Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy Road Trip Series Receives Corporate Sponsorships

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's family filmed a five-part reality series about road trips that will air on YouTube in June. The series was produced over eight separate trips between September and April. , a nonprofit organization, sold sponsorships at four levels.

Platinum sponsors paid $1 million, gold sponsors paid $500,000, silver sponsors paid $250,000, and bronze sponsors paid $100,000.

Toyota each contributed $1 million to the project, according to The Wall Street Journal. The road trip website lists Shell as a sponsor, but the company declined to confirm its contribution amount. Google, Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, and CRH also declined to confirm their contribution amounts.

The Electronic Payments Coalition confirmed it was a sponsor but did not disclose the amount. The American Bus Association stated it was a bronze-level sponsor and contributed $100,000. Several other organizations listed at the bronze level told Forbes they provided only in-kind support rather than cash.

Transportation stated that Duffy and his family did not receive salary or royalties from the project. The agency said officials reviewed and approved Duffy's participation according to federal rules. Donald Sherman, president and CEO of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, said the project mixed official and personal travel.

His organization filed a complaint with the Department of Transportation inspector general last week. Sherman noted that several sponsors including Boeing, Toyota, and Shell have spent millions lobbying the federal government in 2026. 2 million on lobbying through May.