Dear members,
We are writing to share the latest information on our efforts to advance the model aviation hobby and protect Section 336, the Special Rule for Model Aircraft, in the next FAA Reauthorization bill.
In April 2018, the U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of FAA Reauthorization, which included meaningful refinements to Section 336, which AMA supported to help make it stronger. Since that time, we have been working with a coalition of manned and unmanned aviation groups that support model aviation to build support for this provision as the FAA bill moves through the legislative process. Recently, we have been working with key allies in the Senate to incorporate our proposed Section 336 refinements into its version of the bill.
The Senate is expected to consider the its FAA reauthorization bill in the coming weeks. Please monitor the AMA Government Affairs blog and your emails for more updates as we may need to call on you for help encouraging the Senate to support Section 336.
The growth of drones/UAS into our airspace is creating a number of issues that policymakers are trying to address – we want the government to get it right and every day we are advocating for you in Washington, DC to make sure they do. Recently, a Committee in the House of Representatives convened a roundtable on counter drone measures as part of its broader examination of UAS policy. Congress recently allowed the Department of Defense very limited authority to undertake counter drone measures. Although the roundtable focused on this issue, Section 336 was discussed several times. Given the very specific topic, AMA was not asked to participate in the roundtable directly, but happily one of our coalition partners was invited to discuss countermeasures. When panelists were critical of Section 336, they were able to effectively communication our coalition’s consensus position. There was a general industry consensus that Section 336 needed to be modified – a position that AMA supports. Although the press headlines of this roundtable were inflammatory, the discussion did not have an impact on our efforts to secure our legislative language.
While we were not asked to testify at that particular meeting, our advocacy efforts were reflected in the roundtable’s discussion. Because of our work championing the hobby in DC, it is important to note that many legislators voiced their support of our hobby. For example, the Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. Bill Shuster, acknowledged modelers have been operating safely and Congress needs “to protect the people who haven’t done anything wrong.” We thank Rep. Shuster for recognizing the importance of model aviation and seeking to protect hobbyists in future legislation.
As it has been for 80 years, AMA’s top priority is protecting and advancing our members’ interests in Washington, DC. AMA remains the center of every policy discussion regarding efforts to limit our access to the airspace. It is also important to note that the concerns voiced in the roundtable are nothing new – but in fact part of a battle that AMA has been fighting behind the scenes for many years. The good news is that we’re making progress in this fight – the House already passed FAA Reauthorization legislation with Section 336 improvements and we are working with the Senate right now to do the same.
Please remember, even after the Senate passes its FAA reauthorization bill, there are several more steps in the process before the bill becomes law. Both the House and Senate FAA Reauthorization bills will be sent to a Joint Committee to hash out a final version of the legislation. You can view how the Special Rule for Model Aircraft legislation is moving through Congress here.
There’s no doubt the road ahead will be challenging. But the AMA Government Affairs team has been successful in pushing back on our opposition for years – and we’re not backing down. As always, the most current information is available on our website at modelaircraft.org/gov and we encourage you to reach out with any questions.
Sincerely,
AMA Government Affairs