104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2579

AN ACT

To establish the National Tourism Board and the

national travel and tourism to the United States.National Tourism Organization to promote inter-
104TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION H. R. 2579

AN ACT

To establish the National Tourism Board and the National

Tourism Organization to promote international travel

and tourism to the United States.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘United States National

3 Tourism Organization Act of 1996’’.

4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

5 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

6 (1) The travel and tourism industry is the sec7 ond largest service and retail industry in the United

8 States, and travel and tourism services ranked as

9 the largest United States export in 1995, generating

10 an $18.6 billion surplus for the United States.

11 (2) Domestic and international travel and tour12 ism expenditures totaled $433 billion in 1995, $415

13 billion spent directly within the United States and

14 an additional $18 billion spent by international trav15 elers on United States carriers traveling to the Unit16 ed States.

17 (3) Direct travel and tourism receipts make up

18 6 percent of the United States gross domestic prod19 uct.

20 (4) In 1994, the travel and tourism industry

21 was the nation’s second largest employer, directly re22 sponsible for 6.3 million jobs and indirectly respon23 sible for another 8 million jobs.

24 (5) Employment in major sectors of the travel

25 and tourism industry is expected to increase 35 per26 cent by the year 2005.
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1 (6) 99.7 percent of travel businesses are defined

2 by the Federal government as small businesses.

3 (7) The White House Conference on Travel and

4 Tourism in 1995 recommended the establishment of

5 a new national tourism organization to represent

6 and promote international travel and tourism to the

7 United States.

8 (8) Recent Federal tourism promotion efforts

9 have failed to stem the rapid erosion of our coun10 try’s international tourism market share.

11 (9) In fact, the United States’ share of world12 wide travel receipts dropped from a peak of 19.3

13 percent in 1992 down to 15.7 percent by the end of

14 1994.

15 (10) The United States has now fallen to only

16 the third leading international destination.

17 (11) Because the United States Travel and

18 Tourism Administration had insufficient resources

19 and effectiveness to reverse the recent decline in the

20 United States’ share of international travel and

21 tourism, Congress discontinued USTTA’s funding.

22 (12) Promotion of the United States’ inter23 national travel and tourism interests can be more ef24 fectively managed by a private organization at less

25 cost to the taxpayers.
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1 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of this Act is to create

2 a privately managed, federally sanctioned United States

3 National Tourism Organization to represent and promote

4 United States international travel and tourism.

5 SEC. 3. UNITED STATES NATIONAL TOURISM ORGANIZA6 TION.

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Unit8 ed States National Tourism Organization which shall be

9 a private not-for-profit organization.

10 (b) ORGANIZATION NOT A FEDERAL AGENCY.—The

11 Organization shall (1) not be considered a Federal agency,

12 (2) have employees appointed without regard to the provi13 sions of title 5, United States Code, governing appoint14 ments in the competitive service, and paid without regard

15 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chap16 ter 53 of that title relating to classification and General

17 Schedule pay rates, and (3) not be subject to the Federal

18 Advisory Committee Act or any other Federal law govern19 ing the operation of Federal agencies.

20 (c) IRS STATUS.—The Organization shall be pre21 sumed to have the status of an organization described in

22 section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986

23 until such time as the Secretary of the Treasury deter24 mines that the Organization does not meet the require25 ments of such section.
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1 (d) PURPOSE OF THE ORGANIZATION.—The Organi2 zation shall—

3 (1) seek and work for an increase in the share

4 of the United States in the global tourism market;

5 (2) work in conjunction with Federal, State,

6 and local agencies to develop and implement a co7 ordinated United States travel and tourism policy;

8 (3) advise the President, the Congress, and the

9 domestic travel and tourism industry on the imple10 mentation of the national travel and tourism strat11 egy and on other matters affecting travel and tour12 ism;

13 (4) operate travel and tourism promotion pro14 grams outside the United States in partnership with

15 the travel and tourism industry in the United

16 States;

17 (5) establish a travel and tourism data bank to

18 gather and disseminate travel and tourism market

19 data;

20 (6) conduct market research necessary for ef21 fective promotion of the travel and tourism market;

22 and

23 (7) promote United States travel and tourism,

24 including international trade shows and conferences.
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1 (e) POWERS OF THE ORGANIZATION.—The Organiza2 tion—

