Program Schedule – 2025 NBAA Tax, Regulatory & Risk Management Conference

Breakfast

Encore Ballroom 1,2,3

Welcome & Introductions

The Year in Taxes & Tariffs

David Shannon, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP, Moderator
Jeff Agur, The VanAllen Group
Joanne Barbera, Barbera & Watkins, LLC
Angel Houck, Houck & Christensen CPAs, LLC

Aircraft Ownership 101

Amanda Applegate, Soar Aviation Law, LLC
David Thompson Norton, Shackelford, McKinley & Norton, LLP

In this opening panel, panelists will lay the foundation for the rest of the conference, providing key guidance on various Federal Aviation Administration regulatory and basic civil risk management issues that should be considered in conjunction with federal and state tax planning objectives. The panel will also serve to introduce the various topics that will be discussed in more detail over the rest of the conference.

Morning Break

Tax Consequences and Reporting Requirements Arising from the Personal Use of Business Aircraft

Joe Park, BIZJETCPA
Letisha D. Sailor, AvTax Advisors, PLLC

The presenters will explain the proper classification of passengers and personal use to determine the resulting tax consequences, including IRC § 274(a) entertainment disallowance and IRC § 274(l) commuting disallowance. The presenters will also detail the methods to compute entertainment disallowance, the impact of personal use reimbursement and appropriate documentation.

SIFL Reporting

Robert Davis, Forvis Mazars LLP
Sue Folkringa, Aviation CPAs

In this session, the attendee will become acquainted with the eligibility criteria and innumerable special rules involving the Standard Industry Fare Level (SIFL) computations that result from the personal use of employer-owned aircraft. The attendees will gain a basic understanding of the SIFL computations and appreciation of when to consult with their tax advisors to work through the computational nuances involved as failure to perform these computations correctly could result in unfavorable results upon examination by various tax agencies.

Lunch

Sponsored by Crowe & Dunlevy

Federal Excise Tax Topics

Melissa Stanley, Barbera & Watkins, LLC
Nel Stubbs, Stubbs Aviation Advisors

The panelists will discuss what the Federal Excise Taxes (FET) are, how they apply and the exemptions regarding aircraft management services and affiliated groups. FET issues around aircraft charter brokers will also be discussed.

Public Companies, SEC Reporting & Security

Ryan DeMoor, MySky
Sean Fitzgibbons, Walmart, Inc.

This panel will examine SEC disclosure requirements for public companies offering non-business use of corporate aircraft, security and other possible benefits to senior executives. Panelists will share practical insights and enforcement examples to clarify how the SEC interprets perquisites and calculates incremental costs. They will also touch on related disclosures important for certain public companies that use aircraft for business or non-business use to understand. While the guidance remains broad, the session will highlight common pitfalls and help attendees better grasp proxy disclosure expectations – without promising definitive answers.

Afternoon Break

Depreciation

Angel Houck, Houck & Christensen CPAs, LLC
David Shannon, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP

100% bonus depreciation is back, and there are a lot of questions to address. This session will cover the basics of depreciation for business aircraft, qualifying for accelerated and bonus depreciation, how to calculate the suspended depreciation and the treatment at disposition, as well as a discussion on the changes provided by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.

Avoiding Common Pitfalls

Alvaro Pascotto, Law Offices of Alvaro Pascotto
Chris Younger, HCH Legal, LLC

This session will highlight common income tax pitfalls when planning a business aircraft ownership and operating structure for a pass-through entity. The presenters will discuss the following issues that must be considered when engaging in this planning: Measuring qualified business use (IRC § 280F), At-Risk rules (IRC § 465), Passive activity loss limitations (IRC § 469), S-Corporation debt and shareholder outside basis issues, deduction of unreimbursed partnership expenses, excess business losses under IRC § 461(l) and more.

Evening Reception

Breakfast

Encore Ballroom 1,2,3

Welcome & Introductions

Washington Update

Ryan DeMoor, MySky
Kristie Greco Johnson, NBAA

Shhhh: Aircraft Registration Privacy and Flight Data Security Concerns

Joanne Barbera, Barbera & Watkins, LLC
Scott​ McCreary, McAfee & Taft
Jeffrey Towers, TVPX

As the public’s access to information and flight tracking has expanded in recent years, so have aircraft and flight privacy and security concerns. Learn about the sources of public information and steps that aircraft owners and operators can take to protect their information, including new FAA Aircraft Registry privacy requests (and related issues), privacy trusts, Limiting Aircraft Data Displayed (LADD), developments with the Privacy ICAO Address (PIA) program, improvements with respect to FAA Letters of Authorization and other legal and business practices.

Morning Break

State & Local Tax Planning

Michael Cosby, Husch Blackwell LLP
Mike Grim, Cherry Bekaert Advisory LLC

This presentation will provide an overview of sales and use tax, personal property and ad valorem taxes, registration fees and various exemptions applicable to aircraft. Focus will be given to developing and understanding tax strategies that take into consideration delivery and operational concerns. The panel will also touch on preparation for and responses to state and local tax audits.

Advanced Structures: Family Offices & Multi-Owner

Mary Comazzi, Barnes & Thornburg LLP
Lori McGee, Jetstream Aviation Law, P.A.

Addressing the need for multiple users and multiple owners of an aircraft and related sharing of costs can create additional challenges in achieving tax, FAA and business goals. In this session the speakers will discuss the issues and limitations to consider in setting up advanced ownership and operating structures, related best practices and practical solutions to address certain types of advanced structures, including those for family offices, multi-entity business structures and multiple owners.

Lunch

Sponsored by Crowe & Dunlevy

Tariffs & Cross-Border Transactions

Katie DeLuca, Harper Meyer
Ehsan Monfared, YYZlaw

This panel will provide a review of key cross-border transaction considerations including issues around aircraft deregistration and registration, closing locations and import and export considerations. Panelists will engage in mock negotiations of aircraft transactions, exposing the push and pull that will exist in cross-border transactions and the ways counsel work to mitigate these concerns.

Insurance & Risk Considerations

Alan Goldstein, Flight Dept Solutions, LLC
Lamont Rosemond, QBE Insurance
Brint Smith, Alliant Insurance Services, Inc.

This session will begin with a review of “insured contracts,” such as dry leases. Panelists will also examine key insurance and risk considerations for aircraft owners and operators related to FBOs. A review of the current state of the insurance market will also be provided.

Afternoon Break

Understanding the Paperwork

John Copley, Garofalo Goerlich Hainbach P.C.
David M. Hernandez, Vedder Price PC

Aircraft agreements are of paramount importance for aircraft owners and operators. These legally binding documents outline the terms, conditions and, most importantly, safeguards for the involved parties. Neglecting to prepare and comprehend such agreements frequently results in costly and catastrophic consequences. This panel will analyze the key provisions in three of the most prevalent operating agreements and provide a comprehensive roadmap for identifying and mitigating potential risks.

Audit Update

Dan Feldman, Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP
Glenn Hediger, Aviation Financial Consulting, LLC

Attendees of this presentation will hear best practices on how to proactively prepare for and manage a business aircraft audit. The presenters will highlight recent developments inside the IRS including the IRS’ standard information data request (IDR) and training manual for business aircraft audits, which identify the key data points and supporting documentation sought. The presenters will also cover select states with a recent surge in tax audits. The presenters will offer aircraft owners practical and actionable audit guidance, including how to proactively mitigate risk and effectively protest an assessment.