(a) No payments shall be made from the Aeronautics Account for expenditure on any airport or for the acquisition or development of any airport, if the department determines that the height restrictions around the airport are inadequate to provide reasonable assurance that the landing and taking off of aircraft at the airport will be conducted without obstruction or will be otherwise free from hazards.
Height restrictions shall be considered adequate if as a minimum they meet the obstruction standards of subchapter C of Part 77 of the Federal Aviation Regulations of the Federal Aviation Administration, as these standards apply to civil airport imaginary surfaces related to runways.
The airport-owning entity shall have sufficient control over obstructions in the airspace in the vicinity of the airport to assure that height restrictions can be maintained. This control may be in the form of ownership of any land from which obstructions may rise, air navigation easements to guarantee maintenance of restrictions, or height limitation or land use zoning which will prohibit obstructions which would violate the obstruction standards.
(b) This section shall not prevent or prohibit the department from assisting any public agency or public entity in planning airport development or in planning the zoning needs around an airport.
(Amended by Stats. 1982, Ch. 681, Sec. 40.)