.

(24) To annex lands to itself if the lands are owned by the authority or are streets, roads, or other public ways.

(25) To approve any state, county, city, or other highway, road, street or other public way, railroad, power line, or other right-of-way to be laid out or opened across an airport or in such proximity as to affect the safe operation of the airport.

(26) To construct drainage and sanitary sewers with connections and outlets as are necessary for the proper drainage and maintenance of an airport or landing field acquired or maintained under this chapter, including the necessary buildings and improvements and for the public use of them in the same manner that the authority may construct sewers and drains. However, with respect to the construction of drains and sanitary sewers beyond the boundaries of the airport or landing field, the board shall proceed in the same manner as private owners of property and may institute proceedings and negotiate with the departments, bodies, and officers of an eligible entity to secure the proper orders and approvals; and to order a public utility or public service corporation or other person to remove or to install in underground conduits wires, cables, and power lines passing through or over the airport or landing field or along the borders or within a reasonable distance that may be determined to be necessary for the safety of operations, upon payment to the utility or other person of due compensation for the expense of the removal or reinstallation. The board must consent before any franchise may be granted by state or local authorities for the construction of or maintenance of railway, telephone, telegraph, electric power, pipe, or conduit line upon, over, or through land under the control of the board or within a reasonable distance of land that is necessary for the safety of operation. The board must also consent before overhead electric power lines carrying a voltage of more than four thousand four hundred (4,400) volts and having poles, standards, or supports over thirty (30) feet in height within one-half (1/2) mile of a landing area acquired or maintained under this chapter may be installed.

(27) To contract with any other state agency or instrumentality or any political subdivision for the rendition of services, the rental or use of equipment or facilities, or the joint purchase and use of equipment or facilities that are necessary for the operation, maintenance, or construction of an airport operated under this chapter.

(28) To provide air transportation in furtherance of the duties and responsibilities of the board.

(29) To promote or encourage aviation-related trade or commerce at the airports that it operates.

(30) To provide aviation services to public use airports within or outside Indiana either directly or through an affiliate entity established by the board.

     (b) Except as provided in sections 17 and 25 of this chapter, a board may impose a tax rate that does not exceed the following:

(1) If the total assessed valuation is three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) or less, a tax rate of ten cents ($0.10) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation.

(2) If the total assessed valuation is more than three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000) but not more than four hundred fifty million dollars ($450,000,000), the tax rate necessary to raise property tax revenue equal to the sum of:

(A) three hundred thousand dollars ($300,000); plus

(B) the amount that would be raised by applying a tax rate of eight and thirty-three hundredths cents ($0.0833) (as adjusted under IC 6-1.1-18-12) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation that exceeds three hundred million dollars ($300,000,000).

(3) If the total assessed valuation is more than four hundred fifty million dollars ($450,000,000) but not more than six hundred million dollars ($600,000,000), the tax rate necessary to raise property tax revenue equal to the sum of:

(A) three hundred seventy-four thousand eight hundred fifty dollars ($374,850); plus

(B) the amount that would be raised by applying a tax rate of six and sixty-seven hundredths cents ($0.0667) (as adjusted under IC 6-1.1-18-12) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation that exceeds four hundred fifty million dollars ($450,000,000).

(4) If the total assessed valuation is more than six hundred million dollars ($600,000,000) but not more than nine hundred million dollars ($900,000,000), the tax rate necessary to raise property tax revenue equal to the sum of:

(A) four hundred thousand two hundred dollars ($400,200); plus

(B) the amount that would be raised by applying a tax rate of five cents ($0.05) (as adjusted under IC 6-1.1-18-12) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation that exceeds six hundred million dollars ($600,000,000).

(5) If the total assessed valuation is more than nine hundred million dollars ($900,000,000), the tax rate necessary to raise property tax revenue equal to the sum of:

(A) four hundred fifty thousand dollars ($450,000); plus

(B) the amount that would be raised by applying a tax rate of three and thirty-three hundredths cents ($0.0333) (as adjusted under IC 6-1.1-18-12) per one hundred dollars ($100) of assessed valuation that exceeds nine hundred million dollars ($900,000,000).

[Pre-Local Government Recodification Citations: 19-6-2-13; 19-6-2-40; 19-6-3-15; 19-6-3.5-14.]

As added by Acts 1980, P.L.8, SEC.73. Amended by Acts 1980, P.L.79, SEC.1; Acts 1982, P.L.82, SEC.1; P.L.130-1987, SEC.3; P.L.3-1990, SEC.40; P.L.106-1993, SEC.2; P.L.29-1999, SEC.2; P.L.29-1999, SEC.3; P.L.98-2001, SEC.2; P.L.182-2009(ss), SEC.268; P.L.139-2011, SEC.4; P.L.139-2013, SEC.2; P.L.166-2014, SEC.37.