Wright Amendment
The cities of Fort Worth and Dallas and the two major airlines based there, Southwest and
American, have made an important compromise agreement on the controversial Wright Amendment. They have agreed to roll back the restrictions thus
ending one of the longest feuds in North Texas. The deal still must be approved by Congress before the end of the year to take
effect. However the compromise is a significant step toward finally ending this dispute that has continued since the amendment's
inception in 1979.
Key points of the agreement include:
- The immediate availability of through ticketing (connecting flights to Love Field through a Wright Amendment
state from anywhere)
- Direct flights from Love Field to anywhere in the U.S. will be allowed eight years after legislation is
enacted.
The Chamber has long held that the reform or the repeal of the Wright Amendment would be good
for Nashville, particularly for our business travelers and incoming tourists who are forced to pay unusually high prices for flights to and from
Dallas. We will keep you posted as this agreement is debated by legislators.
Music City
Center
This week the Music City Center Coalition and the
Nashville Convention Center Commission celebrated the retirement of the Nashville Convention Center's original construction bonds.
The construction bonds which totaled $39.5 million have been paid down each year using revenue generated from conventions hosted in
Nashville, not by Nashville residents. This is proof that a convention center in Nashville can be successfully paid for by
visitors.
The Chamber feels that in addition to the new state
legislation forming the Tourist Development Zone that there are adequate revenue sources in existence to fund a new convention center at no cost to
Nashville residents. The new facility is predicted to create thousands more jobs for local residents and about 1 million more visitors to
Nashville each year (with an estimated $700 million in new visitor spending).
The Board of Governors of the Nashville Area
Chamber of Commerce has voted unanimously to support the Music City Center. For more information about the Music City Center and how to get involved
click here.
Death Tax
The U.S. House has approved a permanent tax cut on large, inherited estates.
Congressional tax experts say the law would reduce the amount of estates subject to the tax from 30,000 in 2004 to 5,100 in 2011.
Too many businesses, especially farmers and small enterprises, are forced to shut down in order to pay the estate taxes when the head of
household dies. The death tax, which can be as high as 55% of the total value of the estate or business, is due nine months after the date of
death.
The Chamber has long supported the complete repeal of
the Death Tax. We applaud the House for taking this first step toward reform.
Contact Us
Click
here to contact the Chamber's Government Relations Staff.
