Air navigation facility: means any facility, other than one owned or operated by the United States, used in, available for use in, or designed for use in aid of air navigation, including any structures, mechanisms, lights, beacons, markers, communicating systems, or other instrumentalities, or devices used or useful as an aid, or constituting an advantage or convenience, to the safe taking off, navigation, and landing of aircraft, or the safe and efficient operation or maintenance of an airport, and any combination of any or all of these facilities. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Aircraft: means any contrivance now known, or hereafter invented, used or designed for navigation of or flight in the air. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Airport: means any area of land or water that is used, or intended for use, for the landing and taking off of aircraft, and any appurtenant areas that are used, or intended for use, for airport buildings or other airport facilities or avigation easements or rights-of-way, together with all airport buildings and facilities located on such areas, easements or rights-of-way. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Airport hazard: means any structure, object of natural growth, or use of land that obstructs the airspace required for the flight of aircraft in landing or taking off at an airport or that is otherwise hazardous to such landing or taking off. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Avigation easement: means any easement that includes all or any part of the following: (A) The right to unobstructed and unrestricted flight of aircraft, in, through and across the airspace over and above certain described land, at the altitude or height above the surface of the land as determined by the department of transportation. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
expend: means disburse or expend through the state treasurer in the manner required by law for the disbursement and expending of public moneys, except that no special legislative appropriation shall be required. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Gift: A voluntary transfer or conveyance of property without consideration, or for less than full and adequate consideration based on fair market value.
Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). Source: OCC
Municipality: means any county, incorporated city, incorporated town, authority, district or other political subdivision or public corporation of this state. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
Permit: means a permit issued by the department under this chapter. See Tennessee Code 42-2-101
State: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Trial jury: A group of citizens who hear the evidence presented by both sides at trial and determine the facts in dispute. Federal criminal juries consist of 12 persons. Federal civil juries consist of six persons.
United States: includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
(1) The department is authorized on behalf of and in the name of the state, out of appropriations and other moneys made available for these purposes, to plan, establish, construct, enlarge, improve, maintain, equip, operate, regulate, protect and police airports and air navigation facilities, either within or without the state, including the construction, installation, equipment, maintenance and operation at airports or buildings and other facilities for the servicing of aircraft or for the comfort and accommodation of air travelers.(2) For purposes of subdivision (a)(1), the department may, by purchase, gift, devise, lease, condemnation or otherwise, acquire property, real or personal, or any interest in property, real or personal, including avigation easements and easements in airport hazards, or land outside the boundaries of an airport or airport site, as are necessary to permit safe and efficient operation of the airports or to permit the removal, elimination, obstruction-marking or obstruction-lighting of airport hazards, or to prevent the establishment of airport hazards.(3) In like manner, the department may acquire existing airports and air navigation facilities; provided, that it shall not acquire or take over any airport, air navigation facility, avigation easement or easement in airport hazards owned or controlled by a municipality of this or any other state without the consent of the municipality.(4) The department may, by sale, lease, or otherwise, dispose of any property, airport, air navigation facility, avigation easement, easement in airport hazard or portion thereof or interest therein.(5) Disposal shall be in accordance with the laws of this state governing the disposition of other property of the state, except that in the case of disposals to any municipality or state government or the United States for aeronautical purposes incident thereto, the sale, lease, or other disposal may be effected by the manner and upon the terms that the department may deem in the best interest of the state.(b)Airport Zoning. Nothing contained in this chapter shall be construed to limit any right, power or authority of the state or a municipality to regulate airport hazards by zoning.(c)Joint Operations. The department may exercise any powers granted by this section jointly with any municipalities or agencies of the state government, with other states or their municipalities, or with the United States.(d)Condemnation.(1) In the condemnation of property authorized by this section, the department shall proceed in the name of the state in the manner provided by title 29, chapter 16.(2) For the purpose of making surveys and examinations relative to any condemnation proceedings, it shall be lawful to enter upon any land, doing no unnecessary damage.(3) Notwithstanding any other statute, or the charter of any municipality, the department may take possession of any property to be condemned at any time after the commencement of the condemnation proceedings.(4) The department shall not be precluded from abandoning the condemnation of any property in any case where possession thereof has not been taken, even after a trial jury in circuit court has rendered a verdict as to damages for the property taken by the proceedings and at any time prior to the entry of a final decree disposing of the entire eminent domain proceedings.(e)Federal Aid. The department is authorized to accept, receive, receipt for, disburse and expend federal money, and other moneys, public or private, made available to accomplish, in whole or in part, any of the purposes of this section. All moneys accepted under this section shall be accepted and expended by the department upon the terms and conditions prescribed by the United States. In accepting federal moneys under this section, the department shall have the same authority to enter into contracts on behalf of the state as is granted to the department under § 42-2-203(c) with respect to federal moneys accepted on behalf of municipalities. All moneys received by the department pursuant to this section shall be deposited in the state treasury, and, unless otherwise prescribed by the authority from which such moneys were received, shall be kept in separate funds designated according to the purposes for which the moneys were made available, and held by the state in trust for those purposes subject to disbursement by order of the department for those purposes. All such moneys are appropriated for the purpose of which the moneys were made available, to be disbursed or expended in accordance with the terms and conditions upon which they were made available.
