The RV industry in the U.S. injects $140 billion per year to the economy and employs more than 678,000 people, generating more than $13 billion in tax revenue. RVs Move America week, which is this week, is all about making sure the politicians in Washington D.C., are aware of the clout this industry carries and its importance to a large portion of Americans.
“The RV industry is an integral part of the American economy,” said RV Industry Association Vice President of Government Affairs Jason Rano. “We’re looking forward to explaining to Congress how vital legislation can enable us to play an even greater role in supporting rural communities, conserving state and federal parklands, and contributing to the physical and mental well-being of their constituents.”
Dozens of representatives from all aspects of the industry are in the nation’s capital this week, with their focus on several key, specific issues that directly affect the industry and the millions of RVers it represents.
America’s Outdoors Recreation Act
With 72 million Americans planning an RV trip this year, the demand for camping infrastructure is higher than ever. The 2020 Great American Outdoors Act was an important first step towards addressing longstanding maintenance backlogs negatively impacting public lands, but the 2023 America’s Outdoor Recreation Act (S.873) expands upon this by:
- Providing technical and financial assistance to gateway community campgrounds;
- Extending public land shoulder seasons;
- Bringing much-needed broadband/WiFi to front-country sites; and
- Establishing pilot programs to create jobs and help strained federal land agencies sustainably reopen, operate, and modernize campgrounds across the country.
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources unanimously approved this legislation in May. RV industry reps will be recruiting other members of the Senate to cosponsor and support its passage. On the House side, the Natural Resources Committee is considering several bills that are for inclusion in an outdoor recreation package that may be considered this year, and House embers will be urged to support this outdoor recreation package as it comes together.
Farm Bill
Outdoor recreation in rural communities is a significant driver for economic development, growth and resiliency across the country. Legislation to reauthorize federal agriculture programs every five years, known as the “Farm Bill,” provides an opportunity to help these communities respond to an increased demand for outdoor recreation through technical assistance and funding. Provisions within the Farm Bill can also ensure that the U.S. Forest Service is accounting for outdoor recreation in its strategic planning.
Reauthorization of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP)
The RV industry relies on GSP, the longest-running U.S. trade preference program, to import very thin plywood made exclusively from a tropical tree known as lauan from Indonesia, duty-free. Most RVs use this plywood.
There is currently an 8% tariff on this product, which is costing the RV industry roughly $1.5 million per month – between $17 million and $19 million a year. Unfortunately, the program expired on Dec. 31, 2020, and the industry is currently burdened by import duties while also facing issues related to inflation.
In recent history, the GSP has been renewed for a brief three years, including retroactive relief for the period lapsed. Retroactivity, while absolutely vital, in practice, shortens the brief three-year renewal periods, making each reauthorization shorter and leading to uncertainty for American businesses.
The House and Senate both supported a longer GSP renewal term in 2022 – four years and six years, respectively. Our RV industry reps will be asking them to retroactively reauthorize the GSP program for a six-year or longer renewal term.
Competitive Need Limitations (CNL)
Competitive need limitations are built-in import ceilings under the GSP program that eliminate duty-free access to the U.S. market for products that exceed them, even if there is no domestic alternative or concerns that imports harm a U.S. industry. An import loses GSP eligibility when imports of a certain product from a certain country either account for 50% or more of the value of total U.S. imports of that product or exceed a certain dollar value.
The 2023 value cap is $210 million, which increases by $5 million annually. But this limit hurts imports of products like lauan. The Competitive Need Limitations Update Act introduced last Congress would have increased the threshold to $500 million and allowed for the threshold to increase annually by 6.5%. It also would have granted the U.S. Trade Representative the authority to waive the threshold if the situation warrants.
This Congress, the RV industry is seeking the introduction of an updated version of this act that includes changes to the volume threshold, e.g., for products such as the Indonesian-grown lauan, for which there is no domestic alternative, the 50% volume limitation should not apply. RV industry reps will be asking members to support modernizing competitive need limitations by increasing the dollar threshold by a value that matches inflation and by removing the volume limitation for products that are only available in a limited geographic area.
Travel Trailer and Camper Tax Parity Act
While dealer inventory financing interest charges on motorhomes remains fully deductible, since 2017, towable RVs – that now constitute more than 85% of the RVs on the market , have been limited to deductions of 30% of interest expenses based on earnings before interest and tax. This RV motorhome/towable distinction is unfair and was not the Congressional intent behind changing the definition of “motor vehicle.”
Members of the House and Senate will be asked to support the Travel Trailer and Camper Tax Parity Act that has already been introduced in the House, ensuring that towable RVs are included in the floor plan interest financing deductibility provisions of the tax code and establishing language that would include all RVs in the definition of “motor vehicle.”
Our RV Champions
Finally, the RV industry representatives will be seeking to build a powerful congressional alliance by urging the members with whom they meet to join the RV Caucus, co-chaired in the Senate by Sen. Angus King (I-Maine) and Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa), and in the House, by Rep. Rudy Yakym (R-Indiana-2) and Rep. Dina Titus (D-Nevada-1). As RV Caucus members, they will provide critical support for and educate their congressional colleagues about future issues around tariffs, federal housing definitions and campground modernization and expansion.
