State & Local Policy Center

Region: Connecticut, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island

Specialty: Franchising, Mandatory Fee Disclosures, Extended Stay 

Location: Warwick, New Jersey

Contact: sbratko@ahla.com

Sarah Bratko serves as the Vice President & Policy Counsel, State & Government Affairs at AHLA. In this capacity, Sarah is the primary liaison with state policymakers, Governors, and other government officials in the Northeast and works to advance policies that benefit the hotel and lodging industry and its employees. She also provides policy support and guidance for the rest of the AHLA State & Local team.

Her issue specialties are franchising, mandatory fee disclosures, and extended stay policies. Sarah serves as the state and local government affairs advisor for the AHLA General Counsel Committee and the Extended Stay Committee. She also manages the American Hospitality Alliance, an organization focused on providing support to state lodging associations. 

Prior to joining AHLA, Sarah spent eight years at the RI Hospitality Association, where she managed the Association’s advocacy and legal departments. During her tenure, she successfully worked on legislation creating tax parity for short-term rentals, the first in the nation “Be Kind” bill, which gave hotels the authority to evict verbally abusive guests, and legislation that permitted restaurants to sell alcohol-to-go. Before joining RIHA, Sarah managed the operations for a state-wide political campaign and worked in the RI House of Representatives Policy office. 

Raised in Massachusetts, Sarah received her BA in Political Science and History from the University of Vermont and her JD from Roger Williams University School of Law. Sarah lives in Rhode Island with her husband. 

Region: Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, and Washington

Specialty: Labor

Location: Los Angeles, California

Contact: yestrada@ahla.com 

Yvette Estrada serves as Senior Director, State & Local Government Affairs at AHLA. In this capacity, Yvette leads AHLA’s advocacy efforts across the Western region, serving as the primary liaison to policymakers, state officials, and local government leaders in Alaska, California, Hawai‘i, Nevada, and Washington. She works to advance policies that support the hotel and lodging industry, with a particular focus on navigating complex state and city regulatory environments in markets like Los Angeles.

Before joining AHLA, Yvette led multi-state and local government affairs for NBCUniversal, where she managed legislative strategy and stakeholder engagement across key West Coast jurisdictions. Prior to that, she served as District Chief of Staff to U.S. Representative Linda Sánchez (D‑CA), overseeing district operations and guiding policy initiatives on behalf of constituents in Southern California.

A Los Angeles native, Yvette holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Irvine, and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Southern California. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband and their two sons.

Region: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, West Virginia

Specialty: Short-Term Rentals

Location: Atlanta, Georgia

Contact: jjarrard@ahla.com

John Jarrard is the Sr. Director of State & Local Government Affairs with AHLA. He represents 6 states in the Southeast, which include Georgia, Florida, Tennessee, the Carolinas, and Alabama. Before joining AHLA in 2021, John was the Manager of Government Affairs with The Hudson Group, one of the top government strategies firms in the state of Georgia. John is a graduate of the University of Georgia and currently resides in Atlanta.

   Region: Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Minnesota, Michigan, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming 

   Specialty: Sustainability/Environmental Issues 

   Location: Denver, Colorado

   Contact: mmitton@ahla.com

Melissa Mitton serves as Sr. Director, State & Local Government Affairs at AHLA. In this capacity, Melissa is the primary liaison with state policymakers, Governors, and other government officials in eight western states and works to advance policies that benefit the hotel and lodging industry and its employees. Her issue specialty is environmental policy, including incentive programs and policies that impact a hotel’s energy use, water conservation, sourcing, and waste reduction programs. Melissa serves as state and local government affairs advisor to the AHLA Sustainability Committee and the AHLA Risk Management Committee.

Before joining AHLA, Melissa led western state government affairs for Western Governors University. Before WGU, Melissa worked in federal government relations and public relations for the Association of American Universities in Washington, D.C., focusing primarily on student financial aid and student affairs issues.

Melissa is a Florida native who began her career in state government relations in Tallahassee, first working for a state Senator and later at the Associated Industries of Florida. Melissa has an undergraduate degree from Florida State University and a master's degree from Nova Southeastern University. Melissa lives in Denver with her husband. 

Region: Delaware, District of Columbia, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania West Virginia, Vermont, and Virginia

Location: Washington, DC

Contact: bcastillo@ahla.com 

Bianca Castillo serves as Manager, State & Local Government Affairs at AHLA. In this role, Bianca works internally on AHLA’s state and local advocacy efforts that benefit the hotel and lodging industry and its employees. She collaborates with AHLA’s political affairs team and supports grassroots advocacy efforts through HotelsACT and manages social media platforms to connect with advocates for AHLA’s issue advocacy campaigns. Bianca also works broadly with AHLA’s government affairs team by providing logistical coordination for multiple critical meetings and events. Bianca serves as committee support to the AHLA Labor Relations Committee and the AHLA General Counsels Committee.  

Bianca holds a BA in Social Relations and Policy from James Madison College at Michigan State University. She is a Michigan native and now resides in Washington, D.C.