At Elite Chauffeured Services, Inc., we have always believed that great transportation is about more than moving people from one place to another. It is about shaping the environment in which transportation businesses operate, and that means showing up not just on the road, but in the halls of Congress. That conviction brought us to the Transportation Alliance (TTA) Legislative Fly-In, one of the most important annual events in the private for-hire transportation industry. Here is a firsthand account of what the Fly-In is, why it matters, and what we took away from our time on Capitol Hill.
What Is the TTA Legislative Fly-In?
The Transportation Alliance Legislative Fly-In is an annual advocacy event organized by The Transportation Alliance (TTA), the national trade association representing the private for-hire passenger ground transportation industry. Each year, TTA brings together operator members from across the country to Washington, D.C., to meet directly with their U.S. Representatives and Senators and discuss the critical legislative and regulatory issues that shape how transportation businesses operate, compete, and grow.
Unlike a typical conference or trade show, the Fly-In is purpose-built for advocacy. TTA’s legislative team sets up appointments with Congressional offices in advance, provides comprehensive issue briefings, and prepares detailed issue papers that participants can bring directly into meetings with lawmakers and their staff. In short, TTA does the groundwork so that operators like us can walk into a Senator’s office and make a credible, informed case on behalf of the industry.
The 2026 Fly-In is scheduled for May 5–6 at the Hilton Washington, DC Capitol Hill, with Hill visits taking place on May 6. The agenda includes legislative briefings and a kickoff session on Day 1, followed by a welcome briefing, speaker presentations, and the all-important Hill visits on Day 2. A post-Fly-In debrief rounds out the event, giving attendees a chance to compare notes and strategize about follow-up outreach.
Why We Decided to Participate
As a Washington, DC-based luxury ground transportation company, we operate at the intersection of policy and business every single day. The regulatory environment in the DMV, covering everything from licensing and background checks to vehicle standards and government contracting, has a direct and immediate effect on how we serve our clients. When laws change, our operations change. When Congress debates transportation policy, our future is on the table.
We joined the TTA because we recognized that the best way to protect our clients, our team, and our business was not to wait for policy to happen to us, but to be part of shaping it. The Legislative Fly-In was the natural extension of that commitment. The 2025 Fly-In, held in April, set a record with 38 attendees, and TTA reported record event sponsorships as well as a clear signal that the industry is increasingly mobilizing around advocacy. We wanted to be part of that momentum heading into 2026.
The Issues That Brought Us to Capitol Hill
The TTA Legislative Fly-In is not a general networking event. Every meeting on the Hill is focused on specific, actionable policy positions that TTA has developed on behalf of its membership. Going into this year’s Fly-In, several issues stood at the center of our conversations with lawmakers.
Non-Emergency Medical Transportation (NEMT) and Medicaid Protections
One of TTA’s most urgent legislative priorities is protecting Non-Emergency Medical Transportation services under Medicaid. Millions of Americans, including elderly patients, people with disabilities, and low-income individuals, rely on NEMT to get to medical appointments, dialysis centers, and other critical healthcare services. TTA has been urging Congress to pass legislation ensuring that NEMT services remain protected under Medicaid, pushing back against proposals that could strip these protections and leave vulnerable populations without access to care.
TTA took this advocacy to the next level in 2026 by forming the National Medicaid Mobility Alliance, which gathered over 200 signatures, including 19 elected officials from individuals and organizations across more than 40 states. The letter delivered to Congressional leadership underscored the essential role NEMT plays in the nation’s healthcare ecosystem. For transportation operators who serve NEMT clients, this is not just a policy debate it is the lifeline of their business.
Background Check and Drug Testing Standards
The safety of passengers is, and must remain, non-negotiable. TTA has long advocated for legislation requiring that anyone awarded a grant or contract to provide for-hire transportation services, particularly when paid for in whole or in part with federal funds, must pass both a fingerprint-based background check and a drug and alcohol test. This standard, which professional chauffeured transportation companies like ours already meet, is not universally applied across all transportation providers. TTA’s position is clear: if you receive federal money to move passengers, you must meet federal safety standards. We went to the Hill to make that case directly.
The GSA Fleet Vehicle Program
One of the more practical and immediately impactful issues on TTA’s legislative agenda involves the General Services Administration’s (GSA) Fleet Vehicle Program. TTA has been urging Congress to create a new three-year pilot program that would allow the GSA to sell used vehicles from the federal government’s fleet to private transportation operators at the same cost arrangement that currently exists for state and local governments. For small and mid-sized transportation businesses operating in an inflationary vehicle market, access to quality used fleet vehicles at cost would be a significant competitive equalizer. This common-sense proposal has broad potential to strengthen the economic foundation of operators across the country.
