ACTION ALERT: FAA Needs Your Help!
"Tourism is all grown up now; it doesn't need Visit Florida's help to flourish...."
- Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board November 27, 2019
Orlando ranks among the largest tourism destinations in the world. Aside from cancelling your subscription, how do you respond to the hometown newspaper's assertion that VISIT FLORIDA is not needed? You let your Senator and Representative know you expect their support.
As we all know, tourism is the largest industry in Florida with over 1 million employees and over $4 billion in sales tax revenue. Tourism is, and always has been, a powerful economic driver and promises to grow even stronger in the coming years.
As a member of the Florida Attraction Association (FAA), WE NEED YOUR HELP NOW to promote and advance the interests of the attractions industry in Florida. One of these interests is, VISIT FLORIDA and as a partner, FAA supports fully funding VISIT FLORIDA and supports extending the "sunset" during the upcoming Legislative Session.
VISIT FLORIDA was created by the Florida Legislature as a direct-support organization in 1996. In 2014, the Florida Legislature passed a bill that affected all direct-support organizations in the state, adding a paragraph to the laws governing all direct-support organizations (including VISIT FLORIDA's law) that automatically repeals each organization on a specific date unless it is "reviewed and saved from repeal" by the Florida Legislature. This is known as a "sunset provision." VISIT FLORIDA's is scheduled to "sunset" again on June 30, 2020.
Ask Your Legislator to Co-Sponsor the VISIT FLORIDA Legislation!
Representative Mel Ponder (R-Destin) filed HB 213 and Senator Ed Hooper (R-Palm Harbor) filed SB 362 to reauthorize VISIT FLORIDA until 2028, but HB 213 has not been placed on the agenda of the House Workforce Development & Tourism Subcommittee. It is critical that these bills be heard in all of the committees in both the House and the Senate in order for VISIT FLORIDA to have a chance to be reauthorized.
Unless BOTH of these bills are passed through their respective chambers, VISIT FLORIDA will cease to exist on June 30, 2020 and Florida's economic landscape will change forever.
HERE'S HOW TO HELP
Click on "Find Your Legislator" and enter your home address to find your State Senator and State Representative. Once you locate who represents you, PLEASE EMAIL them and ask them to CO-SPONSOR HB 213 if they are a member of the Florida House and SB 362 if they are a member of the Florida Senate. Explain how VISIT FLORIDA helps your facility and community and the overall tourism industry in Florida!
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