Airport Alert: ROTOR Act Fails in House; Committee Action on ALERT Act Could Come as Soon as Next Week

February 24, 2026

The House of Representatives this afternoon failed to provide the two-thirds majority needed to approve the Senate-passed Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform (ROTOR) Act. As we have previously reported, the ROTOR Act was crafted by leaders of the Senate Commerce Committee following last year’s tragic accident at DCA and would establish new requirements for the utilization of ADS-B technology by virtually all aircraft and helicopters and increase oversight of commercial and helicopter traffic and flight routes near airports. While the measure received 264 votes in support with 133 members voting against it, the bill was brought up under an expedited procedure typically reserved for non-controversial measures that requires a two-thirds majority vote. The path forward for future consideration of the ROTOR Act is now uncertain.

As we have reported in previous Alerts, the move by House leaders to schedule a vote on the Senate ROTOR Act rankled members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure and Armed Services Committees, who have put together an alternative aviation safety proposal known as the Airspace Location and Enhanced Risk Transparency (ALERT) Act. Reservations from committee leaders along with last-minute concerns voiced by the Departments of Defense and Transportation clearly had an impact on the final vote. The text of the ALERT Act is here and a section-by-section summary of the measure is here.

What’s Next?

In a press release issued shortly before today’s vote, House Transportation Committee Chair Sam Graves (R-MO) said “If the ROTOR Act is not approved by the House today, I commit to the supporters of that legislation, to the accident victims’ families, and to the aviation community, that the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee will mark up the ALERT Act as soon as next week and work with our colleagues in the Senate to get this right. Safety will always be my number one priority, which is why it is vital that we address the NTSB’s recommendations in a timely manner.”

As we noted in a previous Alert, neither the ROTOR Act nor the ALERT Act as introduced includes the AOPA-backed Pilot and Aircraft Privacy Act (PAPA) – H.R. 4146/S. 2175 – or similar provisions. We have been concerned that the recent endorsement of the PAPA bill by the NTSB Chair (see our Hearing Report) would drive efforts to add the PAPA legislation or something similar to the broader House safety measure. We have been in contact with House staff and coordinating with ACI-NA in recent days to re-emphasize our opposition to PAPA and the negative impact it would have on airport operators.

With House committee action on the ALERT Act imminent, we will need to remain vigilant for potential amendments to add PAPA to the underlying House bill. Notably, the lead House sponsor of PAPA – Rep. Bob Onder (R-MO) – is a member of the T&I Committee.

While the exact contours of future consideration of PAPA are unclear at this time, we urge you to continue your efforts to educate your delegation – particularly members of the House Transportation Committee – on your concerns with the legislation. As a reminder, the bill as introduced would prohibit the use of ADS-B technology for fee collections by airports and impose a series of other burdensome and time-consuming requirements on the imposition and collection of takeoff and landing fees on general aviation, regardless of the process or technology utilized to collect those fees.

To assist you:

• Background paper outlining AAAE concerns with PAPA
• Our previous call to action to push back on PAPA and pilot claims
• Contact information for House members here and Senators here

Thank you for your continued engagement and advocacy. If the AAAE team can be helpful in any way, please don’t hesitate to let us know.

Stay tuned for further updates and calls to action.