Industry Helps Economy

It’s no secret by now that destinations are hurting – or will be hurting – from meeting and event cancellations.

While those all can be attributed to the economy in some way, it’s the canceled corporate events of companies that received federal assistance, rather than the events that are suffering because of economic hardship, that are a major concern in the industry.

I can see why. When the president and members of Congress denounce the value of meeting face-to-face on television and in newspapers and blogs, it seems like they don’t have a clue. They’re throwing billions in taxpayer dollars at the problem, but the part of that money that could go to generating economic stimulation – travel, hotel taxes, leisure activities – and keep people working somehow isn’t valuable?

Tradeshow Week editors have written stories in the past few weeks – and in this issue – about what’s happening to destinations and convention centers and what they are doing to attract and keep business while the economy attempts to recover.

One such recent hit we wrote about was President Obama’s comment to financial institutions that had received federal bailout funding: “You can’t take a trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on the taxpayer’s dime. There’s got to be some accountability and some responsibility, and that’s something that I intend to impose as president of the United States.”

That accountability is something that’s forthcoming, but one new development that I think is worth noting is the American Society of Assn. Executives & The Center for Assn. Leadership sending a letter to U.S. Sen. John Kerry asking him to reconsider legislation he proposed Feb. 24 that would put restrictions involving meetings on companies that received money from the Taxpayer Protection and Corporate Responsibility Act.

“While we understand and share your regret that some firms receiving TARP funds have used those resources in ways that have breached the public trust, we urge you to consider the unintended fallout from your proposed legislation to prohibit any recipient of TARP funds from hosting, sponsoring or paying for conferences and events,” wrote John H. Graham IV, president and CEO of ASAE & The Center.

The letter acknowledges that some companies have used TARP funds inappropriately, but also gets to what I think the heart of the issue is – many companies are canceling their meetings or moving them to destinations deemed by policy makers as more conducive to meetings whether they received TARP funding or not. And that’s hurting destinations regardless of whether their corporate business happens to be with a financial institution on the federal government’s watch list.

Those Washington, D.C., decision makers whose constituents rely on meetings, tradeshows, conventions and events for their livelihood and economic stability need to convince those who sit around them in the Capitol: The value of face-to-face is strong.

Downplaying the billions of dollars generated by this industry for the companies that stage them, the destinations that host them and the companies that exhibit at them isn’t helping anyone.

Stephanie Corbin is senior assistant editor of Tradeshow Week and editor of TSW Association Show. She can be reached at stephanie.corbin@reedbusiness.com.