Independent Contractor Classification
Perhaps no regulatory issue has created more anxiety across the for-hire transportation industry in recent years than the debate over independent contractor classification. Federal and state efforts to reclassify independent contractors as employees with significant implications for benefits, payroll taxes, and operational flexibility have posed a direct threat to the business models of countless transportation operators. TTA has been engaged in this fight at both the federal and state levels, and the Legislative Fly-In provided an opportunity to reinforce to lawmakers the importance of preserving flexible work arrangements that allow both operators and drivers to thrive.
Microtransit and Government Contracting
TTA has also been pushing for legislation requiring that local, state, and federal government entities contract microtransit services out to local for-hire transportation providers rather than allowing publicly subsidized systems to crowd out private operators. As cities and counties increasingly explore microtransit as a mobility solution, private transportation businesses must have a fair opportunity to compete for and win those contracts. This is an equity issue as much as an economic one, and it was a consistent theme in our conversations on the Hill.
What a Day on the Hill Actually Looks Like
For those who have never participated in a Legislative Fly-In, the experience can be both exhilarating and unexpectedly accessible. The day begins with a welcome briefing, where TTA’s legislative team provides a final update on the issues and any recent developments in Congress. Issue papers are distributed clear, concise one-pagers that summarize TTA’s position on each priority and provide the data and arguments needed to support a productive conversation with a lawmaker.
Then come the meetings. In small groups, TTA members are escorted to Congressional offices across the House and Senate side of the Capitol complex. Some meetings are with members of Congress themselves; more often, they are with legislative staff who specialize in transportation, health, or labor policy. Both are valuable. Congressional staff is often the true architects of legislative language, and building a relationship with a transportation staffer in a key office can have a lasting impact.
The conversations are straightforward
We introduced ourselves, explained our business, and walked through TTA’s positions on each issue, using the issue papers as a guide. We were not lobbyists in suits; we were business owners and operators who could speak from direct, on-the-ground experience about how proposed policies would affect real companies, real employees, and real passengers. That authenticity matters, and it was evident in how lawmakers and their staff engaged with us.
Recognizing Leadership in Action
One of the highlights of the TTA Legislative Fly-In is the Advocate of the Year Award, presented annually to a TTA member who has gone above and beyond in advancing the policy goals of the transportation industry. The award recognizes exceptional leadership, commitment, and effectiveness in public policy advocacy on behalf of the for-hire transportation sector.
The 2025 Advocate of the Year was Chase Lafferty of H&M Transport in Manassas, Virginia, a fitting recognition given the proximity to Washington and the critical role Northern Virginia operators play in shaping regional transportation policy. The award serves as a powerful reminder that advocacy is not just the work of trade associations and lobbyists. It is the work of individual operators who choose to show up, speak up, and stand for their industry.
What We Learned and What Comes Next
The TTA Legislative Fly-In reinforced several lessons that we will carry forward as we continue to engage with the policy process.
First, proximity matters. As a Washington, DC-based company, we operate in the shadow of the Capitol every day. Our clients include members of Congress, senior government officials, foreign dignitaries, and corporate leaders whose lives and work are shaped by the very legislative decisions being made a few miles from our dispatch center. Being present in that process, having a voice in those conversations, is not a luxury. It is a responsibility.
Second, the industry is evolving, and policy must evolve with it. TTA’s 2025 member survey found that operators no longer work within narrow silos. Members increasingly provide multiple service lines, from executive transportation to NEMT to group travel, and policy frameworks must reflect that diversity. The Fly-In gave us a platform to communicate that complexity directly to legislators.
Third, collective advocacy works. No single company, regardless of its reputation or resources, can move policy alone. The Transportation Alliance’s model, bringing operators together, coordinating appointments, providing shared issue materials, and following up with elected officials, is precisely the approach needed to make the private transportation industry’s voice heard in an environment crowded with competing interests.
We left the Hill with confirmed follow-up commitments from several Congressional offices, new relationships with fellow operators from across the country, and a renewed sense of purpose about our role in the broader transportation ecosystem.
The 2026 TTA Legislative Fly-In
The 2026 TTA Legislative Fly-In is scheduled for May 5–6, 2026, at the Hilton Washington, DC, Capitol Hill. Registration is open, and TTA’s legislative team is standing by to set up Congressional appointments for every registered participant.
If you are a transportation operator, whether you run a single luxury sedan or a fleet of fifty vehicles, your voice deserves to be heard on Capitol Hill. The decisions being made right now about NEMT funding, background check standards, fleet procurement, and independent contractor classification will shape your business for years to come. The TTA Legislative Fly-In is your seat at that table.
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