Senate

Senate Democrats call for investigation into FAA chief stock divestiture

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by Ryan Mancini - 04/23/26 8:45 PM ET

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by Ryan Mancini - 04/23/26 8:45 PM ET

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Senate Democrats on Thursday called on a federal watchdog to investigate Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Bryan Bedford’s stock divestment, accusing him of making profits that “violated his ethics agreement.”

Sens. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) and Ed Markey (D-Mass.) called on Department of Transportation Deputy Inspector General Mitch Behm to look into evidence that indicates Bedford waited to “divest his stock in Republic Airways, Inc. until after the company completed a significant merger –– likely materially increasing Mr. Bedford’s payout.”

Bedford failed to meet an early October deadline to dispose of his equity from Republic Airways within 90 days of being confirmed as the FAA’s chief. He told senators previously that he held 16,733 shares in Republic. This sparked some concern among several senators about potential conflicts of interest.

“The reason for this divestiture obligation is obvious: As the FAA Administrator, Mr. Bedford wields significant authority and influence over the regional airline industry and could take official actions to benefit Republic and thus himself,” the senators wrote in their letter to Behm. “During his nomination hearing, Mr. Bedford reaffirmed in his testimony that he would comply with this divestiture obligation, testifying: ‘I will fully comply with all applicable ethics laws and obligations.'”

“But Mr. Bedford failed to do so,” the senators continued.

The Hill reached out to the FAA for comment.

Bedford completed his divestiture in February. He reported holding stock in Republic worth between $6 million and $30 million, Reuters reported. A recent financial disclosure report obtained by the senators showed that Bedford sold his Republic stock for more than $25 million after the company’s merger with Mesa Air Group in November.

The senators added that the Office of Government Ethics notified senators in December accusing Bedford of violating his ethics agreement. Bedford told senators during a hearing that same month that he would recuse himself from issues related to Republic’s financial issues.

Bedford said in December that he followed the advice from career ethics officials and that he “played it right down the fair way, completely transparent, open, honest about where I was at, what I was trying to accomplish,” Politico reported.

The senators accused Bedford of having a “disregard for his ethical commitments, inconsistent explanations for his actions, and lack of transparency in this matter present serious ethical concerns and further questions that demand full and frank answers.”

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