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DeFazio currently serves as chair of the U.S. House\nCommittee on Transportation & Infrastructure (T&I) and has served on\nthat committee since his election to represent Oregon\u2019s fourth congressional\ndistrict in 1987. He announced in December 2021 his intention to retire from\nCongress at the end of his current term, having served 36 years, as the\nlongest-serving House member from Oregon.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur country has benefitted enormously from Chairman\nDeFazio\u2019s decades of service to his constituents and his passionate commitment\nto representing the interests of the American people,\u201d said NBAA President and\nCEO Ed Bolen. \u201cHe has always understood the importance of preserving America\u2019s\nleadership in aviation, and the essential role that general aviation plays in\nour nation\u2019s economy and transportation system.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DeFazio was among the original members of the House General\nAviation Caucus, a group formed with NBAA\u2019s support in 2009. Throughout his\ntime in Congress, he has been a key figure in Federal Aviation Administration\n(FAA) reauthorization policymaking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He has been a steadfast proponent of keeping the nation\u2019s\nairways accessible to all Americans. He expressed his staunch support for maintaining\ngovernment oversight of ATC in a 2016 \u201cCapital View\u201d column for NBAA\u2019s Business\nAviation Insider magazine, in which he pledged to \u201ccontinue to fight to\npreserve Americans\u2019 right to use the airspace that belongs to all of us, not\nspecial interests.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most recently, DeFazio led congressional inquiries into\naviation safety, which resulted in the 2020 passage of the bipartisan Aircraft\nCertification, Safety and Accountability Act.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The NBAA American Spirit Award is presented in recognition\nof an individual who exemplifies the courage, pursuit of excellence and service\nto others that characterizes the men and women who created and nurtured the\nAmerican aviation community. Past recipients have included retired FAA\nAdministrator Steve Dickson, former Rep. John Mica (R-7-FL), record-setting\npilot Barrington Irving and \u201cMiracle on the Hudson\u201d pilot Capt. \u201cSully\u201d\nSullenberger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n