Ben Siegel, CPA, C.M., executive director of the Lee County Port Authority (LCPA), was recently elected by Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) to a two-year term on the U.S. Policy Council.
The U.S. Policy Council is the policy making body for federal government programs, legislation and regulations affecting airport operators. The Council sets ACI-NA’s government relations activities to represent and advocate the interests of U.S. airports before Congress and the administration, particularly with the Department of Transportation, Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Homeland Security. Among the Council’s focus areas is securing adequate relief funding, which will be critical as airports work to keep infrastructure safe, operational and ready for the future.
Siegel is responsible for the administration, operations and development of Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW) and Page Field (FMY) in Fort Myers. He has been with the Lee County Port Authority since 1992 and is an experienced airport executive with an extensive background in business and finance. He is currently overseeing the construction completion of a new Airport Traffic Control Tower and a three-year $331-million Terminal Expansion Project at Southwest Florida International Airport. Siegel is a Certified Member of the American Association of Airport Executives, as well as a member of the Florida Airports Council, Airports Council International-North America, Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. He holds a Bachelor of Science in business administration from the University of South Florida and is a Certified Public Accountant.
ACI-NA represents local, regional and state governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports in the United States and Canada. ACI-NA member airports enplane more than 95 percent of the domestic and virtually all the international airline passenger and cargo traffic in North America. For more information, please visit airportscouncil.org.
Southwest Florida International Airport served nearly 6 million passengers in 2020 and is one of the top 50 U.S. airports for passenger traffic. Page Field provides services to business and private aviators and accommodated more than 126,000 aircraft operations in 2020. No ad valorem (property) taxes are used for airport operations or construction. For more information, please visit flylcpa.com.
