HB 191

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  David Shallenberger proposes the following substitute bill:
1Airport Land Use Amendments
  2026 GENERAL SESSION
  STATE OF UTAH
  Chief Sponsor: David Shallenberger
  Senate Sponsor: Brady Brammer
2
3   LONG TITLE
4   General Description:
5This bill amends definitions related to airports to include flight parks.
6   Highlighted Provisions:
7This bill:
8▸ amends definitions of "airport," and "airport influence area," and defines "flight park" to
9   ensure that a flight park receives similar treatment as other airports with regard to airport
10   influence areas, airport overlay zones, and avigation easements; and
11▸ makes technical changes.
12   Money Appropriated in this Bill:
13None
14   Other Special Clauses:
15None
16   Utah Code Sections Affected:
17   AMENDS:
  1st Sub. H.B. 191
1872-10-102, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2025, Chapters 423, 515
1972-10-401, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2025, First Special Session, Chapter 17
2072-10-403, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2025, First Special Session, Chapter 15
21
22   Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
23Section 1. Section 72-10-102 is amended to read:
2472-10-102 . Definitions.
25      As used in this chapter:
26   (1) "Acrobatics" means the intentional maneuvers of an aircraft not necessary to air
27navigation.
28   (2)(a) "Advanced air mobility system" means a system that transports individuals and
29property using piloted and unpiloted aircraft, including electric aircraft and electric
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30vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, in controlled or uncontrolled airspace.
31(b) "Advanced air mobility system" includes each component of a system described in
32Subsection (2)(a), including:
33(i) the aircraft, including payload;
34(ii) communications equipment;
35(iii) navigation equipment;
36(iv) controllers;
37(v) support equipment;
38(vi) an authoritative supplemental data service provider;
39(vii) flight information exchange; and
40(viii) remote and autonomous functions.
41   (3) "Aerial transit corridor" means an airspace volume defining a three-dimensional route
42segment with performance requirements to operate within or to cross where tactical air
43traffic control separation services are not provided.
44   (4) "Aeronautics" means transportation by aircraft, air instruction, the operation, repair, or
45maintenance of aircraft, and the design, operation, repair, or maintenance of airports, or
46other air navigation facilities.
47   (5) "Aeronautics instructor" means [any ] an individual engaged in giving or offering to give
48instruction in aeronautics, flying, or ground subjects, either with or without:
49(a) compensation or other reward;
50(b) advertising the occupation;
51(c) calling the instructor's facilities an air school, or [any ] an equivalent term; or
52(d) employing or using other instructors.
53   (6) "Aircraft" means [any ] a contrivance now known or in the future invented, used, or
54designed for navigation of or flight in the air.
55   (7) "Air instruction" means the imparting of aeronautical information by [any ] an aviation
56instructor or in [any ] an air school or flying club.
57   (8)(a) "Airport" means [any] an area of land[, water, or both,] or water that:
58[(a)] (i) is used or is made available for landing and takeoff of aircraft; and
59[(b) provides facilities for the shelter, supply, and repair of aircraft, and handling of
60passengers and cargo;]
61[(c) meets the minimum requirements established by the department as to size and
62design, surface, marking, equipment, and operation; and]
63[(d) includes all areas shown as part of the airport in the current airport layout plan as
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64approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.]
65(ii) is open or available for public use.
66(b) "Airport" includes:
67(i) appurtenant areas used for buildings, right of way, or other facilities used to
68support the airport;
69(ii) a vertiport if the vertiport is open or available for public use; and
70(iii) a flight park.
71   (9) "Airport authority" means a political subdivision of the state, other than a county or
72municipality, that is authorized by statute to operate an airport.
73   (10) "Airport operator" means a municipality, county, or airport authority that owns or
74operates a commercial airport.
