Standing in a busy hallway of the Longworth House Office Building in Washington, D.C., longtime travel seller Marc Casto told me he was having a blast.
“It's definitely a bit of a political geek fest,” said Casto, who is the CEO of MVC Solutions and former chairman of the board for the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA). “And it’s a wonderful opportunity for us to represent the business we love, and to showcase what we do to people who don't necessarily understand our side of the industry."
Casto was in the U.S. capital — along with more than 250 travel advisors and supplier partners — for ASTA’s annual Legislative Day. During the Sept. 18 event, advisors and suppliers met with staff members from U.S. senator and U.S. representative offices to talk travel policy and how it effects their business. I caught up with Casto right after his meeting with Congressman Seth Moulton’s office, where Casto also got a chance to briefly meet the U.S. Representative for Massachusetts' 6th District.
Casto has been to at least 10 straight ASTA Legislative Days now, and when we spoke, he was quick to encourage travel advisors who have not yet participated to seriously consider joining next year.
This is an opportunity to ensure that the travel agency community also has a seat at the table, because there’s a very competitive market of ideas as to how our industry should perform better.
“Anybody who thinks that Congress or the Senate does not influence travel needs to have a reconciliation and acknowledge that our industry is one of the most heavily regulated industries,” Casto said. “So, this is an opportunity to ensure that the travel agency community also has a seat at the table, because there’s a very competitive market of ideas as to how our industry should perform better. I highly encourage travel agents to come speak about what it is that they do. This is a very receptive audience.”
This Year’s Legislative Day Agenda
Travel advisors met with their congressional representatives and senators in an effort to enlist support for two specific pieces of legislation that ASTA is currently championing.
The Flight Refund Fairness Act, or H.R. 9552, would ensure that travel agencies aren’t responsible for refunding their clients’ money for canceled flights until the agency receives those funds from the airline. And the ACPAC Modernization Act, or H.R. 3780, would add a ticket agent seat to the Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee at the Department of Transportation (DOT).
The two bills have been introduced in the wake of the DOT’s decision to finalize a rule earlier this year requiring that the merchant of record pay airline refunds to consumers for canceled or significantly changed flights.
“The Department of Transportation ruled that advisors must process airline refunds within seven days of request, even though they don't have the money anymore,” said Zane Kerby, president and CEO of ASTA. “The DOT attempted to clarify this policy in a new rule published a few weeks ago, which says, ‘Airlines shall refund travel agencies promptly.’ Now, I have a really good calendar and clock app on my phone and on my watch here, but I can't tell you when exactly ‘promptly’ is, and neither can the DOT."
Kerby and other industry stakeholders argue, meanwhile, that if a travel advisor had a seat on the DOT’s Aviation Consumer Protection Advisory Committee (ACPAC), the government agency might not have finalized the onerous flight refund rule in the first place.
We’re a massive distribution channel, selling about half of the airline tickets here in the United States, and to not have a seat on the ACPAC is a challenge.
“It's really important for travel advisors to have a seat at the table,” Kerby told me during a later interview. “We’re a massive distribution channel, selling about half of the airline tickets here in the United States, and to not have a seat on the ACPAC is a challenge. It allows for wrong-headed and sort of myopic regulation to be contemplated and then brought into reality without a designated seat at the table, without our perspective being considered. And that's a real challenge.”
Zane Kerby, president and CEO of ASTA, discussed the new Department of Transportation rule affecting airline refunds.
Credit: 2024 Shane NelsonTwo days later, and just a few steps outside Oregon Senator Ron Wyden’s office in the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Jamie Anderson, owner of Travel & Cruise Desk in Lake Oswego, Oregon, told me the bipartisan nature of both H.R. 9552 and H.R. 3780 were helpful during his meeting with the Oregon lawmaker’s staff.
“Obviously, it's a busy time right now,” Anderson said of the current vibe in the capital. “But there's no opposition to these bills. There's no cost either. In some ways, it seems like sort of an easy win.”
Other Legislative Day Happenings
Although the Sept. 18 meetings in the lawmakers’ Capitol Hill offices were certainly the highlight of this year’s ASTA Legislative Day, the event also featured diverse panel discussions about how travel might be impacted by everything from AI to recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings.
Jessica Klement, vice president of advocacy for ASTA, also lead an intensive training seminar aimed at helping advisors better understand the proposed legislation and offering specifics about how to best conduct compelling meetings with congressional staff members.
Networking opportunities were plentiful over the course of the event, too. For example, attendees had a chance to unwind after their day advocating on Capitol Hill with a farewell dinner followed by a karaoke session.
Chris Seddelmeyer, owner of Seddelmeyer Travel Concepts in Arkansas, has been a part of eight ASTA Legislative Day events now, and she was also quick to encourage her fellow advisors to join the effort in person next year.
The reaction of first-time attendees I talk with is always, ‘I wish I would have done this sooner.’
“The reaction of first-time attendees I talk with is always, ‘I wish I would have done this sooner,’” Seddlemeyer told me outside Arkansas Senator Tom Cotton’s office in the Russell Senate Office Building. “It is amazing to be in the halls of Congress,” she said. “It doesn't matter what side of the fence you're on. This is the people's house, so you have every right to go to your legislator and talk with them or their aides about the issues that concern you. So, come to Legislative Day and talk to your legislators face to face.”
