USTOA Advocates for Key Industry Issues on Capitol Hill

In mid-June, the United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) led a group of Active Member tour operators and Associate Members to Washington, D.C. to advocate for tourism industry issues including sustainability, passport and visa application processing delays, promoting U.S. tourism, Real ID and more. More than 40 attendees from around the country met with officials on Capitol Hill including various Congressional delegations, members of Congress and industry representatives.  

This marks USTOA’s 12^th annual Congressional Caucus, which has always proven to be a highly productive gathering to drive home the value of the travel and tourism industry. Advocacy remains a major pillar of USTOA and is especially critical in guiding our country to a sustainable and responsible travel and tourism future.

The Caucus commenced with updates with Marc Lerro, program analyst for the TSA, Department of Homeland Security, followed by Alex Lasry, deputy assistant secretary for Travel and Tourism, Department of Commerce.  Charged with implementing the Biden Administration’s National Travel and Tourism Strategy, Lasry emphasized the vital economic importance inbound tourism plays to the economy, as the U.S. prepares to host international sporting events in the coming years.

Andrew Newhart, vice president of Government Relations for U.S. Travel, spoke to the group about the impact of visa wait times on inbound tourism as well as sustainability advocacy efforts. Other speakers included attorneys from the U.S. Department of Transportation; Jessica Klement, vice president, Advocacy for the American Society of Travel Advisors, and Lena McDowall, deputy director, Management and Administration, National Park Service. Prior to lunch, the session concluded with remarks from Representative Mike Collins (R-GA-10).

Throughout the afternoon, teams of USTOA members visited the Capitol for meetings with leading members of Congress to discuss core issues. Sustainability, promoting U.S. tourism, passport application processing delays, the visa processing backlog and visa waiver program, national parks funding, travel infrastructure, aviation consumer protections and Real ID were among the topics discussed.

I am extremely grateful to our USTOA members who participated and appreciative of the time each speaker and member of Congress spent with the USTOA teams. Special thanks to the sponsors of the USTOA Congressional Caucus for their support including the Sri Lanka Tourism Promotion Board, which welcomed delegates for a lively dinner at the Sri Lanka Embassy; Museum of the Bible, host of the morning sessions on; Crum & Foster and CCRA Travel Commerce Network.