What is the ROTOR Act? House shuts down bill aimed at improving aviation safety

WASHINGTON – A bill that would require an updated safety system to be added to planes did not pass the House on Monday. 

The legislation was unanimously passed by the Senate in December, but failed the House by a vote of 264-133. Due to the fast-track mechanism that lawmakers were using, the bill required a two-thirds majority to go through. 

What we know:

The Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform Act was introduced by Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in July 2025, six months after the tragic Jan. 29 midair collision at Reagan National Airport. It was co-sponsored by Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.).

The ROTOR Act would require wider use of the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) technology — a safety system that improves tracking and collision avoidance. 

The act requires the implementation of the system in both military and civilian aircraft to “increase safety and efficiency benefits in the national airspace system.”

The legislation also closes a loophole that permits the Department of Defense to fly certain aircraft domestically without using the technology. 

Additionally, the bill enhances oversight of helicopter routes near commercial service airports, requires quarterly reports on compliance and studies potential safety improvements to the airspace around DCA.

Dig deeper:

ADS-B stands for Automatic Dependent Surveillance – Broadcast. 

Here’s a breakdown of the system from the Federal Aviation Administration. 

• Automatic because it periodically transmits information with no pilot or operator involvement required.
• Dependent because the position and velocity vectors are derived from the Global Positioning System (GPS) or other suitable Navigation Systems (i.e., FMS).
• Surveillance because it provides a method of determining three-dimensional position and identification of aircraft, vehicles, or other assets.
• Broadcast because it transmits the information available to anyone with the appropriate receiving equipment.

The FAA says ADS-B replaces radar technology with satellites. 

While radar relies on radio signals and antennas to determine an aircraft’s location, ADS-B uses satellite signals to track an aircraft, providing more accurate information and increasing safety. 

DoD pulls support:

The House vote came one day after the Pentagon abruptly withdrew its support for the bipartisan bill. 

The Department of Defense had previously shown support for the legislation, but in a statement released on Monday, the public affairs secretary for the DoD, Sean Parnell, said  “while we continue to support the intent and objectives of the legislation, the version passed by the Senate does not reflect several of the mutually discussed updates.

“As currently drafted, enactment would create significant unresolved budgetary burdens and operational security risks affecting national defense activities. The Department remains ready to continue productive dialogue with Congress to ensure the legislation achieves its safety goals while protecting essential operational capabilities and resources,” the statement went on to say. 

Cruz and Cantwell pushed back in a joint statement, saying that there are exceptions to the requirements for certain classified flights.  

Families respond:

The about-face from the Department of Defense and subsequent failure of the bill came as a disappointment to the families of those killed on Flight 5342 in January 2025. 

They released an official statement on Tuesday, expressing their upset, but saying they will not stop fighting for the measure to be passed. 

“We are devastated. Today, a majority of the House voted to pass the ROTOR Act. It was not enough. Under suspension of the rules, the bill fell one vote short of the two-thirds threshold — despite a unanimous Senate, the endorsement of the NTSB Chair, and the support of the pilots who fly these planes every day.

This bill was not defeated on its merits. It was defeated by eleventh hour objections built on misleading technical claims the NTSB’s own investigators have publicly refuted, and a last minute Pentagon reversal of its explicit December endorsement, timed so there was no opportunity to correct the record before the vote. The Department of War said in writing: “The Department supports this legislation.” We would like to know what changed, and who asked for it.

The same risk that killed 67 people thirteen months ago is still in the sky tonight. A majority of the House — and the will of the people — voted today to fix it. We call on House leadership to bring the ROTOR Act back for a vote that lets the majority pass it.

We are not done.”