[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Pages 16625-16626]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          TRAVEL PROMOTION ACT

  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, I am pleased to speak in support of the 
Travel Promotion Act of 2007, which I introduced late yesterday with 
Senator Inouye and Senator Dorgan.
  Our legislation has a simple purpose: To increase the number of 
foreign tourists who visit the United States.
  To accomplish this goal, two complementary strategies must be 
undertaken: existing travel problems must be resolved, and fundamental 
improvements must be made to the manner in which we market our country 
to prospective tourists.
  First, the efficiency of our border entry and screening processes 
must be improved. The Commerce Committee recently held two hearings on 
this issue, and industry leaders testified about the adverse effect 
September 11, 2001, has had on travel to the United States.
  Heightened security measures implemented after 9/11, while necessary, 
continue to inconvenience many travelers. We heard witnesses describe 
the aforementioned difficulties international visitors face with regard 
to our Nation's entry and screening processes, including the issuance 
of visas.
  To address these problems, the Senate has already passed legislation 
that establishes a ``Model Ports'' program at the 20 busiest 
international airports in the United States. This program should reduce 
bottlenecks to safely and efficiently move travelers through the 
screening process.
  The legislation we introduced yesterday, the Travel Promotion Act, 
would establish a nonprofit corporation to promote travel to the United 
States. This entity would not use one cent of taxpayer funds.
  Instead, this corporation will be funded by fees paid by travelers 
who enter our country and matching contributions from members of the 
travel and tourism industry.
  The corporation would be led by experts in the travel and tourism 
industry, appointed by the Secretary of Commerce, and held accountable 
by Congress. This essential step will let foreign visitors know that 
our country is open to tourists.
  The travel and tourism industry plays an important role in every 
State. Those of us in Congress should take steps to resolve these 
pressing issues and encourage tourists to visit America.

[[Page 16626]]

  In my home State of Alaska, the travel and tourism industry is the 
second largest private sector employer. More than 24,000 Alaskans hold 
tourism-related jobs, and the industry contributes more than $2 billion 
to our State's economy each year.
  I look forward to working with my colleagues on this legislation.

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