Source: Hotel News Now
May 4, 2020
On a recent AAHOA webinar, hotel executives discussed the challenges of lobbying for federal aid to help the industry and the obstacles of securing forbearance on CMBS loans.
REPORT FROM THE U.S.—One day, the COVID-19 pandemic will end. When it does, hoteliers want to be in the best position for a rebound.
For weeks, the American Hotel and Lodging Association and the Asian American Hotel Owners Association have partnered in lobbying efforts to secure more federal aid for hoteliers. During a webinar hosted by AAHOA Thursday, leaders of both those organizations recapped their efforts and shared their priorities for the next round of advocating for the hotel business.
Chip Rogers, president and CEO of AHLA, said while the first few relief bills passed nearly unanimously in Congress—including the CARES Act passed in March and another round of funding approved in late April—the bills to follow could be more contentious.
“What we’re seeing here, unfortunately, is the politics begin to come into play, there are items and issues that are being debated in this fourth bill that frankly don’t have a lot to do with recovery,” Rogers said during “Hotel owners and COVID-19: A conversation on recovery.”
Rogers said GOP Congress members are pushing for broad liability coverage for businesses, while Democratic members are advocating for vote-by-mail initiatives ahead of the 2020 general election.
“That really pushed people back into their corners, which is unfortunate because up to this point everybody’s been working together more closely,” he said. “So the next round of legislation will be the most challenging.”