75   (11)(a) "Airport revenue" means all fees, charges, rents, or other payments received by
76or accruing to an airport operator for any of the following reasons:
77(i) revenue from air carriers, tenants, lessees, purchasers of airport properties, airport
78permittees making use of airport property and services, and other parties;
79(ii) revenue received from the activities of others or the transfer of rights to others
80relating to the airport, including revenue received:
81(A) for the right to conduct an activity on the airport or to use or occupy airport
82property;
83(B) for the sale, transfer, or disposition of airport real or personal property, or [any ]
84an interest in that property, including transfer through a condemnation
85proceeding;
86(C) for the sale of, or the sale or lease of rights in, mineral, natural, or agricultural
87products or water owned by the airport operator to be taken from the airport;
88and
89(D) for the right to conduct an activity on, or for the use or disposition of, real or
90personal property or [any ] an interest in real or personal property owned or
91controlled by the airport operator and used for an airport-related purpose but
92not located on the airport; or
93(iii) revenue received from activities conducted by the airport operator whether on or
94off the airport, which is directly connected to the airport operator's ownership or
95operation of the airport.
96(b) "Airport revenue" includes state and local taxes on aviation fuel.
97(c) "Airport revenue" does not include amounts received by an airport operator as
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98passenger facility fees [pursuant to] in accordance with 49 U.S.C. Sec. 40117.
99   (12) "Air school" means [any ] a person engaged in giving, offering to give, [or ]advertising,
100representing, or a person holding itself out as giving, with or without compensation or
101other reward, instruction in aeronautics, flying, or ground subjects, or in more than one
102of these subjects.
103   (13) "Airworthiness" means conformity with requirements prescribed by the Federal
104Aviation Administration regarding the structure or functioning of aircraft, engine, parts,
105or accessories.
106   (14) "Authoritative supplemental data service provider" means a third party provider of
107unmanned aircraft system traffic management services that is approved by the
108department and supplies specialized data to an unmanned aircraft system service
109supplier or to an unmanned aircraft system operator for a variety of uses.
110   (15) "Civil aircraft" means [any ] an aircraft other than a public aircraft.
111   (16) "Commercial aircraft" means aircraft used for commercial purposes.
112   (17) "Commercial airport" means a landing area, landing strip, or airport that may be used
113for commercial operations.
114   (18) "Commercial flight operator" means a person who conducts commercial operations.
115   (19) "Commercial operations" means:
116(a) [any operations ] the operation of an aircraft for compensation or hire or [any ]
117services performed incidental to the operation of [any ] an aircraft for which a fee is
118charged or compensation is received, including the servicing, maintaining, and
119repairing of aircraft, the rental or charter of aircraft, the operation of flight or ground
120schools, the operation of aircraft for the application or distribution of chemicals or
121other substances, and the operation of aircraft for hunting and fishing; or
122(b) the brokering or selling of any of these services; but
123(c) does not include any operations of aircraft as common carriers certificated by the
124federal government or the services incidental to those operations.
125   (20) "Correctional facility" means the same as that term is defined in Section 77-16b-102.
126   (21) "Dealer" means [any ] a person who is actively engaged in the business of flying for
127demonstration purposes, or selling or exchanging aircraft, and who has an established
128place of business.
129   (22) "Experimental aircraft" means:
130(a) [any ] an aircraft designated by the Federal Aviation Administration or the military as
131experimental and used solely for the purpose of experiments, or tests regarding the
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132structure or functioning of aircraft, engines, or their accessories; and
133(b) [any ] an aircraft designated by the Federal Aviation Administration as:
134(i) being custom or amateur built; and
135(ii) used for recreational, educational, or display purposes.
136   (23) "Flight" means [any ] a kind of locomotion by aircraft while in the air.
137   (24) "Flight information exchange" means a model or system that allows for the consistent
138exchange of flying data between an unmanned aircraft system traffic management
139system and an unmanned aircraft system operator or aircraft to facilitate the coordination
140of flights.
141   (25) "Flight park" means an area:
142(a) used primarily for the landing and take-off of a hang glider, para glider, or similar
143nonmotorized aircraft;
144(b) recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration as an airport; and
145(c) owned by the state or a political subdivision of the state.
146   [(25)] (26) "Flying club" means five or more persons who for neither profit nor reward own,
147lease, or use one or more aircraft for the purpose of instruction, pleasure, or both.
148   [(26)] (27) "Glider" means an aircraft heavier than air, similar to an airplane, but without a
149power plant.
150   [(27)] (28) "Mechanic" means a person who constructs, repairs, adjusts, inspects, or
151overhauls aircraft, engines, or accessories.
