Regional Affairs

AOPA builds relationships at Texas state capitol

As part of AOPA's effort to build support for general aviation at the state level, Joey Colleran, AOPA manager of state and local affairs, and AOPA Southwest Regional Representative Shelly Lesikar deZevallos teamed up to meet with Texas legislators this week. And it paid off. Sen. John Carona, chairman of the Texas Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee, turned to AOPA for accurate information on GA security. Laying the groundwork for future initiatives, Colleran and deZevallos met with all of the members, or their staff, of the Senate and House transportation committees. They also met with AOPA members Rep. Gary Elkins and Sen. Kel Seliger. AOPA used the opportunity to pay tribute to retiring former Speaker James E. "Pete" Laney, the 2001 recipient of AOPA's prestigious Hartranft award, for his 34 years of service to the state and general aviation. Laney was a strong advocate for bringing a replacement airport to central Texas for Robert Mueller Field.

March 2, 2007