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Internet Travel Monitor - Events & Legislation
August 29, 2007
TIA Pushes U.S. Promotion in Legislative Agenda
WASHINGTON, DC – The Travel Industry Association of America will put on a full-court press on Capitol Hill after the August recess in support of legislation to promote travel to the U.S.
In a roundtable discussion with Aviation Week reporters in Washington last week, TIA President and CEO Roger Dow said the top legislative priority for the association is to generate momentum for S.1661 and H.R.3232, similar versions of The Travel Promotion Act of 2007. The intent is to create a public/private partnership to promote travel to the U.S. abroad, with the federal government providing up to $200 million annually in matching funds to the travel industry that would come from a $10 fee paid by foreign visitors from Visa Waiver Program countries. The Senate bill has already passed the Commerce Committee.
About 1,000 TIA members who will be in town for a Leadership Summit on Sept. 27 will be asked to lobby hard for the legislation. Dow says TIA has had some productive meetings with airline members, and he believes the association has made progress in convincing airlines of the need for international promotion.
Under the pending legislation, a non-profit corporation for travel promotion would be formed, with seats on the board for airline representatives, and others in the travel industry.
Travel to the U.S. from overseas markets has fallen off in the last few years, dropping to 21.7 million last year from 26 million in 2000. The U.S. does not spend any money to promote itself internationally, with the exception of a $4 million appropriation that will be reduced to zero next year, according to TIA. Meanwhile, countries such as Spain spend $120 million, Australia $113 million, France $63 million and Germany $39 million. The U.S. captured just 6% of the world market share for visitors last year, down from 9% in 1992. And this year, the U.S. for the first time fell to the fourth most popular country destination, with China beating it to the third spot.
Another priority of the TIA will be to obtain a $40 million appropriation, now in the DHS spending bill in the Senate, to create a Model Airports Program at the 20 U.S. airports receiving the most overseas inbound travelers. The money would go toward adding U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at those airports, as well as for training and other means to improve the visitor's experience.
The TIA has been working for two years on developing the program at Washington Dulles and Houston airports. Rick Webster, TIA's VP-government affairs, says progress has been slow. However, after a meeting last week at Dulles with airlines, the airport authority and Customs officials, Webster says TIA is encouraged by a renewed commitment to cooperate.
Tied into these facilitation issues is the International Registered Traveler (IRT) Program. Legislation to establish the program, which would expedite the inspection of frequent U.S. visitors, is awaiting conference committee. The program was initially expected to be rolled out at New York Kennedy Airport, and the equipment is sitting in that airport waiting to be used, Webster says.
The TIA wants the Transportation Security Administration to play a more robust role in speeding travelers through airport lines. The TIA has offered the Dept. of Homeland Security in the past meetings with The Walt Disney Company, a TIA member, to assist with planning more efficient security queues; missing connecting flights in the U.S. after coming off of an international flight is the number one problem for inbound travelers. The TIA also continues to press for a maximum 30-day wait for visa approval under the Visa Waiver Program.
Copyright 2007 The McGraw Hill Companies, Inc. All rights
reserved. From http://www.aviationweek.com. By Jennifer Michels.
To view the Internet Travel Monitor Archive, click http://www.tripinfo.com/ITM/index.html.
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