AOPA working for you in the Southern region

With the support of AOPA, a bid to cap North Carolina's 7.2-percent aircraft labor maintenance tax survived challenges to the state's 2016 budget and was approved by the General Assembly before it adjourned its short session recently. Gov. Pat McCrory had until July 31 to sign the budget, but his approval was expected. The cap would exempt any aircraft repairs of more than $25,000 from the state tax, which was passed in 2015 and took effect in March 2016. The tax caught many maintenance and repair facilities by surprise, and several larger repair facilities expressed concerns that it would drive business out of North Carolina and to states that don't impose a maintenance tax. Sen. Bill Rabon, a Wilmington Republican who co-chairs the North Carolina Senate's finance and transportation committees and a general aviation supporter, pressed the cap through as an initial attempt to curb the tax. Several legislators have already expressed a desire to push a full tax exemption through in 2017. The Greenwood, South Carolina, airport once again hosted the Southeast Aviation Expo from June 24 through 26. The annual gathering draws dozens of aircraft and exhibitors, as well as hundreds of pilots and community members. The weekend featured an AOPA Rusty Pilots seminar, a free three-hour program that helps lapsed pilots get back into the cockpit. In Alabama, a statewide meeting of AOPA Airport Support Network volunteers was set for Aug. 27 at Bessemer Airport just west of Birmingham. Alabama State Aeronautics Bureau Chief John Eagerton, AOPA Senior Director of Government Affairs Dawn Veatch, and AOPA Regional Manager Steve Hedges are featured speakers.