General Aviation Manufacturers Association Lobbying Drops

• Archie Miller
• Amanda Joyner, managing director of government affairs, a former House staffer
• Paul Feldman, vice president of government affairs

Miller is new to the in-house filing this quarter; Marc Ehudin, who appeared on the second-quarter 2026 in-house filing, does not appear on this one. Lobbying firms Mehlman Consulting Inc. and O'Keeffe Shahmoradi Strategies LLC each filed separately for the third quarter of 2026, reporting the same amounts as Q2 ($40,000 and $30,000), though Mehlman's lobbyist list added Sean Brady.

Broader Context

The filing names S.5572, the Modern Skies Act, which the U.S. Department of Transportation described on Sept. 28 as the third pillar of the administration's plan to address air travel, linked to a $12.5 billion air-traffic modernization investment. Rep. Tracey Mann's office announced a House Modern Skies Act on Oct. 1. A broad coalition including GAMA backed the bill, arguing the proposed $30 billion would modernize air-traffic-control technology and improve safety, reliability, and capacity. Reason Foundation analyst Robert Poole argued that only 40 percent of the $30 billion would go to air-traffic control, with 60 percent directed to airport facilities including $10 billion for passenger terminals, and that the spending would be borrowed absent offsets.

The ALERT Act, sponsored by Rep. Sam Graves (R-MO-6), passed the House and was placed on the Union Calendar on April 9; it would require the Department of Defense (DOD) and the Department of Transportation (DOT) to agree on collision prevention technology for military aircraft, make ADS-B Out the default for DOD helicopters, and require the FAA to mandate ADS-B In on civil aircraft by Dec. 31, 2031. The ROTOR Act, sponsored by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), failed a two-thirds vote on suspension in the House on Feb. 24, 264 to 133; it would increase ADS-B tracking requirements, limit sensitive government-mission flight exceptions, and expand FAA oversight.

The Aviation Innovation and Global Competitiveness Act, introduced in February 2026 by Rep. Troy Nehls (R-TX) and backed in the Senate by Sens. Ted Budd (R-NC), Peter Welch (D-VT), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), and John Curtis (R-UT), would enhance transparency and predictability in FAA type certification for advanced air mobility aircraft, and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association is among the bill's supporting organizations.

Sen. Jerry Moran (R-KS) announced a hearing on near collisions in the national airspace on June 22, 2026, and listed GAMA's James Viola as a witness.

Competitive Landscape

Organizations also lobbying the ALERT Act include the National Air Transportation Association, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, the Aerospace Industries Association of America Inc., Airlines for America Inc., and Boeing Co. Organizations also lobbying the ROTOR Act include American Airlines Inc., Southwest Airlines Co., the Aerospace Industries Association of America Inc., Delta Air Lines Inc., and the National Air Transportation Association.

The Bottom Line

GAMA's in-house lobbying spend fell to $190,000 in the third quarter of 2026, down from $235,000 in the second quarter, while Mehlman Consulting Inc. and O'Keeffe Shahmoradi Strategies LLC each reported unchanged amounts of $40,000 and $30,000 in every quarter from the third quarter of 2025 onward. The ALERT Act's latest recorded action was its placement on the Union Calendar; the ROTOR Act's latest recorded action was a suspension vote that failed 264-133 short of the two-thirds required; and the Transportation Department described the Modern Skies Act, S.5572, in late September 2026 while Rep. Tracey Mann's office announced a House version on Oct. 1.

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