Washington, D.C. - The American Bus Association (ABA) – the leading industry trade organization representing the leading motorcoach and group travel and tourism companies – today applauded the efforts of Sens. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Bob Casey, Jr. (D-Pa.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) for introducing the Coronavirus Economic Relief for Transportation Services (CERTS) Tax Exemption Act in the Senate (S.1944).
This legislation would eliminate the tax burden associated with the $2 billion CERTS grant monies provided to the motorcoaches, school buses and passenger vessels industries.
“The CERTS grant relief program provided a necessary lifeline to the U.S. motorcoach industry, in response to the economic devastation brought about by the pandemic. Without this funding, at such a critical time, numerous small, multigenerational family businesses faced extinction and thousands of rural and underserved communities would have lost access to their only form of intercity transportation,” said Peter Pantuso, president & CEO of the American Bus Association. “However, just when the industry began to stabilize and recover, operators were penalized with an unexpected tax bill for accepting the relief, forcing them to pay a good portion of it back in taxes. Like other pandemic relief programs, the CERTS grants should not be taxable, it’s a matter of fairness, equity and recognition of the key role motorcoach operations play in this country. We appreciate the hard work and the long-standing support of our industry and this program by Senators Blackburn, Reed, Collins, Casey, Daines and Shaheen.”