The travel and hospitality industries were given a reason for optimism with the enactment in early March of the Travel Promotion Act. The Travel Promotion Act will levy a fee on international visitors for the purpose of funding marketing efforts to promote the U.S. The fees are expected to amount to $8 million per month, which will fund the formation of the Corporation for Travel Promotion. As a result, the Travel Promotion Act is expected to have a positive budgetary impact and will actually help reduce the federal deficit.

The U.S. Travel Association has also announced its support of an additional piece of legislation designed to increase domestic travel and tourism. The Travel Regional Investment Partnership (TRIP) Act (H.R. 4676) would create a matching grant program to be administered by the U.S. Department of Commerce that would promote domestic tourism through local and regional partnerships. Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association, said the TRIP Act will be “a great vehicle to take advantage of travel’s enormous power to stimulate the economy and create jobs in our local communities.”

For more details on the Travel Promotion Act and the TRIP Act, please visit the U.S. Travel Association’s website.

Tim Schneider
Schneider Publishing Company

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