Fall 2022 • PENNSYLVANIA RESTAURANT & LODGING matters • 27 Licensee Discount HB 427 would increase the wholesale discount liquor licensees receive in Pennsylvania from 10 percent to 15 percent. This legislation passed the House unanimously, but unfortunately died in the Senate Appropriations Committee. We’ve been told from many in the legislature that they are supportive, especially given the rising costs operators have had to shoulder in almost every category, and we hope to move the ball forward on this issue in 2023. Tourism Improvement Districts Many cities and counties throughout the country are creating Tourism Improvement Districts (TIDs) to invest more funds into tourism at the regional level, something we’ve heard from dozens of legislators is very important. While three counties have created TIDs within PA, current law does not allow for a streamlined, clear process to be used. Draft legislation is being written to enable, not mandate, TIDs throughout Pennsylvania. We hope to have that legislation filed by early 2023. PRLA President & CEO Joe Massaro, along with VisitErie President & CEO John Oliver, spoke in front of the Senate Committee on Community, Economic, and Recreational Development on the subject in October of 2022. The bill would allow lodging properties to self asses a fee on the lodging business within a county in an effort to generate funding for tourism improvement projects in that particular region. Association Health Plans The workforce shortage is a crisis we’ve never seen before. Operators continue to struggle to recruit and retain reliable employees. Fully insured Association Health Plans (AHP) allow small businesses to participate in a large group plan offered by an association, thus lowering administrative costs to the business so they could provide the benefit to their employees even though they ordinarily would not be able to do so. This would give employers something new to consider when trying to attract new staff. More than 30 states currently offer AHPs, but this legislation had stalled in the PA House Banking and Insurance Committee. With new committee leadership likely to take the helm in 2023, we plan to take another shot at passing legislation that would allow the formation of AHPs. Short-term Rentals It’s important that County Treasurers have the tools and resources needed to assure that all lodging properties in Pennsylvania, and those offering their home to guests While we’re very proud of PRLA’s many accomplishments last legislative session, we recognize that there’s still a lot of work to be done. The PRLA Policy Committee—PRLA’s Alcohol Service, Government Affairs, and Lodging & Tourism committees—will convene for a policy retreat at the end of January 2023. It’s at that retreat that the committee will identify new legislative goals and priorities for the 2023/2024 legislative session. There are a few items that we unfortunately were not able to get across the finish line in 2022, but advocacy is a marathon, not a sprint, and so we plan to tackle many of these items with different strategies in 2023 and 2024. for transient stays, collect and remit the appropriate taxes. HB 976 (Heffley-Carbon) would have required online home sharing platforms to register with the Department of Revenue and submit a list of PA properties to ensure tax compliance. The legislation also allows the department to share that information with county treasurers to ensure local compliance. Despite our efforts, this legislation did not see action in 2022. We hope to repurpose the legislation and take a different approach at the solution in 2023.
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