New Study Details Hotel, Car Rental, and Meal Taxes in Top U.S. Markets
Los Angeles (July 29, 2008) The National Business Travel Association (NBTA) released the findings of a comprehensive study of car rental, hotel and meal taxes in the top 50 U.S. travel destination cities (by number of air travelers), funded in part by the association's research and education foundation, the NBTA Foundation.
NBTA President & CEO Kevin Maguire, CCTE, said, "NBTA is pleased to provide this unique and important research to help companies maximize the value of their travel budgets. As travel taxes skyrocket in cities across the country, business travel and meetings decision-makers are increasingly considering the tax burden as a factor in their decision-making. The current economic slump is increasing buyers' cost sensitivity and making taxes a more important factor in travel and meeting purchasing."
The study provides several different views of travel taxes to help readers make informed choices. The top 50 markets are ranked by overall travel tax burden, including general sales tax and discriminatory travel taxes, and by discriminatory travel tax burden, excluding general sales taxes to count only taxes that target car rentals, hotel stays and meals. Separate data are offered for central city and airport locations, as the tax regimes are often distinct. In addition to combined data on car rental, hotel and meal taxes, separate data are provided for each of the three spend categories.
Fay Beauchine, Chair of the NBTA Foundation, commented "With travel costs on the rise, corporate travel and meetings managers are making adjustments to further contain costs. The NBTA Foundation was pleased to underwrite this travel tax research to give them a complete picture of the taxes imposed on travel services to help them minimize the negative impact of those taxes on the company's bottom line."
The research shows the U.S. cities where travelers incur the lowest total tax burden in central city locations, factoring in general sales taxes and discriminatory travel taxes for lodging, car rentals, and meals, are:
- Honolulu, HI $21.45/day
- Portland, OR $22.83/day
- Fort Lauderdale, FL $23.35/day
- Fort Myers, FL $23.35/day
- West Palm Beach, FL $24.67/day
The cities that impose the highest total taxes on travelers are:
- Chicago, IL $42.44/day
- Nashville, TN $39.55/day
- Charlotte, NC $38.80/day
- Seattle, WA $38.70/day
- 5. Houston, TX $37.62/day
Discriminatory travel taxes are those imposed on specifically on travel services above and beyond general sales taxes. The U.S. cities with the lowest discriminatory travel tax rates forlodging, car rentals, and meals in central city locations are:
- Oakland, CA $7.58/day
- West Palm Beach, FL $7.62/day
- Fort Lauderdale, FL $7.62/day
- Fort Myers, FL $7.62/day
- Orange county, CA $8.10/day
The cities that impose the highest discriminatory travel taxes on travelers for lodging, car rentals, and meals are:
- Portland, OR $22.83/day
- Seattle, WA $21.64/day
- Atlanta, GA $19.82/day
- Charlotte, NC $19.78/day
- Chicago, IL $18.83/day
Maguire commented, "Local and state officials around the country wondering how to attract more visitors should look at Florida and California, popular destinations for both business and leisure travelers. Fifteen of the top 16 cities imposing the lowest discriminatory tax rates on travelers are in those two states."
He continued, "Cities that disproportionately target travelers for revenue are probably losing market share without even knowing it. Travelers who have been burned by taxes start looking for alternatives. That could mean trading down to less expensive hotel, car or meal options; staying with friends; taking shorter trips; or choosing an alternative destination. The lesson here? If you want travelers to come back to your city, you shouldn't hit them with 'travel tax sticker shock.'"
For the full report, please visit http://www.nbta.org/Research/Surveys.
NBTA Foundation releases the 2007 Travel Management Compensation and Benefits Survey
Prepared by Industry Insights, November 2007
Alexandria, VA (November 28, 2007) The NBTA Foundation today provided NBTA members a report that allows individual travel managers to compare their compensation levels and benefits to those of their peers. The 2007 Travel Management Compensation and Benefits Survey, based on the responses of 232 Unites States-based corporate travel managers, shows the average total compensation of respondents, including salary, bonus and commission, is 3.3 percent higher than last year. The report provides data on respondents' gender, job titles, professional certifications, years of experience, and more. The report is available to NBTA members. Please click here to view the full contents of the report.
