Dan's Papers - July 31, 2009 - Chopper Stopper: How They Quieted the Ruckus

The regular Southampton town board meeting on June 9 had a lot to cover - the resignation letters of Steve Brautigam (Town Comptroller), several public hearings and pages of resolutions, including one on a topic that has kept the Hamptons buzzing for years.

Titled "Resolution 2009-714," it was the return appearance of previous legislation seeking to regulate the operation of helicopters over Suffolk County. It was brought about by Legislator Ed Romaine (R-Center Moriches), whose past efforts have been less than successful - the bill he presented to the Suffolk County legislature in October '08 was defeated by the legislature's Public Works and Transportation Committee. His attempt to bring it forward again, in December '08, was narrowly defeated (8 Yes, 9 No, 1 Abstention).

But this time around, the resolution found support as the Southampton Town Board resolved to strongly support Romaine's legislation, which just so happened to have been approved by the County's Public Works Committee this time, on June 2. On June 9, the full County Legislature approved it, stating:

"WHEREAS, there was duly presented and introduced to this County Legislature ... a proposed local law entitled, 'A LOCAL LAW TO ENSURE SAFE OPERATIONS OF HELICOPTERS;' now, therefore be it RESOLVED, that said local law be enacted..."

After the approval by the legislature, County Executive Steve Levy signed the bill to make the word the letter of the law.

In short, the law states that low flying helicopters "have become a public nuisance in Suffolk County and threaten life or property of its residents." It stipulates, "It shall be unlawful to operate ... any type of helicopter in a careless or reckless manner so as to endanger the life or property of others."

It's with the wording of this last section that the law has a chance to stand. Originally, the proposal spoke to the issue of altitude - as written in the passage from the October 2008 version:

"CARELESS OR RECKLESS MANNER ... failing to maintain an altitude of two thousand, five hundred (2,500) feet above the highest obstacle within a horizontal radius of two thousand (2,000) feet from the helicopter except when necessary for a take-off or landing or as weather conditions may dictate."

The hope last year was that, if pilots adhered to this specific altitude, the problems could be alleviated. Senator Schumer (D-NY) and Representative Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) sincerely hoped to make this happen - they had even reached an agreement with helicopter operators requiring them to maintain the minimum altitudes. But the complaints kept rolling in and while promises were made, there was little the County could do since altitudes, according to the FAA, are strictly under their jurisdiction. The agency has maintained the charge that it is the sole manager of all U.S. airspace, and that it does not mandate a minimum altitude for helicopters. That has been verbalized for officials in response to previous complaints, and not just on Long Island.

Where Romaine's proposal found its chink in the armor was in defining "careless or reckless manner" as "failing to take all actions reasonably necessary for safe operation or operating at an altitude that creates a hazard or undue hardship for persons and property on the surface."

According to the new law, if passed it would mean any pilot who violates the law's provisions would be guilty of an "unclassified misdemeanor," punishable by a either a year in prison and/or fines up to $1,000.

There are precedents to back this new law's intent - one was the case of People v. Valenti in California back in 1984. The case concerned a pilot who buzzed a group of beachgoers with his plane at altitudes no higher than 15-20 feet. In its conclusion, the decision reads: "The state has the right to impose criminal sanctions for the unlawful operation of aircraft above its land and waters."

In addition, according to a statement from Bill Fauke (Legislator Aide, Office of Legislator Ed Romaine) made to Dan's Papers, the U.S. Court of Appeals - as recently as 2004 - has "upheld the authority of local governments to regulate pilot behavior and dismissed arguments that we are pre-empted in the field."

Now that the law has passed, many pilots and companies could find themselves in quick legal trouble. For example, last year, the ERHC claims that its compiled data shows 85% of helicopter flights met the noise abatement routes agreed upon in conjunction with Schumer's and Bishop's efforts. However, Fauke said that according to the figures tallied by his office, only 50% of helicopter traffic has been in compliance. Now that Levy has signed the law, and if the Romaine office's reported numbers are correct, the helicopter industry in our area is surely impacted - and, as per the hopes of thousands of East End residents - greatly silenced.