Travel Promotion Act

May 21, 2009

Reno Gazette-Journal: Nevada’s Congressional Delegation Delegation Seeks Way to Boost Tourism

Excerpt: Congress is scrambling to pass legislation to revive the recession-battered travel industry in Nevada and other states...A key Senate committee this week passed a bipartisan bill by Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., to step up efforts to market the U.S. to other nations. The Travel Promotion Act, co-sponsored by Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., won unanimous approval from the Senate commerce committee.

The bill, expected to be passed soon by the full Senate, would create a public- private partnership funded by private donations and small fees charged to some foreign tourists. International travel to the U.S. is down 10 percent this year compared to this time last year, according to the Commerce Department.

The U.S. spends only a fraction of what most developed nations do on self-promotion for tourism. Canada spends $58 million a year compared to just $6 million for the United States, according to the World Travel Organization.

Ellen Oppenheim, president and CEO of the Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority, said passage of the Travel Promotion Act would help the Reno area by bringing in foreign tourists, who typically spend about four times as much as domestic travelers do. The Reno visitors authority has worked with other travel groups in recent years to increase the number of visitors to the area from China, Western Europe, Canada and Mexico. But a nationally coordinated campaign to promote America abroad could do much more, Oppenheim said. 'We're losing billions of tourist dollars to other countries,' she said. 'The Travel Promotion Act could help turn that around.'