FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Caleb Tiller, NBTA, 703-684-0836, ext. 138, [email protected] Courtney Leigh Beisel, NBTA, 703-684-0836, ext. 133, [email protected] NBTA, Top Car Rental Companies Meet to Address “Exploding Taxes” Car Taxes Hit Local Residents and Businesses ALEXANDRIA, VA (April 3, 2006) -- Representatives of the major car rental companies -- Cendant Car Rental Group, Inc. (Avis, Budget), Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc. (Dollar Rent A Car, Thrifty Car Rental), Enterprise Rent-A-Car, The Hertz Corporation, and Vanguard Car Rental USA Inc. (Alamo Rent A Car, National Car Rental) -- and the National Business Travel Association (NBTA) met recently to discuss the negative impact of excessive car rental taxes on American businesses, consumers, and the local economies where the taxes are imposed. “Travel has become the go-to funding source for elected officials looking to create new revenue streams for local projects. However, there is little understanding that the explosion of travel taxes has hurt local economies around the country by creating a hidden tax on local businesses,” said Bill Connors, CTC, NBTA Executive Director and COO. “Many people think a car rental excise tax is a tax on visitors, but a significant portion of car rentals are local. While business travel is often thought of as sending employees elsewhere, many companies actually spend more bringing employees and clients to their corporate offices, with the company paying for their travel. In fact, a recent web poll of NBTA travel manager members showed a majority of many companies’ car rentals are in their local markets, where they often pay disproportionate excise taxes.” The commonly-held perception that car rental taxes only hit out-of-towners is not supported by marketplace realities. Auto Rental News recently reported that 54 percent of car rental revenue is generated by rental locations outside of airports, suggesting a large percentage of rentals by local residents and businesses. Additionally, a significant portion of airport rentals represent local companies bringing employees and other visitors to local offices. - more - NBTA, Top Five Car Rental Companies Meet on Taxes / page 2 Before enacting car rental taxes, communities should have the opportunity to make a decision armed with the knowledge that much of the revenue will come directly from the pockets of local citizens and the budgets of local businesses. Bob Salerno, President and COO, Cendant Car Rental Group, said, "Many of our customers have told us that they are fed up with high car rental taxes. We look forward to opening a dialogue with NBTA members and the business community at large to find solutions to this challenge. By engaging business and government leaders, we know we can find win-win solutions." “Local government represents the cornerstone of the United States, and we fully support the critical role that localities play in protecting consumer and citizen rights,” said Andy Taylor, Chairman and CEO of Enterprise Rent-A-Car. “However, with 78 car rental excise taxes in 37 states, and 45 more such taxes pending or under discussion, we must speak out on behalf of our customers. These arbitrary taxes unfairly single out our customers and potentially interfere with interstate commerce by hindering free trade in the nationwide car rental industry.” Bill Lobeck, CEO of Vanguard Car Rental USA Inc., the operator of both the National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car brands, said state and local government officials must be reminded that corporate travel is a cornerstone of the global economy, and leisure travel is critical to the financial vibrancy of their states and cities. "Our customers have been unfairly singled out to help subsidize sports stadiums and other municipal projects," Lobeck said. "We will continue to be good corporate citizens, but we feel that these unfair levies, arbitrarily put on our customers, are wrong and must not continue." "Taxing travelers has become big sport in cities throughout the United States," said Gary Paxton, President and CEO of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group, Inc. "Politicians like it because constituents believe such taxes affect out-of-towners, but the reality is that a huge portion of cars are rented by local citizens and businesses, who end up paying more than their fair share of the cost of the projects funded by these taxes. The public should understand the true nature of these taxes and should be outraged." - more - NBTA, Top Five Car Rental Companies Meet on Taxes / page 3 "It's fair for customers to ask why car rental taxes are so high and increasing," said Richard Broome, Vice President, Corporate Affairs, The Hertz Corporation. "Our view is that we can avoid that question by getting businesses, citizens, communities and elected officials involved in an open discussion on finding the right solutions for broad-based funding of important local initiatives." NBTA’s Connors added, “NBTA’s goal is to be the nexus between the general business community and the car rental companies to raise awareness of the negative impact of car rental excise taxes. We believe we can help cities and counties find sustainable, long-term solutions for funding important local projects without damaging the local economy.” NBTA President and CEO, Suzanne Fletcher, outlined NBTA’s approach to travel tax issues generally, saying, “Tax and fee hikes on all segments of the travel industry have snowballed in recent years, and our member companies say it’s cutting into their bottom lines. NBTA’s top government affairs priority is finding workable solutions to the challenge of travel tax creep.” The National Business Travel Association is the source for critical information on the business travel industry. For more than 35 years, NBTA has dedicated itself to the professional development of its members through advocacy, education and training, and networking opportunities. NBTA represents over 2,700 corporate and government travel managers and travel service providers, who collectively manage and direct more than $170 billion of expenditures within the business travel industry. For more on NBTA, visit www.nbta.org. ### .