Earlier this week, ECA announced that its 2024 Legislative Action Day will take place in Washington, DC on Thursday, May 30, 2024.
The big picture: ECA’s 2024 Legislative Action Day will bring industry leaders and advocates from across the industry to Washington, DC to meet with policymakers on Capitol Hill about ECA’s top federal policy priorities including:
Helping the industry attract and train its next generation workforce 👷
Further reducing visitor visa appointment wait times ✈️
ECA's view: “In 2024, Congress has the opportunity to positively impact our industry’s ability to drive economic growth, support job creation, and empower small businesses nationwide,” said Tommy Goodwin, ECA Vice President. “But to make that happen, our elected officials need to hear from all of us. That’s why I look forward to welcoming everyone from the industry back to Capitol Hill this May for Legislative Action Day.”
Better together: Once again, this year’s ECA Legislative Action Day will be held in conjunction with the Lippman Connects Exhibition and Convention Executives Forum (ECEF), which will take place on Wednesday, May 29, 2024.
“The success of Legislative Action Day benefits every one of the leaders who will be at ECEF 2024,” said Sam Lippman, President, Lippman Connects. “And like ECEF, we want to see this event on every executive’s calendar.”
Registration: Industry leaders and advocates can register for freeby clicking the button or visiting ECALegislativeActionDay.com.
ECA's advocacy efforts to help the industry attract and train its next generation workforce continue on Capitol Hill.
Bipartisan Pell Workforce Act: In December, the House Education & Workforce Committee advanced this legislation, which would allow students to use Pell Grants to afford high-quality, shorter-term job training programs for the first time. ECA is encouraging House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson to call this bill up for a vote on the House floor as soon as possible.
Freedom to Invest in Tomorrow’s Workforce Act: Momentum continues to grow for this legislation, which would give Americans the flexibility to use 529 savings plans to cover the costs of certain workforce training and credentialing programs. At this time, the bill has 108 cosponsors in the House of Representatives and and 15 cosponsors in the Senate.
Why it matters: These bills, which would expand access to skills-based training, are critical to providing our future workforce with the job training and credentials they need for high-demand careers in the business events industry.
Go deeper: Check out this great Skift Meetings article on ECA's workforce advocacy efforts, as well as the ongoing work by EDPA members to introduce the industry to colleges, trade schools, school counselors, and more!
The new website includes beefed up information about ECA's policy priorities, global partnerships, media hits, volunteer leadership, Legislative Action Day and much more!