2006 Travel Management Compensation and Benefits Survey
Prepared by Industry Insights, November 2006
The NBTA Foundation and Industry Insights, an independent research and consulting firm, partnered in the Fall of 2006 to conduct the Travel Management Compensation and Benefits Survey, a comprehensive report that allows individuals to compare their compensation levels and benefits to that of their peers.
The study focused on three primary areas: responsibilities, compensation and employee benefits. The goal of the study was to identify and compare compensation at the various levels, as well as geographically, based on corporate size, experience and responsibilities. The study also compares retirement plans, stock options, incentives and bonuses, annual leave, professional training and much more.
The report is available to NBTA Members in two formats: Executive Summary or Full Report. Click here to download both versions.
2004 Business Travelers Survey Key Findings: The Business Travel Industry and Travel Management
Prepared by TIA, IBTM and NBTA, February 2005
This study, conducted by IBTM, NBTA and the Travel Industry Association of America (TIA), highlights the importance of business travel to the travel industry, confirms that business travel is recovering, and sheds light on the value of corporate travel management. Bill Connors, CTC, NBTA executive director and COO, said, “This research shows that travelers in managed travel programs understand the benefits for themselves and for their companies. It also shows that smart use of new communications technology and smart travel management go hand-in-hand to accomplish corporate goals.”
For more information, see Key Findings (PDF) | Executive Summary of TIA report (NBTA Members Only) | Press Release.
Corporate Travel Department (CTD) Overview
Prepared by Andrew Menkes, Partnership Travel Consulting, Inc., September 2004
In response to numerous requests from NBTA members, IBTM is distributing this document prepared by Andy Menkes, Chairman and CEO of Partnership Travel Consulting. This document is intended to provide answers to many of the basic questions asked by travel managers as they consider the option of a Corporate Travel Department.
To download a copy, go to:
Corporate Travel Department (CTD) Overview
Fares and Taxes Paid by Business Travelers
Conducted by Steven A. Morrison, Ph.D. and Clifford Winston, Ph.D., April 2003
This study, released by the Institute of Business Travel Management (IBTM) and the National Business Travel Association (NBTA), estimates the air fares and taxes paid by business travelers. It suggests that high taxes and fees have prevented business travelers from enjoying the benefits of deflationary airfares and points to the need of future research regarding efficiency and appropriateness of air travel fees and taxes. Using data from the Department of Transportation (DOT), the research presents an index reporting the level and percentage change in business air fares and taxes from 1989 to 2002. Among other things, the study determined that the base fares for business travelers excluding taxes have increased 10.4% since 1989, while fares for all other travelers have only increased 2.4%. The base fares for business travelers including taxes has increased 16% since 1989, thus the higher taxes that business travelers must pay account for more than one-third of the increase in their fares.
To download a copy of the report, go to:
Fares and Taxes Paid by Business Travelers
Quantifying the Value of Corporate Booking Channels
Conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLC,
now IBM Business Consulting Services, November 2002
Today, corporate travelers are afforded two principal ways to purchase travel; the traditional travel agency and the corporate online booking engine. The tradeoffs between these two channels, however, are a study in complexity. Additionally, savings associated with the corporate online booking channel can be elusive. In order to clarify tradeoffs and to provide corporate travel managers with a clearer understanding of potential travel booking savings, IBTM engaged PwC Consulting (now a part of IBM Global Consulting Services) to conduct a study that would identify costs associated with common corporate booking channels. The results of the study were released in November 2002. The research found that the corporate online channel delivers overall saving for both simple and complex itineraries. Additionally, further analysis demonstrated that the corporate online channel can provide value, but transaction type and user experience level can significantly influence results. While this study did illustrate certain efficiency gains that are possible with corporate online booking, the study also highlighted opportunities to extract even greater corporate online benefits.
