OAAA @ IBO
OAAA attended and was a conference presenter at the spring Independent Billboard Operators (IBO) gathering in Louisville. The session informed attendees on the growth of OOH spending in the cannabis category – $56M in 2023 – and the importance of advocacy before state legislatures to ensure continued advertising opportunities.
OAAA at IBO in Louisville
Congress – Privacy
Key committee leaders released a legislative draft to establish an overarching federal privacy law. The bipartisan draft would establish federal parameters for data privacy protection, create a private right of action, and supersede individual state privacy laws. While the draft mirrors one offered in the previous Congress, the proposal may have new momentum given the other data privacy bills passed recently by Congress.
Congress – TikTok
As part of a foreign aid funding package, Congress included language that will ban the TikTok app in the U.S. in one-year, unless they divest from Chinese parent company ByteDance. Lawmakers are concerned with national security and potential access by the Chinese government to the personal data of 150M U.S. TikTok users. The U.S. currently has the most TikTok users of any country, and generates $8B in annual advertising revenue.
Congress – Tribute
Rep. Donald Payne, Jr. (NJ) passed away following an extended hospitalization. Payne was a senior leader on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee (T&I) and was very well respected in Congress. OUTFRONT Media in Newark ran a touching digital billboard tribute to Payne on behalf of the industry.
Tribute to Rep. Payne in New Jersey
Federal – DOL
The U.S. Dept. of Labor (DOL) issued final rules for workplace non-compete clauses. The DOL action will ban all future non-compete agreements and render current agreements non-enforceable, with an exception for Senior Executives. The federal requirements apply to all workers and take effect in 120 days.
Federal – EEOC
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) released final rules for how employers treat pregnancy in the workplace. The rules apply to all businesses with 15 or more employees and will take effect June 18. The requirements are extensive with employers needing to provide a range of “reasonable accommodations” to pregnant workers.
States – Ad Tax
On the final day of their legislative session, the Nebraska legislature failed to move forward on Gov. Jim Pillen’s property tax relief package. The broad proposal included a 7.5% excise tax on digital online advertising as a revenue generator to pay for the property tax provisions. The Governor stated his intention to call a special session this summer to revisit the issue. OAAA is part of a national coalition of advertising interests who advocated against the ad tax language.