Montana House Passes Bill Limiting ADS-B Use

The bill, introduced by Rep. Shane Klakken (R-Grass Range)—a pilot and longtime AOPA member—would prohibit the use of ADS-B data to assess landing fees on general aviation (Part 91) flights in aircraft that weigh no more than 9,000 lbs.

ADS-B typically transmits information such as tail number, location, speed, altitude, and aircraft type. The signal can be received by other aircraft, which enhances safety, and by receivers on the ground, which enable companies, including popular flight tracking websites and apps, to obtain information about active flights.

A growing number of airports around the U.S. impose or are considering imposing landing fees and a number of airports are contracting with companies that glean data from ADS-B to send a bill to pilots. In February, AOPA President and CEO Darren Pleasance sent a letter to Acting FAA Administrator Chris Rocheleau, urging the agency to halt the use of ADS-B for purposes other than its original intent.

In 2020, the FAA mandated general aviation aircraft that fly in controlled airspace to be equipped with ADS-B. At the time, the FAA committed to ensuring that “ADS-B would only be used to improve air traffic safety and airspace efficiencies,” Pleasance wrote in the letter last month.

Unfortunately, ADS-B data is now being used for frivolous lawsuits, questionable enforcement actions, and the collection of airport landing fees.

Today, Pleasance commended the effort to limit ADS-B landing fees in Montana, stating: “We appreciate Rep. Klakken’s efforts to curb ADS-B mission creep, which further reinforces the need for a national policy upholding the FAA’s original commitment to aircraft owners that ADS-B devices would not be used for purposes unrelated to safety or airspace efficiency.”

H.B. 571 will now head to the Montana Senate, where a committee hearing is scheduled for later today, March 20, at 3 p.m. MDT.