152   [(28)] (29) "Navigable airspace" means the same as that term is defined in 49 U.S.C. Sec.
15340102.
154   [(29)] (30) "Parachute jumper" means [any person ] an individual who has passed the
155required test for jumping with a parachute from an aircraft, and has passed an
156examination showing that the jumper possesses the required physical and mental
157qualifications for the jumping.
158   [(30)] (31) "Parachute rigger" means any person who has passed the required test for
159packing, repairing, and maintaining parachutes.
160   [(31)] (32) "Passenger aircraft" means aircraft used for transporting persons, in addition to
161the pilot or crew, with or without their necessary personal belongings.
162   [(32)] (33) "Person" means [any ] an individual, corporation, limited liability company, or
163association of individuals.
164   [(33)] (34) "Pilot" means [any ] a person who operates the controls of an aircraft while
165in-flight.
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166   [(34)] (35) "Primary glider" means [any ] a glider that has a gliding angle of less than 10 to
167one.
168   [(35)] (36) "Private airport" means an airport that is not open or available for public use.
169   [(36)] (37) "Public aircraft" means an aircraft used exclusively in the service of [any ] a
170government or of [any ] a political subdivision, including the government of the United
171States, of the District of Columbia, and of [any] a state, territory, or insular possession of
172the United States, but not including [any ] a government-owned aircraft engaged in
173carrying persons or goods for commercial purposes.
174   [(37)] (38) "Reckless flying" means the operation or piloting of [any ] an aircraft recklessly,
175or in a manner as to endanger the property, life, or body of [any ] a person, due regard
176being given to the prevailing weather conditions, field conditions, and to the territory
177being flown over.
178   [(38)] (39) "Registration number" means the number assigned by the Federal Aviation
179Administration to [any ] an aircraft, whether[ or not] the number includes a letter or
180letters.
181   [(39)] (40) "Roadable aircraft" means an aircraft capable of taking off and landing from a
182suitable airfield and is also designed to be driven on a highway as a conveyance.
183   [(40)] (41) "Secondary glider" means [any ] a glider that has a gliding angle between 10 to
184one and 16 to one, inclusive.
185   [(41)] (42) "Significant private airport" means a private airport that is designated by the
186department as a significant private airport as described in Section 72-10-416.
187   [(42)] (43) "Soaring glider" means any glider that has a gliding angle of more than 16 to one.
188   [(43)] (44) "Unmanned aircraft system service supplier" means a service supplier that:
189(a) relays flight information between an unmanned aircraft system operator and a flight
190management system; and
191(b) provides information that supports unmanned aircraft system operations and assists
192with strategic deconfliction by an unmanned aircraft system traffic management
193system.
194   [(44)] (45) "Unmanned aircraft" means an aircraft that is:
195(a) capable of sustaining flight; and
196(b) operated with no possible direct human intervention from on or within the aircraft.
197   [(45)] (46) "Unmanned aircraft system" means the entire system used to operate an
198unmanned aircraft, including:
199(a) the unmanned aircraft, including payload;
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200(b) communications equipment;
201(c) navigation equipment;
202(d) controllers;
203(e) support equipment; and
204(f) autopilot functionality.
205   [(46)] (47) "Unmanned aircraft system traffic management" means a traffic management
206ecosystem for uncontrolled operations, including unmanned aircraft systems, that is
207separate from, but complementary to, the Federal Aviation Administration's air traffic
208management[ ] system.
209   [(47)] (48) "Vertiport" means an area of land, or a structure, used or intended to be used for
210electric, hydrogen, and hybrid vertical aircraft landings and takeoffs, including
211associated buildings and facilities.
212Section 2. Section 72-10-401 is amended to read:
21372-10-401 . Definitions.
214      As used in this part:
215   [(1)(a) "Airport" means any publicly used area of land or water that is used, or intended
216to be used, for the landing and take-off of aircraft and utilized or to be utilized in the
217interest of the public for these purposes.]
218[(b) "Airport" includes a vertiport if the vertiport is open for public use.]
