67-2-403. Federal aid. (1) The department may cooperate with the government of the United States and any agency or department of the United States in the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, and operation of airports and other air navigation facilities in this state and may comply with the laws of the United States and any regulations made under those laws for the expenditure of federal money upon airports and other navigation facilities.

(2) The department may accept, receive, and receipt for federal money and other money, either public or private, for and in behalf of this state or a municipality of this state, for the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, and operation of airports and other air navigation facilities, whether the work is to be done by the state or by the municipalities or jointly, aided by grants of aid from the United States upon terms and conditions prescribed by the laws of the United States and any rules made under them. The department may act as agent of a municipality of this state upon the request of the municipality in accepting, receiving, and receipting for money in its behalf for airports or other air navigation facility purposes and in contracting for the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, or operation of airports or other air navigation facilities financed either in whole or in part by federal money. The governing body of a municipality may designate the department as its agent for those purposes and enter into an agreement with it prescribing the terms and conditions of the agency in accordance with federal laws and rules. Money paid by the United States government must be retained by the state or paid to the municipalities under terms and conditions imposed by the United States government in making the grants.

(3) All contracts for the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, and operation of airports or other air navigation facilities made by the department, either as the agent of this state or as the agent of a municipality, must be made under the laws of this state governing the making of similar contracts by the state or by municipalities. However, when the acquisition, construction, improvement, maintenance, and operation of an airport, landing strip, or other air navigation facility is financed wholly or partially with federal money, the department, as agent of the state or of a municipality of the state, may let contracts in the manner prescribed by the federal authorities, acting under the laws of the United States and any rules made under them.

(4) All money accepted for disbursement by the department under subsection (2) must be deposited in the state treasury and, unless otherwise prescribed by the authority from which the money is received, kept in separate funds, designated according to the purposes for which the money was made available, and held by the state in trust for those purposes. All money appropriated for the purposes for which it was made available must be spent in accordance with federal laws and regulations and with this title. The department may, whether acting for this state or as the agent of any of its municipalities or when requested by the United States government or an agency or department of the United States, disburse the money appropriated for the designated purposes, but this does not preclude any other authorized method of disbursement.