GBTA Members Take to Capitol Hill to Advocate for Business Travel Priorities

Top Officials Discuss ATC Reform, Biometric Exit and FAA Reauthorization

Alexandria, VA (April 27, 2017) – The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA), the voice of the global business travel industry, hosted its 15th annual Legislative Summit this week. Over 110 GBTA members representing 26 states attended, calling on lawmakers to prohibit the use of voice calls on planes and ensure the Passenger Security Fee goes toward new technologies and trusted traveler programs rather than being diverted to pay down the deficit.

Top Issues GBTA Members Are Discussing With Congress:

· No Calls on Planes: GBTA continues to disapprove of allowing voice calls on planes as it is disruptive, a potential security threat and should be banned from the time the aircraft door is closed until the flight lands. GBTA believes Congress should enact legislation that sets policy for the Department of Transportation (DOT) and prohibits the use of voice calls on planes.

· Passenger Security Fees: GBTA believes that increasing the passenger security fee to offset the cost of other priorities unrelated to aviation security is bad policy. The answer lies in developing a more efficient risk-based screening system that fully ensures security while eliminating unnecessary travel hassles and expenses – not raising fees on travelers.

The Legislative Summit kicked off with a full day of discussions with top industry insiders, political strategists, administration officials and lawmakers on key travel issues including FAA Reauthorization, passenger rights, ATC reform, PFCs, biometric exit, TSA PreCheck and REAL ID.

Speakers included Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN); John Wagner, Customs and Border Protection; Holly Woodruff Lyons, House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure; Winsome Lenfert, FAA; Steve Yonkers, Department of Homeland Security; and Simone Davis, TSA.

Senator Klobuchar discussed the need for a long-term FAA bill as well as her hope that this Administration will continue to support travel and tourism as we have been doing for a long time.

“Given the importance of business travel as a critical economic driver, we need lawmakers to adopt policies that support our business travelers and help our industry grow,” said Michael W. McCormick, GBTA executive director and COO. “I’m pleased to see so many of our members flying in to D.C. to advocate for our industry and share their stories with their elected representatives.”

Through the GBTA Legislative Summit, business travel professionals from across the country have an opportunity to advocate for the future of the business travel industry and meet with lawmakers to share their opinions on key industry issues. The two-day event included nearly than 120 visits with Senators and Members of Congress.

For more information, visit the GBTA Blog for recap posts on each speaker and the GBTA Facebook page for video interviews.

CONTACT: Colleen Lerro Gallagher, +1 703-236-1133, cgallagher@gbta.org

About the Global Business Travel Association
The Global Business Travel Association (GBTA) is the world’s premier business travel and meetings trade organization headquartered in the Washington, D.C. area with operations on six continents. GBTA’s 9,000-plus members manage more than $345 billion of global business travel and meetings expenditures annually. GBTA and the GBTA Foundation deliver world-class education, events, research, advocacy and media to a growing global network of more than 28,000 travel professionals and 125,000 active contacts. To learn how business travel drives lasting business growth, gbta.org