Reviving Travel and Tourism in the Gulf Coast Region

*A Report by the U.S. Travel and Tourism Advisory Board*

The following recommendations are designed to leverage targeted
government actions in order to unleash the power of private industry --
particularly travel and tourism -- to drive the long term recovery of
the Gulf region.

We believe that the recovery must ultimately be driven by the private
sector, working with state and local governments, if it is to be strong
and permanent. We also believe that the Federal government has an
important role to play in addressing certain barriers that impede the
private sector's ability to drive the recovery. Once these barriers are
removed, the travel and tourism industry will serve as a powerful engine
of recovery in the region, creating jobs, economic growth and
revitalizing the cultural identity of the Gulf Coast.

In talks with professionals in both government and industry who have a
first-hand, on-the-ground knowledge of the situation, we have identified
two primary barriers to recovery in the travel and tourism industry:

-   Negative perceptions of the region that continue to be driven by the
    media.

-   Inability to hire employees due to lack of available housing

**[PERCEPTION]{.underline}**

From the point of view of travel and tourism, the intensive media
coverage of the hurricanes and their aftermath amounted to thousands of
hours of negative advertising. Who, after all, wants to take a vacation
or schedule a business convention in a disaster area?

Even today, media reports on the region remain almost exclusively
centered on the devastation caused by the hurricanes and the despair
they left in their wake. Television stories almost invariably re-play
file footage of flooded streets and wind-torn terrain. According to a
recent survey of key national markets conducted on behalf of the
Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, likely visitors
believe that the region remains unsafe, toxic and flooded:[^1]

-   About 40% of those surveyed believe that some neighborhoods are
    still flooded.

-   Almost half those surveyed in Houston -- one of New Orleans' two
    largest tourist markets -- believe that the water is unsafe to
    drink.

-   One-quarter of all respondents believe that the air is contaminated
    and poses a health risk.

-   About half believe there is a lack of police presence due to the
    storm.

-   About half believe that the historic districts, such as the French
    Quarter, are severely damaged or destroyed.

For instance, despite the fact that almost the entire visitor experience
in New Orleans remains intact -- from the original Historic New Orleans,
to the French Quarter and other attractions, museums, tours, restaurants
and clubs -- the city's most likely visitors are canceling booked
engagements and staying away in droves, due largely to misperceptions of
the conditions on the ground and fear of another bad hurricane season.

Similar misperceptions plague the ability of Mississippi and the entire
gulf coast to attract vital tourism dollars. Ironically, local
Convention and Visitor Bureaus (CVBs) that rely on hotel, restaurant and
other tourism taxes find themselves starved for revenue at the very time
they most need advertising to market their attractions.

Clearly, the region needs help in restoring its *image* if it is going
to be able to restore its *culture* and *economy*. With help it can
effectively market itself to the national audience, overcome the media
storm of negative publicity, and reestablish itself once again as a
destination of choice for America's businesses and millions of
vacationing families.

Congress and the Administration have already appropriated significant
funds for disaster relief, including the targeted tax relief and other
initiatives of last December's Gulf Opportunity Zone legislation.
Meanwhile, Louisiana has requested an additional \$1.579 billion to
rebuild the state's tourism and cultural economy.[^2] In important
areas, however, funding for marketing and rebuilding of the tourism
industry has not been made available, and the need for immediate action
is critical.

The good news is that investments in marketing produce highly leveraged
results. In Louisiana, research has shown than every dollar spent on
advertising returned almost \$14 in state taxes[^3], which indicates
even greater benefits to employment and overall economic growth.
Furthermore, many of the action items outlined here require no
additional funding to be carried out.

We applaud Secretary Gutierrez for leading the "Gulf Coast Business
Investment Mission" together with Donald Powell on May 4-5 to highlight
investment opportunities in the Gulf Coast. This is exactly the kind of
positive awareness and publicity the region so desperately needs. The
following are other suggested action items that we believe could have a
strong positive impact.

These targeted action items are intended to leverage the power of
private industry to power a full and sustained recovery.

