USCTA Alert

March 24, 2026

The leadership of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee has just announced that it will consider a modified version of the aviation safety bill known as the Airspace Location and Enhanced Risk Transparency (ALERT) Act on Thursday. As we expected, the measure now includes provisions from the AOPA-backed Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act (PAPA) that would prevent airports from using ADS-B to collect any revenue from operators including takeoff and landing fees or to initiate an investigation (Section 105). The modified ALERT Act, including the PAPA provisions in Section 105, can be viewed here.  
 
Urgent Request: With the markup of the ALERT Act now on the schedule for Thursday and with troubling PAPA provisions definitively in the modified bill, we urge you to make another run at contacting your House lawmakers – particularly those on the T&I Committee – to voice your opposition to the inclusion of PAPA provisions (Section 105) in the ALERT Act. A few talking points for your consideration:

• Our airport is adamantly opposed to Section 105 of the modified ALERT Act that the House T&I Committee is scheduled to consider on Thursday.

   

• These provisions would prohibit the use of ADS-B technology by airports to collect fees or initiative investigations.    

   

• If adopted, these provisions would limit the ability of our airport and others to charge users for the use of our facility and impair efforts to fund airport operations and safety-critical infrastructure projects.

   

• These provisions would also limit the ability of our airport to hold users accountable for safety and noise-related violations that may occur. 

   

• We urge Representative [Last Name] to seek the removal of Section 105 from the modified ALERT Act.

   

• Notably, the provisions being added are beyond the scope of the NTSB report and recommendations. 

   

• They have been added without the benefit of a hearing or any committee consideration, and they have significant impacts on airports and their ability to pay for necessary safety upgrades and meet federal requirements.  

We have been working to encourage members of the T&I Committee to offer amendments to strike the Section 105 provisions from the underlying bill or to mitigate their impact. If amendments to that end do materialize, we will be seeking further help to encourage their adoption so stay tuned for further updates.
 
Background Material

•  AAAE/ACI-NA joint letter opposing the addition of PAPA to the ALERT Act 

•  Background paper outlining AAAE concerns with PAPA 

   

•  Contact information for House members here and Senators here 

   

• List of House T&I Committee members here

Thanks for your help with this urgent request. If the AAAE team can be helpful in any way as you communicate with your elected officials, please don’t hesitate to let us know. Stay tuned for further updates and calls to action.