Legislative Priorities

As the voice of aviation technical education, ATEC consistently advocates for common-sense law, particularly those influencing the FAA, the Department of Education, and the aviation industry. ATEC's specific legislative priorities are outlined below:

1. Ensure FAA airman certification standards (ACS) are maintained in support of aviation safety and industry workforce needs.

The ACS are a product of a highly successful, decades-long collaboration between the FAA and industry stakeholders to clearly define what a person needs to know, say, and do to obtain airman certification. ATEC asked Congress to ensure FAA Reauthorization Act provisions (Sec. 406) are implemented including directing the agency to carry out industry recommendations on maintaining and updating ACS and engaging the ACS working group to continually approve the certification system including training and testing.

2. Support aviation workforce development by fully funding the FAA workforce grant.

In the 2018 FAA reauthorization bill, Congress established the Aviation Workforce Development Grants program, authorizing $10 million in funding for pilot and maintenance workforce development programs. The 2024 reauthorization bill (Sec. 440) allocates $20 million for each of the three programs (pilot, maintenance, and manufacturing) for FY 2025 through 2028. ATEC urges Congress to ensure all appropriated funds are distributed and to appropriate funding at the newly authorized levels to meet workforce demand.

3. Reappoint Industry Partners to Advance Airman Certification Standards (ACS) and Regulatory Reforms.

In Sec. 406 of the 2024 FAA Reauthorization Act, Congress directed FAA to collaborate with industry to maintain and improve the ACS, a partnership essential to aviation safety and workforce development. FAA’s recent termination of industry committee appointments has stalled progress on this and other key congressional mandates including development of a military transition pathway (Sec. 426), and reforms to reduce barriers to mechanic testing (Sec. 405)—both with fast-approaching deadlines. ATEC urges Congress to press DOT to promptly reappoint committee members so this critical work stays on track.

3. Expand access to FAA airman testing.

Forty percent of aviation technician school graduates do not take the exam necessary for FAA mechanic certification, with testing inaccessibility as a primary obstacle. A shortage of Designated Mechanic Examiners (DMEs) exacerbates the issue, as some FAA offices are reluctant to approve more due to resource constraints. ATEC urges the FAA to approve more testing designees and make policy changes that adopt common examiner qualification requirements and provide DMEs with more flexibility to conduct tests at any part 147 program nationwide.

4. Include aviation technical programs as STEM fields across all federal agency classification systems.

For example, the Department of Homeland Security does not include all aviation maintenance programs to be considered a “STEM field of study,” which limits students’ ability to apply for visa extensions to work in the U.S. after graduation. Aviation technical program codes are absent from similar lists maintained by the Department of Labor, meaning they cannot take advantage of STEM-focused programming or all the downstream benefits of having that categorization. The council asks congressional representatives to support and encourage designation of aviation maintenance programs as STEM programs across all federal government agencies.

5. Promote aviation technical career paths and meet rising workforce demands through expansion of secondary education opportunities.

To help meet rising workforce demand and connect participants to high-wage jobs, ATEC—through its partnership with Choose Aerospace—has developed a turnkey curriculum that introduces aviation fundamentals in high schools and helps support registered apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship pathways into aviation technical careers. ATEC and its members stand ready to work with Congress, community partners, and school districts to implement programs leading to high-wage careers nationwide.

6. Oppose threats to educational institutions.

ATEC opposes legislation that limits aviation technical schools from serving students and veterans, including public, private non-profit, and private proprietary institutions. The industry is facing a massive technical workforce shortage, all FAA-certificated aviation maintenance trainings schools are vital to industry’s growth and prosperity. ATEC asks legislative leaders to oppose any legislation masked rhetorically as student protection aid (e.g., 90-10 rule, borrower defense to repayment, etc.) that instead threatens a vital source of aviation maintenance professionals and negatively impacts aerospace companies looking to hire technical personnel.