-   **Market the Region**. We recommend that the Secretary work with
    Congress, the White House and appropriate federal agencies to make
    immediate funding available for activities including TV, radio,
    online and print advertising, along with other marketing activities,
    in order to spur short-term and future bookings. Special attention
    should be given to local Convention and Visitor Bureaus whose
    revenues are dependent on tourism taxes that have evaporated as
    tourism itself has dried up. Unfortunately, last December's Gulf
    Opportunity Zone legislation left this need unaddressed. As Craig
    Ray, Director of the Mississippi Authority/Tourism Division points
    out, their bureau has had to lay off 90% of its workers and the rest
    are working from home or out of FEMA trailers. They have practically
    no funds to get the positive message out.

-   **Strengthen Cultural Attractions and Businesses.** We recommend
    that the Secretary also endorse the immediate funding proposal put
    forth by the State of Louisiana for \$50 million in small business
    grants for the tourism and cultural industries, which might
    otherwise be unable to secure funding in the near term.[^4]A large
    part of enticing visitors back to the region is to have the
    high-profile attractions up and running. It is difficult to ask
    visitors to come back if the attractions they once came to see are
    not open for business.

-   **Bring Meetings and Conventions Back.** We recommend that the
    Administration endorse a time-limited expanded deduction of up to
    150% for all business conventions and corporate meetings in the GO
    region, to sunset on December 31, 2008. Corporate participation in
    association meetings could be stimulated by a similar expanded
    deductibility of 125 % for associated expenses of corporations
    exhibiting at such meetings, as these corporations would not
    otherwise be eligible for the expanded deduction. Tourism officials
    in New Orleans estimate that over \$2 billion of booked convention
    business has been cancelled since Katrina.[^5] A tax break of this
    magnitude would help re-focus corporate America on the Gulf region
    as a destination of choice and probably pay for itself in increased
    revenue from ancillary expenditures and economic revival.

-   **Accelerate the Cleanup**. We recommend that FEMA-reimbursable
    expenses for debris clean up, set to expire in June,[^6] be extended
    for at least one year. The unsightly debris left by the hurricanes
    continues to litter the region's most attractive tourist
    destinations. Unfortunately, this is an all-to-real image that will
    continue to keep visitors away, and the economy from revival, until
    it is thoroughly addressed. That takes time, however, and we urge
    the Administration to extend the deadline, given the unprecedented
    extent of the disaster.

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   **High-Profile Vacations.** When high-profile government officials
    visit the Gulf Region, cameras follow. Unfortunately, visits to date
    have necessarily focused on the hardest hit areas. We recommend that
    officials such as the President and Secretary of Commerce balance
    tours of stricken areas with vacation activities that highlight the
    areas that *are* open for business \-- perhaps a stroll through the
    French Quarter, dining at restaurants and listening to music, a
    golfing and fishing trip, or even a "Spring Break" on Mississippi's
    Gulf beaches. For instance, Secretary Gutierrez' "Gulf Coast
    Business Investment Mission" on May 4^th^ and 5^th^ just happens to
    coincide with "Jazz Fest." We urge the Secretary to put a visit to
    "Jazz Fest" on his itinerary as a way to focus media attention on
    the positive story of recovery. After 9/11, Barbara Bush took a
    commercial airline flight to demonstrate that air travel was once
    again safe and convenient. Similarly, the message of these trips
    should be: the Gulf is back, it's fun, and it's open for business.

-   **Get the Positive Story Out.** We recommend that the Secretary use
    his personal prestige to brief the editors of major television and
    press outlets on the importance of projecting accurate and
    up-to-date information on the region and urge them to also tell the
    positive story. As part of this effort, we recommend that the
    Secretary of Commerce create a special task force within the
    Commerce Department to assemble such information and become a
    clearing house for media interest on the issue.

**[HOUSING]{.underline}**

The other immediate barrier to recovery is the lack of available
temporary housing for employees in the travel, tourism and culture
industries. Travel and tourism is one of the most labor intensive
industries: without workers to cook and serve the food, service the
rooms, guide the tours, perform the music and entertain in general, the
industry will never be able to get back on its feet and the regional
economy will be caught in an inescapable cycle of decline.

Further exacerbating the problem is that schools and daycare facilities
are not up and running -- so even if working parents have housing, they
may not have care for their children. Additionally, FEMA employees,
insurance adjusters, and other recovery workers are presently housed in
the region's hotels (along with the hotel employees themselves). Once
these relief workers leave, occupancy levels will drop drastically
because tourists and travelers are not filling the gaps.

