Collectively, this mature sector of the U.S. economy accounts for 2.6% of U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) and directly employs nearly 5.4 million Americans. The Travel Promotion, Enhancement, and Modernization Act of 2014 was incorporated into the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 ( P.L. 113-235 ), which extended the Brand USA program through September 30, 2020. A record 70 million foreign visitors traveled to the United States in 2013, making the United States the second-most popular destination for foreign visitors, after France. Output, which represents total sales related to travel and tourism, came to more than $850 billion in 2013. In recent Congresses, lawmakers have enacted and introduced legislation to provide assistance to tourism-related industries, and have held hearings on the effects of travel and tourism on the U.S. economy. 87-63), which established the U.S. Travel Service, later replaced by the U.S. Travel and Tourism Administration (USTTA) within the Department of Commerce, to advertise U.S. tourism destinations to international travelers. The Travel Promotion Act (TPA) launched a public-private partnership known as Brand USA to assist in financing an international advertising campaign for the United States as a travel destination. The effort is funded through a $10 fee added to the automated Electronic System Travel Authorization (ESTA) application assessed on each visitor from one of 38 countries, whose nationals may enter the United States without visas under the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). The federal contribution requires an annual matching contribution from the U.S. tourism industry, which can be a combination of cash and in-kind contributions such as advertising. Critics, including some Members of Congress, have questioned the efficacy of the Brand USA program, and dispute whether federal matching funds have been spent appropriately. In FY2013, nearly 20 million people entered under the VWP, accounting for more than one-third of all temporary visitors. In January 2012, President Obama signed Executive Order 13597, establishing a Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness. The task force was instructed to develop a set of national travel and tourism goals to increase international visitor volume to 100 million by the end of 2021. 2543 ), which would have prohibited "discriminatory" taxes on the rental of motor vehicles. The Conference Accountability Act of 2013 ( S. 1347 ), introduced in the 113 th Congress, would, among other things, have prohibited a federal agency from spending more than $500,000 on any single conference unless the head of the agency determined the expenditure to be "justified as the most cost-effective option to achieve a compelling purpose"; limited participation at conferences held outside the United States; and required agencies to post details of their conferences online. The travel and tourism industry is also affected by congressional action on a range of diverse policy issues, such as federal funding for national parks, forests, and historical sites that are managed by federal agencies and staffed by their employees; the minimum wage; and visa and immigration reform policy.
The U.S. travel and tourism industry accounted for 2.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2012 and directly employed nearly 5.4 million people in 2013. Tourism exports reached a record $215 billion in 2013, representing almost a third of total U.S. services exports. The sector has posted an annual trade surplus with the world for more than two decades. The Department of Commerce forecasts foreign visitor volume in the United States will reach nearly 90 million in 2019.
In 1996, Congress stopped funding the United States Travel and Tourism Administration (USTTA), which for 35 years promoted the United States as a tourist destination. In 2009, it established a public-private entity to promote U.S. tourism, the Corporation for Travel Promotion, which does business as Brand USA. The Travel Promotion Act of 2009 (TPA; P.L. 111-145) first authorized federal funds for Brand USA. The program is funded by a $10 user fee assessed on international visitors from more than three dozen visa waiver program countries and requires annual in-kind and cash matching contributions from the U.S. tourism industry. Brand USA can receive matching federal funds capped at $100 million annually. The program has been controversial, with some Members of Congress characterizing it as an inappropriate use of federal funds to benefit private entities. However, after considerable debate, the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015 (P.L. 113-235), signed into law by President Obama on December 16, 2014, extended Brand USA through September 30, 2020.
The Obama Administration in 2012 established a Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness, which was charged with developing and implementing a strategy to increase the annual number of international visitors to 100 million by 2021. Among other things, the task force has recommended expediting visa processing for tourists from certain emerging economies, such as China and Brazil, and expanding the Visa Waiver Program (VWP), which allows citizens from more than three dozen countries to travel to the United States without obtaining visas.
In recent Congresses, congressional committees have held hearings to assess the economic effects of travel and tourism on the U.S. economy. Legislation affecting travel and tourism addresses many different topics such as online gambling; safety and security aboard cruise ships; funding for national parks, forests, and historical sites; and taxes on the rental of motor vehicles. The tourism industry may also be strongly affected by homeland security and immigration legislation, including possible changes to the visa waiver program, with some lawmakers calling for its expansion and others for its suspension or elimination, which could make it more complex and costly for foreign visitors to enter the United States.