The National Business Travel Association’s (NBTA) Executive Director and COO Michael W. McCormick today provided testimony for tomorrow’s hearing on H.R. 4175, the “End Discriminatory State Taxes for Automobile Renters Act of 2009.” In his remarks to the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law, McCormick expressed NBTA’s opposition to taxes on the industry that are diverted to pay for non-industry related projects. McCormick also lent NBTA’s strong support for the bipartisan H.R. 4175, which would impose a permanent moratorium on discriminatory excise taxes on car rental customers by declaring these taxes an undue burden on interstate commerce.

McCormick said in his written testimony, “Unfortunately, taxes on travelers are exploding across the country. The remarkable aspect of traveler taxes is the small group taxed and the wide variety of projects they finance that are in no way related to business or leisure travel. These taxes hurt not only the business traveler and their companies, but also the overall economy and especially the U.S. travel industry, which is just now seeing business travel begin to increase.”

NBTA has long fought the enactment of excise taxes on rental car customers, citing the cost to local businesses. Research shows that car rental offices away from airports comprise the majority of the rental car market, and an NBTA survey of corporate travel managers found that companies rent more vehicles locally than outside their markets.

“Wary of increasing taxes on the general public, politicians have turned to enacting excise taxes on rental car customers. The premise being taxes on rental car customers is an easy way to raise funds without raising taxes on voters or local businesses,” said McCormick in his testimony. “However, at closer inspection this view does not hold up.”

View McCormick’s prepared remarks here.