Clearly, housing is a critical and immediate need across the board in
the Gulf Region, and Congress and the Administration have responded with
both immediate assistance and a package of tax incentives and relief
funds. For the millions who have lost their homes, in whatever industry
they work, there is certainly no greater imperative than a chance to
begin rebuilding their lives and communities.

As this massive effort goes forward, however, we would urge the
Administration to pay particular attention the critical issue of housing
workers in the businesses that will drive the leading edge of the
recovery. The need is particularly acute among culture industry
employees -- the artists, musicians, performers, designers, non-profits
and small cultural businesses -- who cannot demonstrate the ability to
repay the SBA loans that have been approved, as their venues and
audiences were wiped away with the storm. To this effect:

-   **Temporary Housing for Employees.** We urge the Secretary of
    Commerce to create a joint task force with the Department of Housing
    and Urban Development and other applicable federal agencies to work
    with state and local governments to resolve the pressing need for
    temporary shelter for travel, tourism and culture employees.

-   **Publicize Existing Tax Incentives.** Launch efforts to publicize
    and make employers aware of the 30% housing credit for
    employer-provided housing included in the Gulf Opportunity Zone Act.
    At present, too few are even aware of this vital provision, let
    alone taking advantage of it.

In conclusion, we stand ready to assist the Secretary, the
Administration and Congress in what must be a continuing and concerted
effort to revive one of this country's most cherished regions and the
vital natural resource of its travel and tourism industry. The extent of
the natural disaster of the hurricanes is unprecedented, but we have no
doubt that the people of the region, with timely and well-placed
assistance, can rise to the occasion and bring their economies back to
the vibrant and growing state of health they enjoyed in the days before
the storm.

**APPENDIX I**

**The Travel and Tourism Industry**

A Vital Component of Economic Recovery in the Gulf Region

No industry has been more immediately affected by the devastation
wrought by Hurricane's Katrina, Rita and Wilma, and no industry is more
vital to the region's economic rebirth than travel and tourism.

The following numbers demonstrate the key economic role of travel and
tourism and give the latest estimates of the on-going damage the
hurricanes continue to inflict on the industry and the region as a
whole:

[The Region]{.underline}

-   Approximately 18% of total employment for Louisiana, Mississippi and
    Alabama, or one out of every five jobs, are travel and tourism
    specific, and have been impacted by the hurricanes.[^7]

```{=html}
<!-- -->
```
-   In 2004, there were \$18.3 billion in total sales in major
    travel-related industries, or about \$50 million a day.[^8]

-   Those sales supported 260,000 jobs and \$3.7 billion in payroll
    income for these travel-related industries.[^9]

[Mississippi: State of the Recovery]{.underline}

+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+
| **Indicator**         | **Post-Katrina**      | **Pre-Katrina**     |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+
| Hotel/Motel Rooms     | 5,690                 | 15,959              |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+
| Restaurants           | 155                   | 333                 |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+
| Hospitality Workers   | 15,300                | 31,630              |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+
| Visitors              | 4.6 million           | 9.6 million         |
|                       |                       |                     |
|                       | (10 months)           | (12 months)         |
+-----------------------+-----------------------+---------------------+

-   It is projected that Mississippi's Tourism Industry will suffer an
    approximately one-quarter (24%) loss for the July 2005 to June 2006
    time period.[^10]

-   That translates into a loss of some 22,000 direct and 8,000 indirect
    tourism jobs, for a total statewide employment loss of 30,000.[^11]

-   State and local tourism taxes are expected to decrease 20 to 23
    percent, and tourism's "total value added" to the State economy is
    expected to decline by one-half billion dollars.[^12]

[Louisiana: State of the Recovery]{.underline}

-   Tourism is the second largest industry in the state and the largest
    in New Orleans, accounting for more than 175,000 direct jobs and
    almost 76,000 indirect jobs.. [^13]

-   Louisiana has already lost more than \$1 billion in travel and
    tourism since Katrina.[^14]

-   Since the storms, The New Orleans region is losing an average of
    \$15.2 million per day, and the Lake Charles region is losing an
    average of \$1.5 million per day in direct tourism income.[^15]

