Mechanics lien on aircraft; clarifies and establishes scope of lien of a provider of certain labor or materials to aircraft, authorizes recording lien with FAA and Secretary of State
HB144 creates a specific mechanic’s lien framework for work done on aircraft in Alabama. A person or business that stores, fuels, repairs, or performs maintenance on an aircraft would have a lien for the amount owed under contract, or, if no contract amount is stated, for the reasonable and usual compensation for the work. For storage-only contracts, the bill limits the lien to written agreements or verbal agreements covering at least 30 days of storage.
The bill also sets out how the lien may be recorded. For aircraft registered with the Federal Aviation Administration, the lienholder may file a verified document with the FAA Aircraft Registry within 180 days after the storage period ends or the last repair or maintenance is completed. For aircraft registered outside the United States or not registered in any national jurisdiction, the lienholder may file an affidavit with the Alabama Secretary of State within the same 180-day period. The Secretary of State would maintain and index these filings and may charge filing fees.
HB144 makes these aircraft liens subordinate to prior perfected security interests under the Uniform Commercial Code, unless the secured party authorized the work. In practical terms, that means lenders with earlier perfected interests generally remain ahead of the mechanic’s lien, preserving existing secured-finance priorities while still giving service providers a statutory claim against the aircraft.
The bill’s impact is to expand and clarify Alabama lien law for the aviation sector, giving aircraft service providers an express statutory remedy and a formal recording process. It affects aircraft owners, maintenance and fueling businesses, storage operators, lenders, and title/registry systems, and it creates a state filing option for certain foreign-registered or unregistered aircraft. The act would take effect on October 1, 2025.
The overall sentiment appears strongly favorable and noncontroversial. The House votes show unanimous support, with 102-103 yeas and no nays, and there is no recorded committee opposition or debate in the provided materials. The main policy balance reflected in the bill is between protecting mechanics and service providers who are owed payment and preserving the priority of preexisting secured creditors; the bill resolves that balance by allowing the lien while keeping it junior to earlier perfected UCC interests.
HB144 would add a new statutory lien remedy specifically for aircraft-related storage, fueling, repair, and maintenance services, and it would establish procedures for recording those liens either with the FAA Aircraft Registry or, for certain aircraft not registered in the United States, with the Alabama Secretary of State. It would not displace prior perfected UCC security interests, which remain senior unless the secured party authorized the work. The bill therefore affects aircraft owners, service providers, lenders, and filing/registry practices, while leaving the broader mechanic’s lien framework in place and extending it to aviation-specific transactions.
The available legislative history indicates broad support and little to no opposition. The House passed the bill overwhelmingly and unanimously in the recorded votes, and there are no committee transcript snippets showing disagreement or concern. The bill appears to have been viewed as a practical clarification of lien rights for aircraft service providers rather than a controversial policy change.
The only notable policy tension is between aircraft service providers seeking payment security and secured lenders seeking to preserve priority in collateral. HB144 addresses that by granting a lien for storage, fuel, repairs, and maintenance, but making it subordinate to earlier perfected UCC security interests unless the secured party authorized the work. A secondary administrative issue is the filing process for aircraft not covered by FAA registration, which shifts recording to the Alabama Secretary of State and allows the Secretary to set filing fees.