To download a copy of the report, go to:
Quantifying the Value of Corporate Booking Channels
Emergency Guidelines and Procedures for Corporate Travel Programs
Prepared by: Kroll Crisis Management Group, October 2001
The attacks on September 11, 2001 left many business travelers stranded all over the world. In many cases, travel managers had difficulty locating their travelers, and when they did find them, could not easily get them home. Family members were frantic, desperately trying to locate their loved ones and to determine that they were safe.
Emergency Guidelines and Procedures for Corporate Travel Programs, a research project that grew out of the September 11th terrorist attacks on America, was conceptualized, researched and published in less than one month, demonstrating IBTM’s ability to provide valuable information in a very timely manner.
IBTM contracted with Kroll Crises Management Group, Inc. to do a study on the specific crises management issues confronted by travel managers, and to develop boilerplate emergency guidelines and procedures that could be disseminated to NBTA members, who could tailor them to meet the specific needs of their company.
To download or print a copy of the report go to:
Emergency Guidelines and Procedures for Corporate Travel Programs
Quantifying the Value of Effective Travel Management
in the Creation of Shareholder Value
Conducted by: PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP, May 2001
Corporate America is increasingly focused on travel expenditures, which often represent the third largest controllable expenditure within most companies. As such, corporate stakeholders have often viewed business travel from the narrow perspective of costs as opposed to the relationship between it and corporate value.
Understanding the need to better define the role of travel management, the Institute of Business Travel Management commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers Shareholder Value Management Group to examine how the activities of travel management could be measured in terms of its financial contribution to a company.
To accomplish this, PricewaterhouseCoopers conducted a detailed review of the corporate travel programs of two companies. Both firms were selected because they have relatively sophisticated operating models with reliable financial information.
Key Findings:
- Travel management can be measured in a financial context relevant to the company and can, in fact, contribute to the creation of shareholder value.
- The ability of the travel operation to contribute to the bottom line is strengthened through the efforts of experienced travel management professionals.
- Travel management contributes both directly through a contribution to operating profits, and indirectly by enabling company employees to pursue other core revenue-generating activities.
In addition to providing case study comparisons, this report also includes illustrative models that can be used to begin to analyze a travel department's impact on corporate value. These models were developed to allow the travel management professional to forecast various scenarios over a three- to five-year period.
To order a copy of the Final Report, Quantifying the Value of Effective Travel Management in the Creation of Shareholder Value, complete the Final Report Order Form.
A View from the Top: Perceptions of Travel Management and Business Travel
Conducted By: Deloitte & Touche, 1999
Travel often represents the third largest expenditure within the majority of companies. Understanding the need to better define the corporate perception of travel and the role of travel management, the Institute of Business Travel Management commissioned Deloitte & Touche to conduct an environmental scan to assess the value that senior corporate executives place on business travel and travel management in meeting corporate goals and objectives.
Participants included Chief Executive Officers, Senior Vice Presidents, Vice Presidents and Chief Financial Officers of Fortune 500 companies. Six key findings indicated that the role of travel within the corporate structure has become increasingly important to the ability of the corporation to meet its goals and objectives.
Key Findings:
- Senior executives value the role of travel and effective travel management and its support of corporate missions and goals.
- Few companies use sophisticated models to calculate the contribution of travel management to company bottom lines and shareholder value.
- Senior Management's highest travel priority is to optimize time while being very sensitive to the trade-off between time and cost.
- Senior executives draw an important distinction between travel procurement and traditional purchasing functions.
- Strong supplier relationships are critical to the success of travel management programs.
- Travel managers need to broaden their experience and demonstrate their skills in non-travel functions to be promoted beyond travel management.
To order a copy of A View from the Top: Perceptions of Travel Management and Business Travel, complete the Final Report Order Form.