-   If Louisiana lost 20 percent of its visitor spending in one year --
    approximately \$2 billion -- the loss of state tax dollars would be
    approximately \$80 billion.[^16]

\-- \-- \--

**APPENDIX II**

**INDUSTRY CONTRIBUTIONS**

**To Katrina Relief**

**U.S. TRAVEL-AFFILIATED INDUSTRY CORPORATIONS**

**Alaska, America West, American, ATA, Continental, Delta, JetBlue,
Northwest, United, U.S. Airways,** and **Air Canada** worked together
during \"Operation Air Care\" to fly more than 13,000 New Orleans
residents from the area.  It was an unprecedented U.S. civilian airlift.

**American Express** has donated \$1 million to the American Red Cross,
plus employee matching.  AmEx is also contributing \$1 for every
donation to a FEMA-recommended relief organization made on an AmEx card
and will match up to an additional \$1 million in total donations.

The **Boyd Gaming Corporation** is providing payroll benefits for eight
weeks to its 1,000 affected employees in Kenner, Louisiana.  The company
has established a relief center at Sam\'s Town Tunica and is operating
an employee assistance hotline.

**Carlson**'s TGI Friday's restaurants in Florida, Mobile and Gulfport
helped feed thousands of victims and rescue workers in the immediate
aftermath of Katrina. Carlson raised \$120,000 from employee payroll
donations in the two weeks following the hurricane. The Carlson
Foundation matched the amount, bringing the total relief gift to
\$240,000.

**Carnival Cruise Lines** chartered three ships to the federal
government to house evacuees and/or emergency workers.

**Cendant Corporation**, which established a special employee hotline to
coordinate distribution of pay and other benefits to employees in the
region, is providing temporary housing for displaced employees in its
hotel and time-share affiliates and providing housing and rental
vehicles to emergency response personnel.  It is also active in relief
fundraising and will match employee donations up to \$500,000.

The **Coca-Cola Company** has committed \$5 million to the American Red
Cross, the Salvation Army and its displaced employees.  Coca-Cola has
also committed to providing 40 truckloads of filtered water per day to
two key FEMA centers, has sent over 100 employees to Miami to assist
Florida Power & Light, and has provided 250,000 cases of water, POWERade
and juices to FEMA and other agencies.

**Delaware North** raised more than half a million dollars for Katrina
including the establishment of the KARE (Katrina Associate Relief
Effort) a fund dedicated to employees in the impacted area. In addition,
Delaware North donated in excess of \$200,000 in supplies, food and
direct aid.

**Delta Air Lines** operated 25 flights with FEMA, lifting 3,000
evacuees.  SkyMiles can be donated to the American Red Cross or the
Salvation Army to send relief workers to the affected areas.

The **Enterprise Rent-A-Car** Foundation immediately donated \$1 million
to hurricane relief.  The company is also shipping thousands of vehicles
to affected areas to provide transportation to residents and emergency
workers.

**Harrah\'s Entertainment** opened the Harrah\'s Gulf Coast Region
Assistance Center to provide health services to employees, assistance
with compensation and benefits, assistance with housing and access to
Internet communications. Harrah\'s has established a \$1 million
Employee Recovery Fund, is paying full base pay to affected employees
for 90 days and is giving preference in hiring at other locations for
their more than 6,000 affected employees. The company is also paying the
difference in pay for employees who have been activated to serve in
National Guard or Reserve military units.

**Isle of Capri** **Casinos** established a \$500,000 relief fund.

**Loews Hotels** has established the Loews Foundation Hurricane Relief
Fund, which will benefit the employees of Loews Corporation and its
subsidiaries, including employees of Loews New Orleans Hotel, Diamond
Offshore, Boardwalk Pipelines, as well as other local subsidiaries. 
Loews led an effort to locate its New Orleans employees for transfer and
employment at other Loews hotels around the U.S.

**McDonald\'s Corporation** has made an initial contribution of \$5
million to the American Red Cross and established a payroll deduction
charity contribution campaign for company employees.  McDonald\'s will
match contributions, initially up to \$2 million, and is providing
mobile units and has committed its distribution system to Red Cross
relief efforts.  They are additionally converting 100 percent of the
proceeds of the Ronald McDonald House Charity canisters to hurricane
relief efforts.

