Washington, D.C. – August 27, 2013?- The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA) announces the appointment of Vanessa Sinders as senior vice president of governmental affairs, effective September 16, 2013.
In this role, Sinders will oversee the association’s advocacy efforts on Capitol Hill and with key administration policymakers, and will be responsible for directing the governmental affairs department in the development and execution of key strategies for addressing the key issues facing the lodging industry, including immigration reform, tax, healthcare, and labor. She also will oversee the expansion of the association’s political action committee, HotelPAC, and grassroots program.
“I am thrilled to have Vanessa joining AH&LA and directing our advocacy efforts in Washington,” said Katherine Lugar, AH&LA president/CEO. “At a time when the lodging industry is facing a growing number of legislative and regulatory initiatives that are impacting the bottom lines of hoteliers, her vast policy and political experience and proven ability to work in a collaborative manner to drive results are of tremendous value. She will be an outstanding addition to our team, and our members will immediately begin to reap the benefits of her extensive congressional, campaign, and political experience as she takes the association’s advocacy program to the next level.”
Sinders comes to AH&LA from her previous position as chief of staff for the Campaign to Fix the Debt, a bipartisan organization advocating for a solution to the nation’s long-term debt problems. Prior to that, she was chief of staff for former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown (R), where she directed his legislative, communications, state, and constituent service efforts and managed all office operations in Washington, D.C. and Massachusetts. She was previously policy director for former New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg (R) and served as an analyst for the Senate Budget Committee.