Costly California Bill would make Flight Instructors follow Part 141 Rules

Hefty Fees And Annual Renewals Would Come With The Legislation

The California Legislature reauthorized a state Post-Secondary Bureau last year that monitors the quality of post-secondary institutions and protects students from losing pre-paid tuition to a school that closes down. Flight training facilities had been exempted, but as part of the re-authorization of the Bureau (Assembly Bill 48; AB48), the exemption was tentatively removed.

With the exemption lifted, all flight training facilities, from full-fledged Part 141 flight schools to independent instructors, must be certified and operate as though they are a post-secondary institution such as a college or technical school. The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) contends that AB48 was designed to regulate private colleges and technical schools, not the disparate world of flight instruction which varies widely and whose curriculum is already regulated by the FAA.  

The NATA says that the rules would affect independent and small flight schools as the cost and infrastructure requirements are quite involved. It would likely force instructors to either leave the profession or try to join a large flight school to avoid the start-up and maintenance costs, and administrative hassles. Small FBOs that offer instruction would also face a hard decision about whether to continue to offer instruction.   

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