Business Travel Promotion
The economic stimulus bill (H.R. 1) that President Obama signed in March 2009 is a positive step to help our economy recover and the U.S. lodging industry supported its enactment.
However, it was disappointing to see the lack of any initiatives within the bill that would specifically stimulate travel and tourism to or within the United States. Travel and tourism is our nation’s largest services export industry, the third largest retail industry, and one of America’s largest employers.
To add to the burden, the Treasury Department’s efforts in early February 2009 to restrict corporations that receive emergency government money from using it for their meetings and incentive travel programs, as well as the President’s comments about travel to Las Vegas, Nevada, are proving to be very detrimental to our industry’s vitality. Over 200,000 travel-related jobs were lost last year and a similar number of losses are predicted in 2009.
If the Administration is planning to add jobs to our economy, this is the wrong approach. The hotel industry generates $116 billion in tax revenue each year, as well as provides directly 1.8 million workers with good jobs, and helps support an additional 7.5 million employees in related travel industries. So, good news for the American lodging industry is good news for our nation's economy. Here's how we're strongly communicating our message to the Administration and Congress on behalf of the industry.
On April 24, AH&LA delivered a letter to President Barack Obama in response to his Administration’s announcement that the Veterans Administration is reducing its business travel expenditures to find budget savings. This move, in response to the Obama Administration’s pledge to find $100 million in savings over the next 90 days, sets a bad precedent that will affect the lodging industry and our national economic recovery, as well as impede government operations.
On December 1, AH&LA sent a letter to President Obama detailing several recommendations for the December 3 White House Jobs Summit. AH&LA's ideas include restoring the tax deductions for spousal expenses for business travel and business meals, as well as passage of the Travel Promotion Act. These three ideas quickly implemented into law and policy will create thousands of new industry jobs and deliver more tax money into government coffers.
On February 3, 2010, AH&LA delivered a letter to President Obama in response to his comments made at a Feb. 2 Nashua, N.H. town hall meeting about Las Vegas, Nev. AH&LA is hoping that this letter will remind the President of his responsibilities to protecting the reputation of the U.S. travel industry and Nevada's weakened tourism industry.
On Friday, February 27, AH&LA President Joe McInerney issued a personal response statement in his blog and via national press release to House Financial Services Committee Chairman Rep. Barney Frank’s call for corporations to return taxpayer dollars spent on promotional events and business lodging, and Sen. John Kerry’s legislative proposal that would ban businesses receiving government money from hosting or sponsoring conferences or events.
At the March 16-17 LAS, industry members attending the annual summit personally delivered letters from AH&LA state industry members to the individual Congressional offices reminding lawmakers and their staffs of the size and contribution of our industry to each state's economy.
- AH&LA President and CEO Joe McInerney sent personal letters to Sen. John Kerry and Rep. Barney Frank on March 4 asking for a meeting with them in order to urge them to be supporters of the U.S. lodging industry, and to resist making statements that could be detrimental to the industry's economic stability.
- Submitted an official letter to the U.S. House of Representatives' Committee on Financial Services hearing on February 24 suggesting an extension of the “Term Asset-Backed Securities Lending Facility (TALF)” to commercial and multifamily real estate.
- Sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Geithner commending him on the recent announcement regarding the expansion of the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility (TALF) to include as eligible collateral newly issued AAA-rated commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS).
- Created the "Travel Addicts Support Group" Facebook fan page promoting the benefits and advantages of U.S. travel amongst consumers. Join to share your best stories, pictures, and inspirations to keep traveling.
On June 10, 2009, the U.S. Treasury Department informally released its proposed guidelines for recipients of TARP funds to use when planning their executive meetings. AH&LA is optimistic that these proposed regulations do not do any further harm to the industry. A 90-day public comment period on the new rules opened up when these rules were formally published in the Federal Register on June 15. Comments were due August 14, 2009.
Guidelines issued by AH&LA and other travel associations in early February are designed to help corporate meeting planners operating under emergency government TARP funds to plan their meetings and events responsibly.
