AMT Day Passed: the process start to finish

May 1, 2004

Online Feature

AMT Day Passed

The process start to finish

By Emily Refermat

The man who started the call to mechanics for a state to state and nationwide AMT Day - honoring not only Charles Taylor, but the men and women working as mechanics in aviation today - was Richard Dilback, AKA 'Dilly' an Aviation Airworthiness Safety Program Manager in Sacramento, California.

For more than a year now he has been helping mechanics who want their states to honor AMTs on May 24 th (Charles Taylor's birthday).

Many states (23) have already passed the AMT Day resolution (with resolutions pending in 15), but 14 remain:

Alabama
District of Columbia
Kentucky
Maryland
Massachusetts
Montana
New Hampshire
North Dakota
Oregon
Puerto Rico
Rhode Island
Vermont
Virginia
Wyoming

If you live in one of these states we need you to step up to the challenge and contact Richard Dilbeck (or Pete Shouldis if you live in Montana , North Dakota , or Wyoming ). They will help you with the process of getting a resolution passed in your state declaring May 24 th AMT Day.

Dilbeck explains that once he's found a point of contact for a state he sends them a template resolution and template letter with the state name and citizenship changed and the FAA Region for that particular state. 'Then you send it to the Senator or Governor.”

Something to watch out for is concurrent, year-to-year recognition of the day rather than May 24 th of that year (as some states found out the hard way and will need to reapply for the continuous recognition). To avoid this, Dilbeck recommends sending a courtesy letter to the governor asking him to sponsor a continuous resolution. From here the process goes through legislation, depending on your state the house or the senate will get it first. 'Senator, Assembly, recording, and Governor - that's the general order,” says Dilbeck. The length of time to get the resolution passed is affected by each session, when they meet, and how many topics they need to talk about. Also, if governors are not reelected or there is a switch in government officials, the point of contact person will need to call on the status and make sure the AMT Day resolution doesn't get lost in the transition.

'Passing it has been usually unanimous,” says Dilbeck. Once it passes, the point of contact person will get a copy and AMT Day goes into the books as a day to honor Charles Taylor, controlled powered flight, and aviation mechanics everywhere. After that it's time to celebrate May 24 th!

Contact:
Richard Dilbeck (916) 422-0272 Ext. 229 or [email protected]
Pete Shouldis (605) 737-3030 or 3050 Rapid City , South Dakota