3 (1) shall have perpetual succession;

4 (2) shall represent the United States travel and

5 tourism industry in its relations with international

6 tourism agencies;

7 (3) may sue and be sued, make contracts, and

8 acquire, hold, and dispose of real and personal prop9 erty, as may be necessary for its corporate purposes;

10 (4) may provide financial assistance to any or11 ganization or association in furtherance of the pur12 pose of the corporation;

13 (5) may adopt and alter a corporate seal;

14 (6) may establish and maintain offices for the

15 conduct of the affairs of the Organization; and

16 (7) may conduct any and all acts necessary and

17 proper to carry out the purposes of this Act.

18 (f) FUNDING.—

19 (1) FURTHERANCE OF ACT.—The Organization

20 may accept gifts, legacies, devises, contributions, and

21 payments in furtherance of the purposes of this Act.

22 (2) EXPENSES.— The Organization may also

23 accept such gifts, legacies, devises, contributions,

24 and payments on behalf of the National Tourism Or-
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1 ganization Board to cover the expenses of the

2 Board.

3 (g) POLITICAL ACTIVITIES PROHIBITED.—The Orga4 nization shall not engage in any activities designed in part

5 or in whole to promote a political party or the candidacy

6 of any person seeking or holding political office.

7 SEC. 4. UNITED STATES NATIONAL TOURISM ORGANIZA8 TION BOARD.

9 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established the Unit10 ed States National Tourism Organization Board for the

11 purposes of governing and supervising the activities of the

12 Organization.

13 (b) MEMBERS.—The Board shall be self perpetuating

14 and the initial members of the Board shall be appointed

15 or elected as follows:

16 (1) The Under Secretary of Commerce for

17 International Trade of the Department of Com18 merce, who will serve as a member ex officio;

19 (2) 5 State Travel Directors elected by the Na20 tional Council of State Travel Directors;

21 (3) 5 members elected by the International As22 sociation of Convention and Visitors Bureaus;

23 (4) 3 members elected by the Air Transport As24 sociation;
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1 (5) 1 member elected by the National Associa2 tion of Recreational Vehicle Parks and Camp3 grounds, 1 member elected by the Recreation Vehicle

4 Industry Association;

5 (6) 2 members elected by the International As6 sociation of Amusement Parks and Attractions;

7 (7) 3 members of the travel payments industry

8 appointed by the Travel Industry Association of

9 America;

10 (8) 5 members elected by the American Hotel

11 and Motel Association;

12 (9) 2 members elected by the American Car

13 Rental Association; 1 member elected by the Amer14 ican Automobile Association, 1 member elected by

15 the American Bus Association, 1 member elected by

16 Amtrak;

17 (10) 1 member elected by the American Society

18 of Travel Agents, and 1 member elected by the Asso19 ciation of Retail Travel Agents;

20 (11) 1 member elected by the National Tour

21 Association, 1 member elected by the United States

22 Tour Operators Association;

23 (12) 1 member elected by the Cruise Lines

24 International Association, 1 member elected by the

25 National Restaurant Association, 1 member elected
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1 by the National Park Hospitality Association, 1

2 member elected by the Airports Council Inter3 national, 1 member elected by the Meeting Profes4 sionals International, 1 member elected by the

5 American Sightseeing International, 4 members

6 elected by the Travel Industry Association of Amer7 ica;

8 (13) 1 member elected by the Rural Tourism

9 Foundation;

10 (14) 1 member elected by the American Asso11 ciation of Museums; and

12 (15) 1 member elected by the National Trust

13 for Historic Preservation.

14 (c) CHAIR.—The Board shall elect a Chair for an ini15 tial term of 2 years. After such initial term, the Chair

16 shall be elected for such term as the Board may designate.

17 (d) PRESIDENT.—The Board shall appoint and es18 tablish the compensation and duties of a President of the

19 Organization who shall assist the Chair in organizing and

20 carrying out the necessary functions of the Board. The

21 duties of the President shall include serving as a non-vot22 ing member of the Tourism Policy Council established

23 under section 301 of the International Travel Act of 1961.