The U.S. Travel Association convened a meeting with President Obama and industry leaders on March 11 to discuss the urgent need to pass the Travel Promotion Act and the need to maximize the benefits of business meeting and events, which included:
Roger Dow, President & CEO, U.S. Travel Association
Jonathan M. Tisch, Chairman and CEO, Loews Hotels;
Chairman Emeritus, U.S. Travel Association
Jim Abrahamson, President, the Americas, IHG
Jim Atchison, President and COO, Busch Entertainment Corp.
Jeff Clarke, CEO and President, Travelport
Howard Frank, Vice Chairman and COO, Carnival Corporation & plc
Barney Harford, President and CEO, Orbitz Worldwide
W. Stephen Maritz, Chairman and CEO, Maritz Holdings Inc.
Bill Marriott, Chairman and CEO, Marriott International, Inc.
Jay Rasulo, Chairman, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts
Colin Reed, Chairman and CEO, Gaylord Entertainment
Frits van Paasschen, President, CEO and Director, Starwood Hotels and Resorts
Tom Williams, Chairman and CEO, Universal Parks and Resorts
The 12 travel industry CEOS held a 20-minute White House meeting with President Obama on Wednesday. The discussions centered on our central concern about the damage happening to business-related travel because of ill-advised comments. The President was very receptive to what the CEOs were saying, and gave every indication that he will be an advocate for responsible business travel.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the next day (March 12) that, "The president believes it's important to have a strong tourism industry and that it's important that, as the president said earlier that we shouldn't retrench. He would encourage people to travel."
The U.S. Travel Association is hosting the first-ever U.S. Travel Rally Day during National Travel and Tourism Week. It's a bold and concerted effort on Tuesday, May 12, to represent how travel fuels jobs and economies. For more details, click here.
Two days after AH&LA and other industry leaders from key organizations issued guidelines for recipients of TARP funding, the Keep America Meeting online petition was born. Click here to learn more and sign onto the petition, helping to show your support for the importance of events in building business and strengthening the American economy.
CEOs of 10 major hotel companies signed and distributed this letter in the last week of February warning members of Congress that the number of Americans losing their job will increase if their undeserved rhetoric about corporate meetings and events is not toned down. It was also printed as an advertisement in major Capitol Hill newspapers.
Meeting Planners International (MPI) launched the online Meeting Industry Crisis Center on behalf of the global meetings industry to keep them connected to the latest information and resources to ensure that businesses and professionals survive and thrive. The site, updated constantly, monitors developments globally and provides information and solutions for planners.
A Web initiative called Meetings Mean Business, spearheaded by the U.S. Travel Association and in conjunction with other travel and meeting associations including AH&LA, provides a wealth of resources for educating Congress and the public about the importance of travel on the economy. Its advertising component began to reach millions of Americans with a positive message about business travel when the campaign launched in early March. Click here to see the campaign's signature ad.
On Thursday, March 26, Meetings Mean Business launched a new initiative called “Faces of Travel.” This initiative is designed to find the travel industry employee(s) who best embodies the character and hardworking spirit of the travel industry. The winner (or winners) will become the newest spokesperson for our industry, including interaction with the media and policymakers. For more information, including how to participate, visit www.meetingsmeanbusiness.com/facesoftravel.
The travel, tourism, and meeting planning communities are not sitting quietly on this issue. Here are some recent stories in the national media expressing our views on the current events:
- "Too much room at the Inn" - CNBC Squawk Box - April 6, 2009
- VIDEO: Jonathan Tisch of Loews Hotels and the U.S. Travel Association speak out on the trickle-down effect of meetings - TODAY Show, March 31, 2009
- "Travel industry says bailout rhetoric goes too far" - Boston Herald, March 18, 2009
- "White House Says It Encourages Business Travel" - Associated Press, March 12, 2009
- "Memo to Business: Let's Meet" - The Washington Post, March 12, 2009
- "Not every corporate trip is a boondoggle" - Fortune magazine, March 11, 2009
- "A Couple Million Jobs at Stake" - The Huffington Post, March 10, 2009
- "NBC Anchor Brian Williams Reverses on Spring Vacation. Why he's taking one and should you" - The Huffington Post, March 5, 2009
- "The Lodging Industry Fights Back" - Hotel Interactive, March 5, 2009
Click here to see additional news about this topic compiled on the U.S. Travel Association's Website.
Back to the Governmental Affairs homepage
Back to the AH&LA Press Room page