Majority of U.S. House Members Now Belong to GA Caucus

September 20, 2013 - Congressmen Sam Graves (R-MO) and John Barrow (D-GA), co-chairs of the House General Aviation Caucus, announced today that more than half of House representatives have joined the caucus.

For the first time since its creation, the GA Caucus - established to educate House members about the importance of GA to America's transportation network and economy - is larger than the 218-member "magic number" needed to pass legislation.

"Crossing the 218 mark is a great victory for general aviation," said Rep. Graves. "Education is key to our efforts to highlight the everyday concerns of America's pilots, so having the majority of the House participating in the caucus is important."

Calling the 218-member threshold "an important milestone for the industry," Rep. Barrow noted that "The GA Caucus is the largest, most bipartisan caucus in Congress, and I'm honored to join with my colleagues to continue to advocate for this industry."

Doug Macnair, EAA vice president of government relations, commented, "EAA is very pleased that GA has such strong support and interest on the Hill. Protecting GA is in the best interest of America - from both economic and personal freedom vantage points.

"It is heartening to see that a majority of the House understands this and is willing to take an interest in growing GA and preserving the right to fly."