AH&LA Reorg Nears Completion

NEW ORLEANS— The American Hotel & Lodging Associations reorganization efforts are nearly complete, Joe McInerney told attendees at the 2002 Multi-Unit Owners & Operators Forum on May 20. The associations final reorganization efforts will include moving its information center from Washington D.C. to Orlando, FL. The AH&LAs Educational Institute, which is based in Orlando, FL, will take over the information center, McInerney said. AH&LA will also soon move its archives to a major university where they will be stored, he said. McInerney also told attendees that the association is continuing its work on legislation that will return business travel expenditures back to the point where they are 100% deductible. Its likley, however, that it will not be achieved until next year, when a new Congress convenes. “This is an election year so nothing dramatic will get done,” said McInerney. In an exclusive interview with HOTEL BUSINESS® McInerney said hotel operators are anxious about the backlog in applications for summer work visas, which are being processed much more slowly since 9/11. “We are trying to get the INS to move faster on them,” he said. —Ruthanne Terrero