As the exclusive representative of fractional aviation pilots in Washington D.C., the NJASAP Industry Affairs Program (IAP) offers a unique and necessary voice on legislative and regulatory matters that directly affect this group of aviation professionals.
In the six years since the previous FAA Reauthorization Bill was signed in 2018, NJASAP diligently pursued the NJASAP Membership’s legislative priorities. The Government Affairs Committee’s (GAC) continued efforts were rewarded when former President Joe Biden signed the new reauthorization bill, H.R. 3935, into law on may 17, 2024.
NJASAP considered this a remarkable legislative victory for NJASAP because the bill featured several of the Union’s high-priority initiatives, including:
NJASAP is exceedingly proud of what it has accomplished with the signing of the 2024 FAA Reauthorization bill. Not only will the updates to the aeromedical language bring about an improved and more transparent process, but the legislation also forces the FAA to acknowledge that pilots are only human and not machines like those we fly.
In 2018, NJASAP secured a mandate to convene an FAA Aviation Rule Making Committee (ARC) to study and to revise the 60-year-old flight and duty rest rules that shaped the Part 135 pilot’s workday. And we continued to build on the success of this major victory by securing an end to Part 91 tail-end ferries and closing the loopholes impeding prospective rest in the 2024 reauthorization bill.
The NJASAP Government Affairs Committee (GAC) has long sought bipartisan support for its legislative initiatives, working with lawmakers keen to improve and to protect the aviation industry and organized labor regardless of their political affiliation. Early last year, NJASAP was invited to speak with Rep. Hakeem Jefferies (D-NY) on Capitol Hill as well as to attend a fundraiser for Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-NY) at Mar-a-Lago. Both invitations speak volumes to the respect lawmakers have for NJASAP.
On April 18, NJASAP representatives talked with Rep. Jefferies on Capitol Hill to share the Union’s legislative concerns. Any chance to sit down and chat with the House Minority Leader and Leader of the House Democratic Caucus should be considered a success.
NJASAP attended a fundraiser for Rep. Nicole Malliotakis in Palm Beach, Florida on April 26. The invitation was notable as we were one of only two aviation labor advocates in attendance.
Cultivating and strengthening relationships with members of Congress will continue to be a priority for the GAC, a strategy that continues to give NJASAP a seat at the table again and again.
The Association’s efforts are supported by the NJASAP PAC. As the Association’s legislative voice, the PAC has proved essential to educating policymakers and to supporting pilot-labor-friendly Congressional candidates and lawmakers. Currently, more than 70% of the NJASAP Membership supports the PAC, contributing approximately $450,000 to the committee per annum.
The 1.2 million men and women employed within or in support of business aviation are often overlooked by the misguided political rhetoric surrounding this vital sector of the nation’s aviation industry. Consider this: General aviation aircraft, including those flown by NetJets pilots, are largely manufactured or assembled here in the United States where they are flown by U.S. pilots and serviced by U.S.-based maintenance crews at airports across the nation. What’s more, private aviation contributes more than $150 billion to the U.S. economy each and every year. It is because our industry has been singled out for undue focus and scrutiny that NJASAP seeks to change the way politicians, pundits and the general public view business aviation.
NJASAP Industry Affairs representatives devote much of their time to advocating against policies that would curtail investment in jet aircraft, such as extended depreciation schedules and the application of additional taxes on owners like per-segment user fees.
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