[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 81 (Wednesday, June 5, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H5822-H5823]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           TOURISM VITAL TO GUAM'S CONTINUED ECONOMIC GROWTH

  (Mr. UNDERWOOD asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. UNDERWOOD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to express my strong support 
for H.R. 2579, introduced by Congressman Toby Roth. I commend 
Representative Roth for his work on this legislation and for improving 
the visibility and understanding of travel and tourism issues in this 
Congress.
  The tourism industry is Guam's lifeblood and the engine of economic 
growth on our island. Last year, 1.3 million visitors came to Guam and 
2 million are expected to arrive by the end of the decade. The visitor 
industry last year contributed to the employment of about 19,000 people 
on Guam and represented about 40 percent of the private sector work 
force. For an island of 140,000, our economy has grown to over $3 
billion. And the visitor industry is vital to our continued economic 
growth.
  A Federal tourism strategy is the key to the long-term health of the 
tourist industry, and, with the closing of the U.S. Travel and Tourism 
Administration, there is currently a vacuum in this area. The National 
Tourism Organization established under H.R. 2579 would not only bring 
more visitors to the United States, but it would steer them toward 
American companies for every part of their trip. An aggressive plan to 
attract international tourists

[[Page H5823]]

is needed now, and I urge my colleagues to support Congressman Roth's 
efforts to expediently pass H.R. 2579.

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