Jessica Klement, vice president of advocacy for the American Society of Travel Advisors (ASTA), is well-versed when it comes to working with government officials. In her role at ASTA, she advocates for the rights of travel agencies across the country, and represents their collective voice on Capitol Hill.
Now, as President-Elect Donald J. Trump is set to take office for his second non-consecutive term on Jan. 20, 2025, and as Congress has flipped to Republican control, ASTA is gearing up to work with a new crop of political appointees — and ready to embrace all the opportunities, and potential threats, that may come with the transition of power.
Here, Klement shares more about ASTA’s priorities under the next administration, and how she sees the change affecting the travel advisor community at a governmental level.
Are there any urgent priorities you want to see happen before year’s end or the administration switch?
There's about six weeks left of 2024, and the new Congress will be sworn in by early January. And then, of course, President-Elect Trump's inauguration is Jan. 20.
So, there are a couple of things that we're keeping an eye on before the end of the year, and there are a lot of moving parts on the Hill, one of which is federal government funding. There's a continuing resolution (a temporary law Congress passes to keep the government funded at current levels when a new budget isn't approved in time) until Dec. 20. Most people on the Hill want to figure out 2025 funding before that date. I do think another continuing resolution is likely, however, so we'll keep an eye on it.
Also, [we’re watching] funding and staffing for the office of the Assistant Secretary for Travel and Tourism at the Department of Commerce. This position and office were funded in the previous appropriations bill. President Biden did not nominate anyone for that, and I think it's incredibly unlikely he will in the next few weeks.
And then ASTA has its two legislative priorities: the Flight Refund Fairness Act, and the ACPAC Modernization Act. We’re still going to be spending time the next two months building co- sponsorships [for those], so we can start 2025 off strong with support.
Does ASTA take specific steps during an administration change, or is it business as usual in the final months?
Administrations change, so this is very much business as usual for those of us who live and work in Washington, D.C. For me, having not been at ASTA or in the travel industry for the previous Trump administration, or the transition from Trump to Biden, I’ll look for opportunities and threats, as anybody would.
As we look to the second Trump administration, we will thank them for things they have done in the past, including ending the Department of Labor blacklist, a years-long effort by ASTA. And we’ll probably share with the President Elect and his transition team our concerns for some of his proposed policies, as well. I can’t say exactly what that looks like today, but I fully anticipate we'll be sending a letter to the transition team with our priorities.
What changes, if any, do you anticipate under a Republican administration, in terms of how they view the travel industry and small businesses, such as travel agencies?
In general, most people anticipate that a Republican administration is going to be more business-friendly, with fewer regulations, and a more hands-off approach. Trump and his leadership team have already talked about things like getting rid of two old regulations for every new one they put forth. When I hear things like that, I see an opportunity with the ticket refund rule that we were unhappy with. The Department of Labor rule was invalidated by the courts, but let's say that hadn't happened. We would have certainly asked the Trump Administration to introduce regulation to pull back on that rule.
I think there are things that we can reasonably anticipate doing, and preparing for, and there are also going to be unexpected [instances]. And I could probably say that for any industry, and any new administration. Travel is not unique.
Jessica Klement, vice president of advocacy for ASTA
Credit: 2024 Jessica KlementI am keeping an eye on this new non-cabinet Department of Government Efficiency that [Elon] Musk and [Vivek] Ramaswamy are heading up. What does that do to staffing at the Department of Transportation, at the Federal Aviation Administration or at the Department of Commerce? We finally, after years of work, get a Senate-confirmable office position of the Assistant Secretary for Travel and Tourism, a position that every other G20 Country has but the United States. And when they talk about decreasing federal funding … everything's going to be on the table. Everything that is within the administration's authority will be on the table, and I think it would be short-sighted not to prepare for that.
How do you ensure that ASTA has a seat at the table, and that you're getting in front of the people who matter most? And how can travel advisors help?
If you look at it not from an administrative standpoint, but a legislative standpoint, we tell people, “You've got to continue.” [Travel advisors] can't just come for Legislative Day once a year and build relationships with their congressional offices. You have to stay in front of them. You have to check in. You have to continue to ask for co-sponsorships. You want to keep the conversation going.
The travel advisor community is a growing industry, and it's really fun to watch. Travel advisors do the things that they need to do to advocate for themselves, and then travel advisors become more of a household name. And then we won’t see rules … that are unfavorable to them.
In terms of the administration, that's a little tougher. There's going to be a whole new swath of political appointees. [So, we’ll] take the opportunity to learn the new players and hopefully build relationships. Administrations change. Our priorities don't. It’s just how we go about achieving them.
Administrations change. Our priorities don't.
Does ASTA take a stance politically?
That's a good question, because ASTA has a political action committee, which does support members of Congress in their bids for re-election — the people who are consistent champions of our issues, and people we want to see return to Congress. [But] ASTA did not endorse either presidential candidate. And to my knowledge, it never has.
How do you see ASTA’s priorities aligning or clashing with the administration’s agenda?
I do see an opportunity to ask the DOT to revisit the refund rule. We are now existing in a world where consumers are issued a refund within seven days, regardless of whether or not the refund is from the airline or from a ticket agent. But there is no timeline for the airline to reimburse the ticket agent for that. I think we now have an opportunity with new political leadership to revisit that, along with some of other priorities that were not included in the FAA Reauthorization Bill.
We also have an opportunity to introduce ourselves to a whole new crop of political appointees. Any change provides an opportunity.
We also have an opportunity to introduce ourselves to a whole new crop of political appointees. Any change provides an opportunity.
There is some concern about travel bans and if there is a limit on the number of visas from any particular country, [and would there be] some retaliation involved there? Travel advisors are going to have to watch, so their clients don't want to travel somewhere where they're not allowed to go. And things like that we’ll, of course, be watching, too.
The only other thing that we haven't talked about that is already a hot topic —and we're not even into the new Congress yet — is what happens with the Trump tax cuts from five years ago. Most of those are set to expire at the end of 2025, and that will undoubtedly have implications for small businesses and for associations like ASTA. I don't have a view of the landscape on this yet, so I have my research that I need to do, but I've already started talking to people who are well-versed in this space to figure it out. But in addition to the travel and transportation issues that ASTA will be tracking, we will, of course, be keeping our members up to date on any tax package that could possibly affect them next year.