24 (e) POWERS AND DUTIES OF THE BOARD.—
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1 (1) The Board shall adopt for itself and the Or2 ganization such bylaws and delegation of authority

3 as it deems necessary and proper, which shall—

4 (A) require at least a three-fifths majority

5 vote for amendment;

6 (B) set forth the process for the number,

7 terms, and appointment or election of future

8 Board members;

9 (C) provide the authority for the hiring

10 and compensation of staff; and

11 (D) establish the procedures for calling

12 meetings and providing appropriate notice, in13 cluding procedures for closing meetings where

14 confidential information or strategy will be dis15 cussed.

16 (2) The Board shall designate a place of busi17 ness for the receipt of process for the Organization,

18 subject to the laws of the State or district so des19 ignated, where such laws do not conflict with the

20 provisions of this Act.

21 (3) The Board shall present testimony and

22 make available reports on its findings and rec23 ommendations to the Congress and to legislatures of

24 the States on at least a biannual basis.
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1 (4) Within one year of the date of its first

2 meeting, the Board shall report to the Senate Com3 mittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation

4 and the House Committee on Commerce on a plan

5 for long-term financing for the Organization, with a

6 focus on contributions from the private sector and

7 State and local entities, and, if necessary, make rec8 ommendations to the Congress and the President for

9 further legislation.

10 (f) COMPENSATION AND EXPENSES.—The Chair and

11 members of the Board shall serve without compensation

12 but may be compensated for expenses incurred in carrying

13 out the duties of the Board.

14 (g) IMMUNITY.—Members of the Board shall not be

15 personally liable for any action taken by the Board.

16 (h) MEETINGS.—The Board shall meet at the call of

17 the Chair, but not less frequently than semiannually. The

18 Board shall meet within 2 months of appointment of all

19 members, but in any case no later than 6 months after

20 the date of the enactment of this Act.

21 SEC. 5. SYMBOLS, EMBLEMS, TRADEMARKS, AND NAMES.

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Organization shall provide

23 for the design of such symbols, emblems, trademarks, and

24 names as may be appropriate and shall take all action nec-
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1 essary to protect and regulate the use of such symbols,

2 emblems, trademarks, and names under law.

3 (b) EXCLUSIVE RIGHT OF THE ORGANIZATION.—The

4 Organization shall have exclusive right to use the name

5 ‘‘United States National Tourism Organization’’ and the

6 acronym ‘‘USNTO’’, the symbol described in subsection

7 (c)(1)(A), the emblem described in subsection (c)(1)(B),

8 and the words ‘‘United States National Tourism Organi9 zation’’, or any combination thereof, subject to the use re10 served by subsection (c)(2).

11 (c) UNAUTHORIZED USE; CIVIL ACTION..—

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any person who, without the

13 consent of the Organization, uses—

14 (A) the symbol of the Organization;

15 (B) the emblem of the Organization;

16 (C) any trademark, trade name, sign, sym17 bol, or insignia falsely representing association

18 with, or authorization by, the Organization; or

19 (D) the words ‘‘United States National

20 Tourism Organization’’ or the acronym

21 ‘‘USNTO’’ or any combination or simulation

22 thereof tending to cause confusion, to cause

23 mistake, to deceive, or to falsely suggest a con24 nection with the Organization or any Organiza25 tion activity;
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1 for the purpose of trade, to induce the sale of any

2 goods or services, or to promote any exhibition, shall

3 be subject to suit in a civil action brought in the ap4 propriate court by the Organization for the remedies

5 provided in the Act of July 5, 1946 (60 Stat. 427;

6 15 U.S.C. 1501 et seq.) (popularly known as the

7 Trademark Act of 1946).

8 (2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1)(D) shall not

9 be construed to prohibit any person who, before the

10 date of the enactment of this Act, actually used the

11 words ‘‘United States National Tourism Organiza12 tion’’ or the acronym ‘‘USNTO’’ for any lawful pur13 pose from continuing such lawful use for the same

14 purpose and for the same goods and services.

15 (d) CONTRIBUTORS AND SUPPLIERS.—The Organiza16 tion may authorize contributors and suppliers of goods

17 and services to use the trade name of the Organization

18 as well as any trademark, symbol, insignia, or emblem of

19 the Organization in advertising that the contributions,

20 goods, or services were donated, supplied, or furnished to

21 or for the use of, approved, selected, or used by the Orga22 nization.

