Florida Prohibits Airports from Utilizing ADS-B Data for Landing Fee Calculation
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 422 on April 23, 2026, positioning Florida as the second state to prohibit airports from utilizing automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B) data to compute or collect landing fees from general aviation operators. The law will be effective from July 1, 2026.
The legislation bars airports from employing ADS-B tracking information to levy fees for landings, departures, or even for entering airport airspace for aircraft weighing 12,499 pounds or less operating under Part 91 rules. The measure is designed to ensure that ADS-B—a FAA-mandated safety system developed to enhance traffic awareness—is not repurposed as an automated billing mechanism.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford recently expressed his views on the controversy, stating that while airports can charge for services, concerns arise when safety equipment becomes tied to billing. “If we have people making a bad safety decision to avoid rates and charges, that’s where I think the FAA wants to throw the penalty flag,” Bedford told FLYING magazine, referring to ADS-B as a “critical safety tool.”
Montana became the first state to implement a similar ban in May 2025, and lawmakers in more than a dozen other states are contemplating comparable legislation. The Florida law does not abolish landing fees entirely but prevents airports from using third-party vendors to automatically track and invoice aircraft based on ADS-B transmissions.
Source: https://www.aerotime.aero/articles/florida-bans-ads-b-data-airport-fees-small-aircraft