AOPA Backs Legislation in Congress to Stop ADS-B Misuse

U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) and U.S. Representative Bob Onder (R-MO) introduced new legislation, the Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act, S. 2175 and H.R. 4146, respectively.

The companion bills seek to address growing concerns about the misuse of Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) data which has been increasingly used by some airports and state governments to collect fees from pilots.

“On behalf of AOPA, I want to thank Senator Budd and Representative Onder for leading on this important aviation safety issue. Both are active private pilots and understand that using ADS-B data for economic reasons clearly undermines the FAA’s 2020 ADS-B safety mandate intended to provide situational awareness of an aircraft’s position for air traffic control purposes,” said AOPA President and CEO Darren Pleasance.

“ADS-B is a critical safety technology mandated by the FAA and more accurate than radar. Abusing this technology to levy unfair, sometimes duplicative fees and threatening pilots with legal action will keep some general aviation pilots grounded, which is a loss for America’s economy, emergency response and the aviation community at large,” said Sen. Budd.

Senator Budd was joined by Senator Dan Sullivan (R-AK) and Senator Tim Sheehy (R-MT) with the introduction of S. 2175.

“As a pilot with years of experience using ADS-B technology, I understand the game-changing impact it has had on aviation safety,” said Congressman Onder, “By communicating an aircraft’s identification, airspeed, heading and altitude, ADS-B has dramatically improved situational awareness for pilots, as well as the real-time data air traffic controllers need to keep pilots and passengers safe.”

Onder continued, “Unfortunately, some third parties have taken advantage of this data to impose and collect exorbitant third-party landing fees and frivolous lawsuits targeted at general aviation pilots and travelers. These uses of data for purposes other than air traffic safety act as a deterrent for pilots to equip their aircraft with this potentially life-saving technology.”

General aviation pilots spent more than $600 million dollars complying with the FAA’s 2020 safety mandate and were assured that ADS-B would only be used for improving safety and efficiency in the National Airspace System.

Montana’s Governor, Greg Gianforte, recently signed legislation that would prevent airports in Montana from using ADS-B data to collect landing fees. This legislation was championed by State Representative Shane Klakken. Similar legislation has also been introduced in the Minnesota legislature.

“We appreciate the recognition this issue is receiving at the state level, but we do want to avoid a patchwork of laws across the country and that is why these bills in Congress are so important,” added Pleasance.

The bills seek to do the following:

• Prohibit the use of ADS-B data to assist in the collection of fees from pilots or aircraft owners.
• Clarify that ADS-B data may only be used for its intended purposes of air traffic safety and efficiency.
• Give the Secretary of Transportation the discretion to authorize other uses of ADS-B data.
• Expand, to all federal, state, and local entities, a provision in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2024 preventing investigations from being initiated based solely on ADS-B data.
• Require public-use airports to make transparent the impact of any new fees on general aviation and businesses and require any imposed landing fees be used for airside safety improvements.