MCALLEN -- Congressman Henry Cuellar presented a check to the McAllen Miller International Airport for almost 1 million dollars in federal funds.
Over the past year, the airport has received over 11 million dollars in federal funding, and with this recent check, it will bring the total to near 12 million dollars.
Last year's 11 million dollars went to repair the airport following Hurricane Dolly.
It also went towards the airport's terminal expansion, but Cuellar said the airport needed more money to complete the expansion, make improvements to the airport's runway, and conduct safety studies such as wildlife hazard assessments and drainage studies.
The total 972,145 dollars comes from the federal aviation administration.
Cuellar said the money is needed to ensure McAllen remains at the cutting-edge in airport safety, security and travel.
"The equipment, the funds that we have are for 2 things: one is to provide safety for the thousands of passengers that use this airport, and the second thing is of course, economic development," said Cuellar.
Once the terminal expansion is completed, Cuellar said he hopes the runway expansion will be able to handle any cargo plane, which would make McAllen Miller International Airport more appealing for business.
TV Station Profiles & Public Inspection Files forKGBT