23 (d) LIMITATION.—The Organization may not adopt

24 or use any existing symbol, emblem, trademark, or name
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1 that is protected under law (including any treaty to which

2 the United States is a party).

3 SEC. 6. UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT COOPERATION.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Commerce, Sec5 retary of State, the United States Trade Representative,

6 Director of the United States Information Agency, and the

7 Trade and Development Agency shall—

8 (1) give priority consideration to recommenda9 tions of the Organization; and

10 (2) cooperate with the Organization in carrying

11 out its duties.

12 (b) REPORT.—The Under Secretary for International

13 Trade, the Assistant Secretary for Trade Development,

14 the Assistant Secretary and Director General for the Unit15 ed States and Foreign Commercial Service, the Director

16 of the United States Information Agency, the United

17 States Trade Representative, and the Trade and Develop18 ment Agency shall report within 2 years of the date of

19 the enactment of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter

20 to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and

21 Transportation and the House Committee on Commerce

22 on any travel and tourism activities carried out with the

23 participation of the United States Federal Government.
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1 SEC. 7. SUNSET.

2 (a) TWO YEAR DEADLINE FOR DEVELOPMENT OF

3 COMPREHENSIVE LONG- TERM FINANCING PLAN.—If

4 within 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act,

5 the Board has not developed and implemented a com6 prehensive plan for the long-term financing of the Organi7 zation, then sections 3 through 6 of this Act are repealed.

8 (b) SUSPENSION OR TERMINATION OF OPERATIONS

9 FOR INSUFFICIENT FUNDS.—The Board may suspend or

10 terminate the Organization if sufficient private sector and

11 State or local government funds are not identified or made

12 available to continue the Organization’s operations.

13 SEC. 8. TRADE PROMOTION COORDINATING COMMITTEE.

14 Section 2312 of the Export Enhancement Act of

15 1988 (15 U.S.C. 4727) is amended in subsection (c) as

16 follows:

17 (1) By striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph

18 (4).

19 (2) By striking the period at the end of para20 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’.

21 (3) By adding after paragraph (5) the follow22 ing:

23 ‘‘(6) reflect the recommendations of the United

24 States National Tourism Organization to the degree

25 considered appropriate by the TPCC.’’.
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1 SEC. 9. REPEAL OF UNITED STATES TRAVEL AND TOURISM

2 ADMINISTRATION AND RELATED PROVI3 SIONS.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Sections 202, 203, 204, 205, 206,

5 301, 303, 304, 305, 306, and 307 of the International

6 Travel Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C 2123, 2123a–2123d, 2124,

7 2124b, and 2126–2129) are repealed.

8 (b) TOURISM POLICY AND EXPORT PROMOTION ACT

9 OF 1992.—Section 4 of the Tourism Policy and Export

10 Promotion Act of 1992 is amended in subsection

11 (c)(1)(B)(i) and subsection (c)(2) by striking ‘‘Under Sec12 retary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism’’ and insert13 ing ‘‘Secretary of Commerce’’.

14 SEC. 10. POWERS AND DUTIES OF SECRETARY OF COM15 MERCE.

16 Section 201 of the International Travel Act of 1961

17 (22 U.S.C. 2122) is amended to read as follows:

18 ‘‘SEC. 201. In order to carry out the national tourism

19 policy established in section 101(b) and by the United

20 States National Tourism Organization Act of 1996, the

21 Secretary of Commerce (hereafter in this Act referred to

22 as the ‘Secretary’) shall develop and implement a com23 prehensive plan to perform critical tourism functions

24 which, in the determination of the Secretary, are not being

25 carried out by the United States National Tourism Orga-
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1 nization or other private sector entities or State govern2 ments. Such plan may include programs to—

3 ‘‘(1) collect and publish comprehensive inter4 national travel and tourism statistics and other mar5 keting information;

6 ‘‘(2) design, implement, and publish inter7 national travel and tourism forecasting models;

8 ‘‘(3) facilitate the reduction or elimination of

9 barriers to international travel and tourism; and

10 ‘‘(4) work with the United States National

11 Tourism Organization, the Tourism Policy Council,

12 State tourism agencies, and Federal agencies in—

13 ‘‘(A) coordinating the Federal implementa14 tion of a national travel and tourism policy;

15 ‘‘(B) representing the United States’ inter16 national travel and tourism interests to foreign

17 governments; and

18 ‘‘(C) maintaining United States participa19 tion in international travel and tourism trade

20 shows and fairs until such activities can be

21 transferred to such Organization and other pri22 vate sector entities.’’.
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1 SEC. 11. TOURISM POLICY COUNCIL.

