Working with the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) and the U.S. Travel Association (USTA), the AzLTA informs and advocates at the Federal level in support of strengthening the business operating environment for hotels and resorts, travel, tourism, professional sports and small businesses that support the industry.

Partners:

• American Hotel & Lodging Association
• U.S. Travel Association
• Find your Member of Congress
• Join AzLTA’s advocacy efforts by supporting our Mega PAC 

Stop Drive-by Lawsuits: Establish a “notice and cure” period within Federal ADA Law
The AzLTA joins AHLA and our state partner associations in strongly supporting the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and we are committed to ensuring that individuals with disabilities are provided unfettered access to our properties. The intent of the ADA is to prohibit discrimination and ensure all Americans have equal access to public accommodations.

Unfortunately, the law has been used as a weapon by scheming lawyers seeking to extort easy settlements from small business owners through demands for exorbitant attorney’s fees after alleging ambiguous violations of the law.  The lodging industry supports the ADA Education and Reform Act (H.R. 620 and S.3446) that would provide hoteliers a defined period of time to address a violation to ADA before a lawsuit can move forward.

Defining a Joint Employer
The AzLTA joins AHLA and our state partner associations in support of the bipartisan legislation introduced in the form of the Save Local Business Act (H.R. 3441). It is vital to restore the original intention of the joint employer standard – ensuring the standard is invoked only when an employer has “direct, actual, and immediate” control over primary employment practices, such as hiring/firing, pay-setting and routine employee supervision.

In September 2017, the House of Representatives passed its FY’18 Omnibus Appropriations Bill entitled, the “Make America Secure and Prosperous Appropriations Act of 2018”, which included a policy rider that prohibits funds from being used to enforce the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) Browning-Ferris Industries (BFI) decision which significantly and dangerously expanded joint employer liability under federal law. Our partners at AHLA, in conjunction with the Coalition to Save Local Businesses (CSLB), worked to secure this policy rider and will continue to press for its inclusion during end of the year spending negotiations.

Stop Online Booking Scams
Transparency and guest satisfaction are at the core of the hotel industry’s business model. Making sure guests have all the necessary information prior to booking their room is paramount. AzLTA joins AHLA and our state partner associations in support of the Stop Online Booking Scams Act, introduced in the House as H.R.2495 and in the Senate as S.1164.  Both pieces of legislation would effectively combat these deceptive practices, ensure more transparency in the booking process, and hold unscrupulous actors accountable. We encourage Congress, Federal Trade Commission (FTC), state Attorneys General and consumer groups to actively engage in protecting consumers from misleading and deceptive marketing.

To avoid potential booking scams, it’s always safest to book direct with the hotel.

FAIR Fees -Unintended Consequences
The AzLTA has alerted Arizona’s congressional delegation of strong concern about the unintended consequences of the so-called FAIR Fees language the Commerce Committee adopted during consideration of the Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2017 (S. 1405). The FAIR Fees provision stands to produce irreparable harm to Arizona’s vital travel and tourism industry by driving up air fares and reducing air service.

Air service is vital in driving economic development and tourism to our state, especially at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport. We support carriers’ ability to provide robust air service to all tourists, businesses, and visitors who want to visit Arizona. Yet, the FAIR Fees provision will regulate the business model of airlines creating a one-size fits all approach to consumer choice in air travel that will impact the most price-sensitive travelers. This will only have a negative impact on enhancing air service to our world-class Arizona destinations by driving up air fares and reducing service offerings.

Additionally, from a business perspective, we are concerned about the dangerous precedent the FAIR Fees provision will establish by giving the federal government the ability to set price controls on a private industry. It is a commonsense principle that if Congress mandates what are reasonable and proportional prices that private businesses charge for services, there will be unintended and potentially economic consequences impacting consumers and our local economy. The FAIR Fees provision creates a slippery slope for government intervention beyond re-regulating the airline industry.

Please visit AHLA or USTA to learn more about additional industry advocacy efforts.

For all public affairs and media requests please contact:
[email protected]