
As the leading advocate for the
travel industry, ASTA’s Government Affairs department has
enjoyed a successful year defending the rights of travel agents and the
traveling public on Capitol Hill and in state legislatures. Representing
the One Voice of all members, ASTA’s Government Affairs
division has used that One Voice judiciously to advance the cause of the
entire industry.
Below you will find a remarkable list of ASTA’s advocacy in action.
ASTA
ADVOCACY ACHIEVEMENTS AND ACTIVITIES
ONE VOICE 2005
Legislative Accomplishment
• Passed legislation preventing the issuance of costly rules
requiring written consent before sending commercial faxes.
Legislative Priorities
• Permanently extend to consumers the “right to alternate
carriage” in the event a bankrupt airline ceases service.
• Shift the jurisdiction over travel agencies from
the Department of Transportation to the Federal Trade Commission exclusively.
• Seek financial relief legislation for travel and tourism
entities impacted by Hurricane Katrina.
Testimony before Congressional
Committees
• Impact Hurricane Katrina had on small businesses
and the travel and tourism industry in the Gulf Coast region.
• Effects of the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative
requiring U.S. citizens to have passports for exit and entry in the United
States and its impact on the travel and tourism industry.
• Barriers to service-disabled veteran-owned travel agencies
gaining access to federal travel procurement contracts.
ASTA Federal Achievements
• Established ASTA as a contributing stakeholder in the
Department of Homeland Security’s Secure Flight program.
• Defeated proposed DOT rules that would have interfered
with travel agent advertising of service fees and prevented collection
of some kinds of fees altogether.
• Supported SBA effort to change travel agencies size standard
from revenue to employee based classification.
• Created the Travel Agents’ Guide to Airline Bankruptcies.
ASTA Federal Filings
• Departments of Homeland Security/State: Documents Required
for Travel Within the Western Hemisphere
• Department of Transportation: Nondiscrimination on the
Basis of Disability in Air Travel.
• Department of Transportation: Disclosure of Code Sharing.
• Federal Trade Commission: CAN-SPAM regulations.
• Small Business Administration: Size Standards.
ASTA’s State Government
Achievements
• Averted the adoption of hotel occupancy tax measures
on travel intermediaries in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and the city
of Millbrae, Calif.
• Postponed harmful “Sellers of Travel” legislation
in Pennsylvania.
ASTA’s Voice at
ARC
• Successfully negotiated rules on voiding tickets,
leading to better exchange rules.
• Delayed the elimination of agency coupons, which
led ARC to produce enhancements to the document retrieval service.
ASTA’s Political
Action Committee
• Out-paced other travel related industry PAC’s - reached
contribution levels not achieved in more than a decade.
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