With the House heading back to Washington, D.C., to vote on a government funding package, U.S. Travel, Airlines for America, and the American Hotel & Lodging Association issued the following joint statement:
"We saw firsthand how government shutdowns significantly disrupt travel and hurt our economy last year. The 2025 shutdown had an economic impact of $6 billion—nearly $140 million per day—and negatively impacted more than 6 million passengers.
“When air traffic controllers and TSA officers are forced to work without pay, it strains an already under resourced aviation system and sends ripple effects across the entire travel ecosystem.
“We implore the House to act with urgency to vote on the package that the Senate passed on Friday so that vital government agencies can re-open and frontline federal workers—including controllers and TSA officers—can be paid for the important work they do. It’s up to the House to pass these measures to prevent significant disruptions, protect travelers, and maintain confidence in the U.S. air travel system.
“Congress must also pursue solutions to guarantee that TSA officers and air traffic controllers are paid regardless of future funding lapses. The Aviation Funding Solvency Act (H.R. 6086) and the Aviation Funding Stability Act (S. 1045) would ensure air traffic controllers and other critical FAA employees get paid during shutdowns and would use funds already paid into the system. These are common sense proposals that have bipartisan support and should be passed swiftly.”
In other AHLA news, the Departments of Homeland Security and Labor last week published a temporary rule that will allow up to 64,716 supplemental H-2B visas to be released in FY 2026, as authorized by Congress. This comes after an intense, behind-the-scenes AHLA lobbying effort to share the industry’s needs with key officials, including inviting many of our members to speak directly with DHS leaders, according to a statement from AHLA President Rosanna Maietta.
The visas will be distributed in three allocations based on the petitioner’s start date of need:
- 18,490 immediately available to returning workers who held H-2B status in FY 2023, 2024, or 2025, and whose employers need them between Jan. 1 and March 31.
- 27,736 visas, plus any unused in the first allocation, available to returning workers who held H-2B status in FY 2023, 2024, or 2025, and whose employers need them to begin between April 1 and April 30.
- 18,490 visas, plus any unused in the first two allocations, available to workers whose employers need them to begin work between May 1 and Sept. 30, 2026. This allocation will not be restricted to returning workers.
H2B visas are critically important tools to ensure that our hotels are prepared to meet seasonal demand – especially as the industry prepares to welcome travelers for mega-events like the FIFA World Cup and America250. These supplemental visas will help our members maintain the level of service guests expect.
AHLA has long supported the release of additional workforce visas, advocating for legislation that would raise outdated statutory limits. The association said it will continue to urge Congress to modernize the H-2B program through a needs-based allocation approach, make commonsense reforms that reduce red tape for returning workers, and pursue workable solutions that grow the legal labor pool while protecting U.S. workers and supporting local economies.