[RTK]

Senate joins House in passing FAA bill, exemption for aeromodeling


M U N C I E – The U.S. Senate late Monday joined the House in passing the first full FAA Reauthorization Bill in more than four years. In passing the FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012 both the House and Senate included a provision aimed at protecting model aviation from burdensome regulations. The President is expected to sign the bill into law.

“We are very appreciative of those in Congress who recognize that model aviation hobbyists have been highly successful at governing themselves and being safety conscious over generations,” said Bob Brown, president of the Academy of Model Aeronautics, representing 143,000 aeromodelers. “We are intensely committed to a safe National Airspace System (NAS), and have proven so. This bill is testimony to a common sense approach to model aviation.”

The AMA’s ongoing attempt to protect aeromodeling from what it believes to be unnecessary and overreaching federal regulations was championed by Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) who sponsored the amendment. The Academy would like to express its sincere appreciation to the members of Congress and their staffs, with special thanks to John Mica (R-FL), Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX), Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Tom Petri (R-WI).

“I can’t stress enough the impact that AMA members have had on getting this amendment passed,” said Brown. “Last year, our members sent 90,000 letters of concern to their Congressional representatives, and the collective voice of aeromodeling was heard loud and clear.”

[GravyGoodness]

I'm very pleased about this. The one thing that stands out is the fact that the amendment states that there has to be a "sanctioning body" for RC pilots. Does this mean that non-AMA members aren't allowed to fly? Technically of course.

[RTK]

I read most of the bill but did not see that wording. In accordance with CBO (community based organizations) guidelines, etc., which leaves it wide open. Anyone can call themselves that.
Basically nothing has changed, except the FAA no longer has the authority to tell the modeling community what we can do. Commercial and government sUAV's are going to be the ones hit

[Classclown]

Noticed one thing, of all the representatives that got special thanks, only one was a stinking democrat, the rest on the list are Republican.

[AuroraRC]

Yay! This makes me happy to hear, we, the modeling community, including AMA, should all be very thankful for our rights in this hobby. Apparently, with the whole CBO line, what they're mostly concerned about is that model aircraft are operated in a manner that complies with the AMA safety guidelines, members or not. I always thought it was just fine to fly without being a member (although I am), as long as it is not at an AMA sanctioned field. Please do correct me if I'm wrong, I haven't read the whole "book" in a long time and probably should.

[rcakropilot]

Originally Posted by Classclown

Noticed one thing, of all the representatives that got special thanks, only one was a stinking democrat, the rest on the list are Republican.

Would you expect any different?

[Tired Old Man]

membership of a particular organization is not required. Just compliance with rules set forth by a CBO such as the AMA. Membership has never been one of those rules.