Tax reform is set to become a top policy issue for Washington, DC in 2025. To outline its agenda, the USA’s Exhibitions and Conferences Alliance (ECA) has released its 2025 tax reform priorities for the business events industry.
“From driving growth and investment to helping us create new jobs, the tax code has an outsized impact on our industry in the United States,” said Hervé Sedky, Emerald Holding Inc. president, CEO, and chair of the ECA board of directors.
“The 2025 tax reform debate is an important opportunity for policymakers to accelerate the US industry’s competitiveness globally and ensure that we can continue to serve as a growth engine for small businesses and entrepreneurs from coast to coast.”
ECA is encouraging Congress to take up and pass federal tax legislation in 2025 that is, in its view, pro-growth, pro-investment, pro-impact, and pro-workforce development:
- Pro-growth: ECA supports a competitive business tax rate that promotes the growth of the industry
- Pro-investment: ECA opposes changes to the tax treatment of private equity profits and interest deductibility that would negatively impact a large source of investment in the industry
- Pro-impact: ECA opposes any alteration to the tax-exempt status of nonprofit associations and their events
- Pro-workforce development: ECA supports transforming Section 529 college savings plans into career savings plans that help workers secure jobs in the industry
In the coming weeks, ECA will be establishing a tax reform steering committee comprised of industry leaders who will guide and support ECA’s 2025 tax advocacy work.
“At its core, the business and professional events industry is America’s small businesses supporting America’s small businesses,” said Tommy Goodwin, ECA vice-president.
“That’s why ECA will be ‘all in’ to make sure the industry’s voice is heard on Capitol Hill and ensure that any tax policy changes help our small businesses grow and support our efforts to create new jobs.”
In 2025, the business events industry is projected to employ more than 2.6m Americans and drive more than $426bn in spending nationwide. The industry also pays $51bn in federal taxes and $79bn in state and local taxes in communities across the United States.
ECA’s 2025 tax reform priorities can be viewed here.