2 Section 302 of the International Travel Act of 1961

3 (22 U.S.C. 2124a) is repealed and the following is in4 serted:

5 ‘‘SEC. 301. (a) In order to ensure that the United

6 States’ national interest in tourism is fully considered in

7 Federal decision making, there is established a coordinat8 ing council to be known as the Tourism Policy Council

9 (hereafter in this Act referred to as the ‘Council’).

10 ‘‘(b) The Council shall consist of the following indi11 viduals:

12 ‘‘(1) The Secretary of Commerce, who shall

13 serve as the Chairman of the Council.

14 ‘‘(2) The Under Secretary of Commerce for

15 International Trade.

16 ‘‘(3) The Director of the Office of Management

17 and Budget.

18 ‘‘(4) The Secretary of State.

19 ‘‘(5) The Secretary of Interior.

20 ‘‘(6) The Secretary of Labor.

21 ‘‘(7) The Secretary of Transportation.

22 ‘‘(8) The Commissioner of the United States

23 Customs Service.

24 ‘‘(9) The President of the United States Na25 tional Tourism Organization.
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1 ‘‘(10) The Commissioner of the Immigration

2 and Naturalization Service.

3 ‘‘(11) Representatives of other Federal agencies

4 which have affected interests at each meeting as

5 deemed appropriate and invited by the Chairman.

6 ‘‘(c) Members of the Council shall serve without addi7 tional compensation.

8 ‘‘(d) The Council shall conduct its first meeting not

9 later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of

10 the United States National Tourism Organization Act of

11 1996. Thereafter the Council shall meet not less than 2

12 times each year.

13 ‘‘(e)(1) The Council shall coordinate national policies

14 and programs relating to international travel and tourism,

15 recreation, and national heritage resources, which involve

16 Federal agencies;

17 ‘‘(2) The Council may request directly from any Fed18 eral department or agency such personnel, information,

19 services, or facilities as deemed necessary by the Chairman

20 and to the extent permitted by law and within the limits

21 of available funds.

22 ‘‘(3) Federal departments and agencies may, in their

23 discretion, detail to temporary duty with the Council such

24 personnel as the Chairman may request for carrying out

25 the functions of the Council. Each such detail of personnel
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1 shall be without loss of seniority, pay, or other employee

2 status.

3 ‘‘(f) Where necessary to prevent the public disclosure

4 of non-public information which may be presented by a

5 Council member, the Council may hold, at the discretion

6 of the Chairman, a closed meeting which may exclude any

7 individual who is not an officer or employee of the United

8 States.

9 ‘‘(g) The Council shall submit an annual report for

10 the preceding fiscal year to the President for transmittal

11 to the Congress on or before December 31 of each year.

12 The report shall include—

13 ‘‘(1) a comprehensive and detailed report of the

14 activities and accomplishments of the Council;

15 ‘‘(2) the results of Council efforts to coordinate

16 the policies and programs of member’s agencies that

17 have a significant effect on international travel and

18 tourism, recreation, and national heritage resources,

19 including progress towards resolving interagency

20 conflicts and development of cooperative program ac21 tivity;

22 ‘‘(3) an analysis of problems referred to the

23 Council by State and local governments, the tourism

24 industry, the United States National Tourism Orga25 nization, the Secretary of Commerce, along with a
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1 detailed summary of any action taken or anticipated

2 to resolve such problems; and

3 ‘‘(4) any recommendation as deemed appro4 priate by the Council.

5 ‘‘(h) The membership of the President of the United

6 States National Tourism Organization on the Council

7 shall not in itself make the Federal Advisory Committee

8 Act applicable to the Council.’’.

9 SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS.

10 For purposes of this Act—

11 (1) the term ‘‘Organization’’ means the United

12 States National Tourism Organization established

13 under section 3; and

14 (2) the term ‘‘Board’’ means the United States

15 National Tourism Organization Board established

16 under section 4.

Passed the House of Representatives September 26,

1996.

Attest:

Clerk.