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Committee amends, approves bill to require local zoning to protect federally defined airport airspace
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Summary
The committee passed an amended House Bill 1434 to require governments beneath federally defined Part 77 airspace to adopt protective zoning and direct GDOT to provide guidance on FAA compliance; supporters say the measure preserves federal grant eligibility, while senators probed property‑rights and enforcement implications.
A state legislative committee on Transportation approved an amended bill Tuesday that would require jurisdictions beneath federally defined airport airspace to adopt zoning or regulatory measures to prevent obstructions that could jeopardize federal grants.
Representative Jenkins, sponsor of House Bill 1434, told the committee the measure seeks to coordinate protection of the airspace defined in 14 CFR Part 77 and to prevent costly runway displacements or loss of federal funding when obstructions are introduced. Jenkins said the bill does not create a new protected airspace but requires notification and local zoning so landowners know what is permissible.
The amendment adopted at the hearing replaces broader language that directed the Department of Transportation to 'assist' local governments with a narrower duty to 'provide assistance and guidance to the airport‑affected governing body with respect to compliance' with Federal Aviation Administration requirements. Jenkins and supporters said the change reflects GDOT’s request to limit the department’s role to technical guidance rather than drafting local zoning ordinances.
Supporters included Vernon Lee of the General Aviation Airports of Georgia and Dawood Stevenson, president of the Georgia Airports Association. ‘‘This will give us some teeth to protect the airports that we spent a lot of money on and are significant economic engines for the state,’’ Stevenson said.
Senators questioned whether the zoning could amount to a taking of private property and how jurisdictions that do not currently have zoning would be compelled to act. Jenkins and witnesses said existing federal protections already make obstruction harmful to airports and that the bill’s enforcement mechanism is the suspension of LMEG funding for the jurisdiction that allows an obstruction. Jenkins said compensation, eminent‑domain processes or mitigation already in use would remain unchanged.
The committee moved to amend and pass the bill as amended; the motion carried unanimously. Chairmen and sponsors indicated they will identify a senate sponsor to carry the bill in the upper chamber.
What’s next: The committee approved the bill as amended and will seek a senate sponsor before the measure advances to later stages of the legislature.
