H.R. 2247 · Where this bill is now
In the Senate
Passed the House Mar 24, 2026. Received Mar 25, 2026; no Senate vote yet
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryPilots can show digital airman certificates
Right now, pilots have to carry a physical copy of their airman certificate and medical certificate to show to FAA inspectors when asked. This bill would let pilots show a digital copy instead, stored on a phone, tablet, or cloud storage. The FAA would need to update its rules to allow this.
How it affects you
If you're a pilot, this change makes it easier to comply with FAA requirements. Instead of always carrying physical paperwork, you could use a digital version on your device. Most other people won't see a direct effect from this change.
Read the official summary (Introduced in House, Mar 21, 2025)
Pilot Certificate Accessibility Act
This bill allows a pilot to present a digital copy of certain certificates (e.g., an airman certificate or a medical certificate) when required to present such documentation by a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector.
Under current FAA regulations, a pilot must present for inspection a physical copy of an airman certificate and other paperwork upon a request from the FAA; a federal, state, or local law enforcement officer; or an authorized representative of the Transportation Security Administration or the National Transportation Safety Board. This bill allows a pilot to present a certificate such as an airman certificate or a medical certificate to an FAA inspector as (1) a physical, original copy; or (2) a digital copy stored on an electronic device or cloud storage platform.
The FAA must update current regulations to implement this change.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
1st SessionH. R. 2247
AN ACT
Airmen Certificate Accessibility Act
Sponsor: Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN-2) · Introduced Mar 21, 2025 · Transportation and Public Works · 4 versions of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action Mar 25, 2026: “Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.”