It has been some time since a legislative report has been sent to the entire Missouri Travel Council membership, however a lot of things have been going on over the past month. Both chambers of the Missouri General Assembly gave final approval this week to budget bills that include FULL funding of the Missouri Division of Tourism at $17.8 million.

The plan, designed chiefly by Senate Appropriations Chairman John Russell of Lebanon and Senator Doyle Childers of Reed Spring, injected $2.8 million above what had previously been appropriated. Estimated state tax revenues from that extra money was then inserted in the revenue side of the budget, meaning that for every dollar cut, $2.92 would need to be cut from revenue. A conference committee between Senate and House budget makers gave its approval last week, with the full House approving the measure earlier this week. The Senate gave its unanimous approval to the budget bill around 8 p.m. Thursday evening.

The bills were then sent to the Governor, who has the right to sign or reject them. We should know the governor's decision within the next few weeks.

Over the past three years, tourism and travel industry members have been very diligent in working to preserve funding for tourism, arguing that every dollar spent on tourism generates revenue within the state and tax revenue for other state government programs. Thanks goes to all of you who have taken time to visit with legislators about the important role tourism plays in Missouri's economy. A special thanks should go to Senators Russell and Childers for their persistence in pursuing the return of full funding for the Division of Tourism. Missouri Travel Council legislative consultant Dale Amick worked closely with the budget handlers to shore up support for the full funding plan.

We will send out a legislative report next week outlining the progress of other key legislative issues.

Gary
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