[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 137 (Saturday, September 28, 1996)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1816]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE TRAVEL AND TOURISM PARTNERSHIP ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. RON LEWIS

                              of kentucky

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 27, 1996

  Mr. LEWIS of Kentucky. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased that, yesterday, 
this body strongly supported H.R. 2579, the Travel and Tourism 
Partnership Act. This bill will establish a public--private 
organization to promote the tourism industry, which employs many folks 
in my district and over 7 million Americans nationwide. By combining 
public resources and private sector know how, we can find ways to 
promote tourism in the United States, create jobs and improve our 
economy.
  I suspect that many of my colleagues have not traveled to the Second 
District, so I want to extend an open invitation to visit some of our 
public and private attractions such as:
  My Old Kentucky Home State Park, located near Historic Bardstown, KY.
  We have beautiful vacation areas such as Taylorsville Lake, Rough 
River Dam Park, Green River Lake, Nolin Lake, Barren River Lake.
  Come see the birthplace of one of our greatest Presidents, Abraham 
Lincoln, which is now a beautiful Federal park, in Hodgenville, KY.
  Or you may want to visit the many cave attractions such as Kentucky 
Down Under and Kentucky Caverns, or the American Cave Museum and Hidden 
River Cave, and of course, Mammoth Cave in Edmonson County.
  The Second District is also home to the one and only Corvette Museum 
in Bowling Green, the International Bluegrass Museum in Owensboro, and 
the Museum of Coca-Cola Memorabilia in Elizabethtown.
  And you will want to experience Fort Knox, the home of the National 
Gold Depository and the General Patton Museum.
  Two years ago, I used this bill as a model to establish a Travel and 
Tourism Roundtable within the Second District. Since that time, the 
roundtable has tried to meet on a quarterly basis, bringing together 
representatives from tourism associations, commissions, and attractions 
in the Second District. Our meetings have provided an important forum 
to discuss initiatives that will collectively promote our beautiful and 
historic area of Kentucky.
  On October 7, our roundtable will host a day long seminar with 
discussions from national tourism industry representatives, State 
officials, and local tourism experts. Our seminar will provide an 
opportunity to discuss positive tourism efforts underway and to share 
ideas for the future. I am looking forward to this event which, in the 
spirit of H.R. 2579, will combine private and public tourism interests, 
establish better working relationships within the industry, and lead to 
positive solutions to advance tourism throughout the Second District.
  Again, I strongly support the creation of a National Travel and 
Tourism Board to establish on the national level, the same successful 
cooperation we have seen so far in the Second District.

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