SB5 H GO AM #1

Schiffour 3289

The Committee on Government Organization moved to amend the bill on page 1, by striking everything after the enacting clause and inserting in lieu thereof the following:

CHAPTER 5B. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 1985.

ARTICLE 2K. PROMOTING PUBLIC-USE vERTIPORTS ACT.

§5B-2K-1. Policy.

lt is the policy of this State to promote the development of a network of vertiports that will provide equitable access to citizens of this State who may benefit from advanced air mobility operations for cargo and passenger service, and to avoid any vertiport monopolization or discrimination, by: (i) funding the planning for and construction of public-use vertiports, as the State may appropriate; (ii) encouraging local zoning and other land use authorities to ensure an adequate number and a varied location of vertiports to serve citizens throughout the State; and (iii) promoting competition and equity of access by prohibiting the grant of an exclusive right to one or more vertiport owners and operators or to vertiport operators at an one or more vertiports.

§5B-2K-2. Applicability.

This Act applies to any vertiport that is available for public use by any advanced air mobility operator authorized by the United States Department of Transportation or Federal Aviation Administration to engage in passenger and/or cargo services in scheduled or non-scheduled service in or affecting interstate commerce.

§5B-2K-3. Vertiport Safety.

(a) Vertiport Design – Each vertiport subject to this Act shall comply with any Federal Aviation Administration published rule or Advisory Circular containing standards for vertiport design and performance characteristics.

(b) Vertiport Layout Plan – Each vertiport subject to this Act shall submit a vertiport layout plan to the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration in the form and manner determined by the Administrator, and no operations may be conducted at the vertiport until such layout plan is approved.

§5B-2K-4. Exclusionary and Discriminatory Zoning Prohibited.

A political subdivision of this State shall not exercise its zoning and land use authority to grant or permit an exclusive right to one or more vertiport owners or operators and shall use such authority to promote reasonable access to advanced air mobility operators at public-use vertiports within the jurisdiction of the subdivision.

§5B-2K-5. Harmonization.

The provisions of this Act are intended to supplement any provision of Federal law pertaining to the design, construction, operations, or maintenance of a vertiport designed or constructed with a grant under Chapter 471 of title 49, United States Code, and any provision of law found in conflict with or otherwise preempted by Federal law shall be null and void, without invalidating any other provision of this Act.

CHAPTER 61. CRIMES AND THEIR PUNISHMENT.

ARTICLE 16. USE OF UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS.

§61-16-3. Counties, municipalities, cities and towns prohibited from enacting restrictions upon advanced air mobility aircraft.

(a) Except as authorized by law, a county, city, village, or township shall not enact or adopt an ordinance, policy, or rule that relates to the ownership or operation of an advanced air mobility aircraft or advanced air mobility system and shall not otherwise engage in the regulation or ownership of an advanced air mobility aircraft or advanced air mobility system. Any ordinance, policy, or rule that violates this subsection, whether enacted or adopted by the county, municipality, city or town before or after the effective date of this section, is void.

(b) As used in this section:

(1) “advanced air mobility aircraft” is an aircraft used by an advanced air mobility system.

(2) “advanced air mobility system” means a system that transports people and property by air between points in the United States using aircraft, including electric aircraft and electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, in both controlled and uncontrolled airspace.

Adopted

Rejected