The Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act, drafted by Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.) was introduced in the U.S. Senate on June 25, 2025. The companion bill, PAPA Act of 2025 was introduced on the same day by Representative Robert F. Onder (R-MO).
Since then, not much has happened.
If you haven’t heard of or need a refresher, the Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act would block the use of ADS-B data for collecting airport fees or launching investigations.
A June 29 story on our website produced many comments and they vary widely.
“The not-so-safe response to all this might be to base somewhere outside of controlled airspace and turn off your transponder when you are five miles away from your destination,” writes Moses Lonn. “That or move to a state that doesn’t impose personal property taxes on aircraft. Both solutions are certainly impractical.”
Impractical? Yes they are.
“How do you think a nationally mandated ADS-B device in a automobile would work transmitting your vehicle speed directly to the DMV so you receive a ticket in the mail for every stop sign you rolled through, 2 mph over the speed limit, or the new law that gets enacted that limits how many miles you are allowed to drive per day or year?” hypothetically asks Brad. “Traffic congestion on the way to work? You get charged extra for being on the road during rush hour.”
I don’t think that mandate would fly (no pun intended) among our ground-bound fellow travelers.
“Since 2020, the FAA has required ADS-B Out for aircraft flying in controlled airspace. But only for aircraft with an electrical system. Hand-prop your plane and operate a simple radio and tablet with batteries and you are exempted from this onerous requirement,” writes Kent Misegades. “Same for Part 103 aircraft. Operate from grass airfields and you will not be charged airport fees.”
This is a non-starter for anyone wanting to use general aviation as the tool it can be. For everyone else, have at it.
“I, along with dozens of aircraft owners, received property tax bills from the local county administrator, based on ADS-B data showing how long the aircraft was at the county airport,” writes Joe. “I was sent three years’ tax bills equal to more than 20% of what I paid for the plane in 2019. Others were hit with worse bills than mine. One fellow pilot is selling his plane due to the size of the tax bills he received. Not a good use of ADS-B data. Considering putting the Mode C transponder back in my plane.”
Aside from shaking my head, all I can think to respond is Yikes!
“Anywhere with a PlanePass logo has bought into Vector Airport Systems ADS-B based charging system,” writes Al Steel. “It’s becoming prevalent at airports in larger metro areas in Texas. Visit their website and you’ll see the dark side of ADS-B.”
Eric Taylor responds: “A privately-owned airport near me uses Vector to bill and collect their $20 landing fees. I wonder how much of that $20 the airport actually receives?”
There are a dozen or so other comments.
Anyone who denies this isn’t a real thing has their head in the sand.
One of the things I do appreciate about the Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act, as I understand it, is all of general aviation is treated the same. The act defines general aviation as an aircraft used for “personal, recreational, or flight training purposes or purposes other than scheduled airline operations or military flights.”
That’s pretty straightforward and doesn’t separate GA into different buckets.
On May 8, Montana House Bill 571 was signed into law.
“The bill prohibits any entity, including government divisions and private companies, from using information obtained from ADS-B systems to calculate, generate, or collect fees from aircraft owners or operators within the state. This restriction specifically applies to aircraft defined as having a gross weight of 9,000 pounds or less and operating under Title 14, Part 91 of the Code of Federal Regulations.”
As I noted in an earlier column, this potentially pits fellow general aviation operators against one another. Depends on which side of the scale your aircraft falls.
Some will pay, others won’t.
Anyone that pondered the ramifications of ADS-B when it was introduced cannot possibly be surprised by this.
The commenter that posted his thoughts on autos with ADS being ticketed. asked in ADS info was spot on.