Action Alert: Airport Input Needed to Highlight Opposition to Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act

January 26, 2026

Following a call to action late last week from AOPA, we need airports to weigh in with your congressional delegation – particularly members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee – as soon as possible to highlight concerns and opposition to the Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act (PAPA) (S. 2175/H.R.4146). The AOPA-backed bill, sponsored by Sen. Ted Budd (R-NC) and Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO), would prohibit airports from using ADS-B data to assess or collect landing or takeoff fees on any aircraft operator and impose significant new administrative hurdles on airports prior to imposing takeoff or landing fees on any general aviation aircraft.

Last week, AOPA distributed a “call to action” to its 300,000+ membership, urging them to weigh in with their Senators and House Member and request that they cosponsor the PAPA bill. You can view the email here. It is important for our airport members to also weigh in with their members of Congress to counter the messaging that they are hearing from general aviation pilots and operators. Airports should emphasize the legitimate need for ADS-B data to ensure the safety and security of their facilities, improve efficiency, address noise-related concerns, and comply with FAA regulatory requirements and grant assurances.

AAAE has developed a background paper and talking points on the PAPA bill here, and a joint AAAE/ACI-NA document in opposition to the bill that you can share with your contacts on Capitol Hill is accessible here. You can obtain contact information for House members here and Senators here. A list of members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is here.

In October 2025, Senator Budd offered several versions of the PAPA bill as amendments to the bipartisan ROTOR Act, which was introduced in response to the tragic accident at DCA and would establish new requirements for the utilization of ADS-B technology. AAAE, ACI-NA, and airports mounted an aggressive and successful campaign to defeat the Budd amendments.

While we have been successful to date in pushing back, general aviation pilots are mounting an aggressive campaign to move the bill through the Transportation Committee, which is chaired by Sam Graves (R-MO), a strong proponent of general aviation. It is our understanding that we could see the bill on the committee agenda early in 2026 so time is of the essence.