**Marriott International** and **The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company** will
contribute a total of \$500,000 to the Marriott & Ritz-Carlton Disaster
Relief Fund to directly assist Marriott associates and Ritz-Carlton
employees with both managed and franchised hotels. Marriott
International and The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company will donate another
\$500,000 to the American Red Cross Hurricane Katrina relief efforts to
benefit all who live in the affected communities.  In addition, the J.
Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation will contribute up to \$2
million to hurricane relief efforts. The Foundation will match
dollar-for-dollar all contributions received by the Marriott and
Ritz-Carlton Disaster Relief Fund up to \$1 million dollars. Separately,
the Marriott family has pledged an additional \$1 million towards
longer-term disaster relief efforts.

**MGM Mirage** established a call center and a paycheck distribution
center for its more than 3,400 affected employees in Biloxi.

The **National Basketball Association** has contributed \$2 million.

The **National Football League** is contributing \$1 million to the Red
Cross, and NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and players are appearing in
public service announcements encouraging donations to relief
organizations.  Additionally, 15 teams are staging stadium collections
at games and making their own contributions.

A team of **Papa John\'s International** volunteers made 10,000 pizzas
to help feed evacuees staying in Houston\'s Astrodome and also provided
bottled water and mobile pizza kitchens to feed people in affected
areas.

**Penn National Gaming Co.** is establishing a \$1 million Employee
Recovery Fund in addition to paying displaced employees for the next 90
days.

**Pinnacle Entertainment** is organizing donations of supplies from
sister properties, payroll deductions to the Red Cross and matching the
first \$300,000 of such donations.

The **Southeast Tourism Society** raised over \$27,000 for the Red Cross
at the Silent Auction during its annual conference in Charleston, South
Carolina, September 6-8, 2005.

**Visit Florida** created a Gateways for Gulf Aid online auction where
consumers can bid on Florida vacations with 100 percent of the proceeds
going to the American Red Cross for Hurricane Katrina relief.

**The Walt Disney Company** has contributed \$2.5 million to relief and
rebuilding efforts, including a \$500,000 grant to the Points of Light
Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network to aid volunteer center
efforts.

**Wendy\'s** organized a special team to address the needs of employees
displaced by the hurricane. Additional benefits include ongoing
paychecks for those who are out of work, assistance in finding another
job and additional stipends to help meet immediate needs.

![](media/image1.png){width="0.21875in" height="0.3229166666666667in"}

**U.S. TRAVEL INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS**

The **Airports Council International** coordinated efforts to restore
and repair critical air transport infrastructure in affected areas and
created a humanitarian relief fund.

The **Air Transport Association** coordinated with the Department of
Homeland Security and the Department of Transportation to launch
\"Operation Air Care.\"  The rescue effort, operated by passenger and
cargo carriers of their membership, provided emergency airlift to more
than 25,000 New Orleans residents. 

The **American Association of Museums** provided information on how to
access federal preservation funds following disasters and similarly for
cultural institutions such as universities, libraries, and museums.

The website for the **American Bus Association** includes a weblog where
members can get information from and about bus industry colleagues in
affected areas as well as information on federal rules related to buses
that have been revised due to the hurricane.  It also has information
about an ABA golf tournament to raise money for victims.

The **American Gaming Association** has donated \$10,000 to the American
Red Cross or the Salvation Army.  It has set up the Gaming Industry
Katrina Relief Fund to raise industry dollars to provide disaster relief
and assistance to affected gaming employees in Mississippi and
Louisiana.  Throughout the Global Gaming Expo, individuals are able to
submit donations at kiosks on-site.

The **American Hotel & Lodging Association** is operating a Katrina job
board for restaurant, hospitality and retail employees. The association
has worked with its members to secure blocks of hotel rooms for evacuees
and emergency contractors. They are also coordinating with the
Department of Homeland Security on the Long-Term Hurricane Survivor
Housing Assistance Program.

The **American Society of Travel Agents** has an initiative to connect
members in affected areas with other members who can provide assistance.

The **Asian American Hotel Owners Association** has contributed \$50,000
to the American Red Cross and \$50,000 to other relief efforts.

