Lone Star Land & Cattle challenges Livingston landing fees; FAA part‑13 complaint under review

Lone Star Land & Cattle told the Park County Airport Board it filed a Part 13 complaint with the Federal Aviation Administration over what the company calls excessive landing fees at Livingston Airport and that it seeks documentation of the methodology the board used to set fees.

Robert Munoz, speaking for Lone Star Land & Cattle, said the company provided two letters to the board and, after no satisfactory response, filed a Part 13 complaint with the FAA. “We filed a Part 13 complaint with the FAA because, lack of response,” Munoz said. He said Lone Star has received a response from FAA staff (referred to in the meeting) and that the company believes parts of the FAA response are incomplete; he asked the board to provide documentation showing how landing fees were determined and compared against similar airports.

Board secretary Carly Ahern and other board members said the airport undertook a multi‑year review of landing fees and that FAA staff had previously reviewed the board’s landing‑fee structure. Ahern told the meeting the board spent two to three years researching landing fees; an FAA representative inspected last year and “determined that we are completely fair in our landing fees,” she said. The board said unpaid invoices from Lone Star have been sent to collections, and airport staff said the airport uses a third‑party vendor (Planepath/PlanePass) to manage landing‑fee billing and collections; outstanding pre‑vendor charges had been forwarded to a collection agency.

Munoz said Lone Star’s main request is to see the documentation that supports the fee analysis and to understand how the fees were benchmarked. “Our primary concern is that the airport board had reviewed the fee structures, including airports in close proximity and similar size, and we feel that the fees are excessive,” Munoz said. He told the board he will follow up in writing and seek the records.

A number of participants noted the administrative and collection complexity: the airport has contracted with PlanePass to administer assessments, and accounts with unpaid balances before that contract were referred to collections. Board members said they would follow up with Lone Star and staff to provide records and to coordinate a meeting; they also noted that landing fees contribute to the airport’s ability to satisfy FAA funding requirements.

Why it matters: The dispute involves unpaid invoices and may affect the airport’s revenue and collections process. Because FAA guidance and Part 13 complaint processes can influence local fees and grant eligibility, both the complainant and the board said they expect to review the FAA findings and related documentation before taking further action.

Next steps: Lone Star will follow up in writing and request supporting documentation; the board and staff said they will locate and provide records on fee methodology, confirm the status of FAA findings and continue collection efforts for outstanding balances.