[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 130 (Friday, September 25, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1811]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                 INTRODUCTION OF VISIT USA LEGISLATION

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                             HON. SAM FARR

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, September 25, 1998

  Mr. FARR of California. Mr. Speaker, as a cochair of the 
Congressional Travel and Tourism Caucus, I am honored today to 
introduce the ``Value in Supporting International Tourism in the United 
States Act of 1998'' or the ``Visit USA Act''. My caucus cochair, Rep. 
Mark Foley of Florida, joins me in dropping this important bill.
  Why do we need an NTO?
  The reason is simple--it makes good economic sense. The travel and 
tourism industry is one of the Nation's largest employers, providing 
16.2 million jobs. It directly employ 7 million people, and indirectly 
employs an additional 9.2 million Americans. 92 percent of the tourism 
industry is composed of small- and medium-sized businesses throughout 
every region of the country.
  The industry ranks as the first, second, or third largest employer in 
32 States and the District of Columbia, generating a total tourism-
related annual payroll of $127.9 billion.
  In my district on the central coast of California, it is the second 
largest industry, bringing in more than $2 billion and directly 
employing close to 26,000 residents.
  The industry has become the Nation's third-largest retail sales 
industry, generating a total of $489 billion in total expenditures. The 
industry generated $71.7 billion in tax revenues for federal, state, 
and local governments.
  While the private sector, States, and localities currently spend more 
than $1 billion annually to promote particular destinations within the 
United States to international visitors, the Federal Government spends 
zero dollars--zero dollars--promoting the United States as a tourist 
destination.
  In 1997, more than 54 million foreign visitors spent $98 billion in 
the United States. Imagine the benefits to our Nation's economy if we 
were to actively seek foreign visitors.
  In 1997, 17.9 million more people visited France than the United 
States. Yes, 17.9 million more people chose to visit France over the 
United States. One hundred nations around the world spend hundreds of 
millions of dollars annually to promote international tourism in their 
countries. And each year the United States loses more of its market 
share to nations actively promoting tourism. By dropping this bill, we 
hope to change this trend.
  The Visit USA Act will establish an Intergovernmental Task Force for 
International Visitor Assistance. The task force will examine signage 
and make suggestions where necessary to facilitate international 
visitors' travel in the United States. The task force will address the 
availability of multilingual travel and tourism information and the 
means of disseminating such information.
  The task force will also examine the feasibility of establishing a 
toll-free, private-sector operated, telephone number, staffed by 
multilingual operators, to provide emergency assistance to 
international tourists.
  Additionally, this legislation instructs the Secretary of Commerce to 
complete, as soon as may be practicable, a satellite system of 
accounting for the travel and tourism industry. The satellite system of 
accounting would provide Congress and the President with objective, 
thorough data that would help policymakers more accurately gauge the 
size and scope of the domestic travel and tourism industry and its 
significant impact on the health of the Nation's economy.
  Let me assure my colleagues who were skeptical of the NTO that this 
bill is not business as usual. The Visit USA Act requires the travel 
and tourism industry to match every public dollar spent on marketing 
the United States with private funds and requires the industry to pay 
the administrative expenses of the NTO.
  I encourage my colleagues to review this bill, think about the impact 
of the tourism industry in their district, and become a cosponsor of 
the Visit USA Act.

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