219   [(2)] (1) "Airport hazard" means any structure, tree, object of natural growth, or use of land
220that potentially obstructs or otherwise impacts the safe and efficient utilization of the
221navigable airspace required for the flight of aircraft in landing or take-off at an airport.
222   [(3)] (2) "Airport influence area" means land located:
223(a) within 5,000 feet of an airport runway;[ or]
224(b) within 500 feet of a vertiport that is open for public use[.] ; or
225(c) within 1,000 feet of the boundary of a flight park.
226   [(4)] (3) "Airport overlay zone" means a secondary zoning district designed to protect the
227public health, safety, and welfare near an airport that:
228(a) applies land use regulation in addition to the primary zoning district land use
229regulation of property used as an airport and property within an airport influence area;
230(b) may extend beyond the airport influence area;
231(c) ensures airport utility as a public asset;
232(d) protects property owner land values near an airport through compatible land use
233regulations as recommended by the Federal Aviation Administration; and
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234(e) protects aircraft occupant safety through protection of navigable airspace.
235   [(5)] (4) "Avigation easement" means an easement permitting unimpeded aircraft flights
236over property subject to the easement and includes the right:
237(a) to create or increase noise or other effects that may result from the lawful operation
238of aircraft; and
239(b) to prohibit or remove any obstruction to such overflight.
240   [(6)] (5) "Land use regulation" means the same as that term is defined in Sections 10-20-102
241and 17-79-102.
242   [(7)] (6) "Political subdivision" means any municipality, city, town, or county.
243   [(8)] (7) "Structure" means any object constructed or installed by man, including buildings,
244towers, smokestacks, and overhead transmission lines.
245   [(9)] (8) "Tree" means any object of natural growth.
246Section 3. Section 72-10-403 is amended to read:
24772-10-403 . Airport zoning regulations.
248   (1) Flight of aircraft over the lands and waters of the state is lawful, unless:
249(a) at such a low altitude as to interfere with the existing use to which the owner has put
250the land, water, or the airspace over the land or water; or
251(b) so conducted as to be imminently dangerous to persons or property lawfully on the
252land or water beneath.
253   (2) In order to prevent the creation or establishment of airport hazards, each political
254subdivision located within an airport influence area, shall adopt, administer, and enforce
255land use regulations for the airport influence area, including an airport overlay zone,
256under the police power and in the manner and upon the conditions prescribed:
257(a) in this part;
258(b) Title 10, Chapter 20, Municipal Land Use, Development, and Management Act; and
259(c) Title 17, Chapter 79, County Land Use, Development, and Management Act.
260   (3)(a) Each political subdivision located within an airport influence area shall notify a
261person building on or developing land in an airport influence area, in writing, of
262aircraft overflights and associated noise.
263(b) To promote the safe and efficient operation of the airport, a political subdivision
264located within an airport influence area:
265(i) shall:
266(A) adopt an airport overlay zone conforming to the requirements of this chapter
267and 14 C.F.R. Part 77; and
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268(B) require any proposed development within an airport influence area to conform
269with 14 C.F.R. Part 77; and
270(ii) may, as a condition to granting a building permit, subdivision plat, or a requested
271zoning change within an airport influence area, require a person building or
272developing land to grant or sell to the airport owner, at appraised fair market
273value, an avigation easement.
274(c) For a flight park, overlay zone restrictions apply only to areas that are within the
275primary launch and landing corridors or that would create mechanical turbulence,
276rotor, or obstruction affecting customary flight operations.
277    (4) If a political subdivision located within an airport influence area fails to adopt an airport
278overlay zone by December 31, 2024, then the following requirements shall apply in an
279airport influence area:
280(a) each political subdivision located within an airport influence area shall notify a
281person building on or developing land within an airport influence area, in writing, of
282aircraft overflights and associated noise;
283(b) as a condition to granting a building permit, subdivision plat, or a requested zoning
284change within an airport influence area, require the person building or developing
285land to Ĥ→ offer to ←Ĥ grant or sell to the airport owner, at appraised fair market
285a  value, an avigation
286easement; and
287(c) require a person building or developing land within an airport influence area conform
288to the requirements of this chapter and 14 C.F.R. Part 77.
289Section 4. Effective Date.
290    This bill takes effect on May 6, 2026.
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