The **Destination Marketing Association International** has worked to
provide updated information on the status of and efforts by convention
and visitor bureaus in affected areas.

The **International Council of Cruise Lines** has documented cruise
line-related relief such as chartered cruise ships housing emergency
workers, fundraising through industry employer matches to employee pay
deductions, and direct relief efforts such as transportation of fresh
water to affected areas and of housing related goods.

In response to the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the **Hospitality
Sales & Marketing Association International (HSMAI)** has spearheaded a
series of initiatives in an attempt to reach out to members and the
industry-at-large. HSMAI has also created an In-Depth Hurricane/Disaster
Recovery Resource Center on the HSMAI Foundation eConnect Web site. This
resource center will be updated daily with the latest news related to
the impact on the industry, statements from industry companies,
disaster-related recovery resources, and perspectives from industry
leaders. Access is available to all HSMAI members, as well as
non-members who register for a 60-day trial use of eConnect.

The **International Council of Shopping Centers** coordinated an effort
with FEMA to identify and catalog empty shopping center and retail space
in the impacted areas that could potentially be used for housing for
hurricane victims. To date over, over 7 million square feet of space has
been made available for FEMA\'s use.  Additionally, ICSC\'s Educational
Foundation will be accepting and matching members\' cash contributions
to the American Red Cross.

A weblog at the **Meeting Professionals International** web site
connects all members with those in the affected areas and another weblog
connects organizations with available meeting space with those who\'ve
had to change locations for meetings and events originally scheduled in
affected areas

The **National Business Travel Association** has focused on extensive
links updating the status of hotels and airlines affected by the
hurricane, and is documenting stories about successfully relocated
travelers.

The **National Restaurant Association** is organizing a \"Dine Around\"
October 5, a national fundraising effort to support the American Red
Cross Disaster Relief Fund. They\'re also maintaining a master reference
for national restaurant relief funds and initiatives.

The website of the **National Tour Association** includes a Hurricane
Katrina Update section including information from travel industry
organizations in many sectors and a member weblog to exchange
information with or about those in affected areas. The association\'s
member magazine includes a special supplement of to raise money for
\"Build Back Our Coast Fund.\"

The **Travel Industry Association of America** and the **Travel Business
Roundtable** launched KatrinaJobs.org, a clearinghouse for travel and
tourism industry jobs.  The website will make available thousands of
jobs to workers displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

[^1]: Study conducted in conjunction with the Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation and Tourism, January 8-13, 2006, cited in:
    "Louisiana: The Big Picture," Marketing Plan 2006-2007, Louisiana
    Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism; New Orleans Tourism
    Marketing Corporation; New Orleans Metropolitan Convention &
    Visitors Bureau.

[^2]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

[^3]: "Louisiana: The Big Picture," Marketing Plan 2006-2007, Louisiana
    Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism; New Orleans Tourism
    Marketing Corporation; New Orleans Metropolitan Convention &
    Visitors Bureau.

[^4]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

[^5]: Conversation with Mr. Stephen Perry, President, New Orleans
    Metropolitan Convention and Visitors Bureau.

[^6]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

[^7]: "Economic Impact of the Travel and Tourism Industry in the Gulf
    Region," Travel Business Roundtable.

[^8]: "Economic Impact of the Travel and Tourism Industry in the Gulf
    Region," Travel Business Roundtable.

[^9]: "Economic Impact of the Travel and Tourism Industry in the Gulf
    Region," Travel Business Roundtable.

[^10]: "FY 2006 Post-Katrina Projections, February 2006," Mississippi
    Development Authority.

[^11]: "FY 2006 Post-Katrina Projections, February 2006," Mississippi
    Development Authority.

[^12]: "FY 2006 Post-Katrina Projections, February 2006," Mississippi
    Development Authority.

[^13]: "Louisiana: The Big Picture," Marketing Plan 2006-2007, Louisiana
    Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism; New Orleans Tourism
    Marketing Corporation; New Orleans Metropolitan Convention &
    Visitors Bureau.

[^14]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

[^15]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.

[^16]: "Louisiana Rebirth through the Recovery of Our Tourism and
    Cultural Industries," Executive Summary, Louisiana Department of
    Culture, Recreation & Tourism.