By Tom McClimon
September 27, 2004

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved $20 million to fund the U.S. Travel and Tourism Promotion Advisory Board as part of the Commerce-Justice'state appropriations bill for fiscal year 2005. The $20 million would fund the Travel and Tourism Advisory Board in its efforts to market the United States as a destination of choice. This amount restores a portion of the funds that were rescinded earlier this year.

The travel and tourism industry also received recognition when legislation was introduced calling for the creation of an Undersecretary for Local Government and Tourism within the Department of Homeland Security. The House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Aviation included this language in its markup of the 9/11 Commission recommendations bill.