The Rocky Mountain Business Travel Association (RMBTA) and the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) recently spoke up on behalf of the businesses and citizens of Colorado in opposition to the proposal to burden car rental customers with a new statewide tax of $6 per day (SB08-244, The Transportation Infrastructure Preservation Act).

“Don’t be fooled by the idea that a car rental tax only affects out-of-towners. This tax will also hit the wallets of Colorado citizens and will hurt the budgets of Colorado businesses,” said RMBTA President Pamela McTeer. “Research has shown that about half of all car rental customers are local, and that the majority of businesses spend more than half of their car rental budgets in markets where they are located. Adding such a high charge to every car rental on a daily basis is likely to cost Coloradoans millions of dollars each year.”

A steep new car rental tax could also cost the state incoming meetings and convention business. In the meeting destination selection process, organizations like NBTA are now reviewing the tax burden for meeting attendees as one of the criteria. NBTA hosts a number of large meetings, including an annual convention that brings more than 6,000 attendees and about $20 million in direct spend in the host city.