Even though the balance of power remains the same in the wake of last week’s U.S. election — President Obama remains in office, Republicans retain the House and Democrats the Senate — the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) is predicting a number of significant developments in a number of areas important to the hotel industry.
Travel: President Obama has been a strong supporter of the travel sector, AH&LA noted. The bipartisan JOLT Act, which aims to bring more international travelers to the U.S., is another bright spot as Senator Schumer (D-New York) and Lee (R-Utah) lead the charge in the Senate. AH&LA said it will continue to support Brand USA and work on legislative goals through the Discover America Partnership to further the mission of increasing the U.S. share of international travelers.
Immigration: It is likely President Obama and the Senate Democratic leadership will pursue immigration reform legislation, AH&LA predicted. AH&LA said it will continue to press for comprehensive reform, including an adequate guest worker program.
Health care: The election all but guarantees that the Affordable Care Act will be around for some time, AH&LA said. AH&LA promised to continue to push for such reforms as repeal of the employer mandate, expanded tax credits, greater use of HSA and FSA accounts, allowing greater flexibility in counting hours of part-time or seasonal employees and allowing competitive health care plans inside and outside of exchanges.
Labor: President Obama’s re-election most likely means an increase in labor-promoting rules from the Department of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board, AH&LA predicted. AH&LA said it will continue to work with the Coalition for a Democratic Workplace and coalition partners to push back on the regulations, paying particular attention to the NLRB’s efforts to regulate non-union workplaces and weigh in on social media.
Energy and environment: The Obama administration is generally expected to move several “green” agenda items next year, AH&LA said, such as stronger action on global warming or greenhouse gas emissions controls, clean air regulations, increased review of hydraulic fracturing and restricting emissions from coal-burning power plants.
Regulations: Several regulatory items of interest for the lodging industry will likely be given renewed attention AH&LA said:
- The Department of Justice proposed expanded disability regulations in 2011 to cover furniture, equipment, website and reservation systems, and may bring these proposals up for review and finalization.
- The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission may finalize regulations that limit the types of information employers can consider during background checks of prospective employees.
- Employers might expect to see new regulations and/or guidance on expanding efforts to hire more employees with disabilities.