111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1023 

AN ACT 

To establish a non-profit corporation to communicate United 

States entry policies and otherwise promote leisure, business, and scholarly travel 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, 
2 

S 1023 ES 

1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

2 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

3 ‘‘Travel Promotion Act of 2009’’. 

4 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

5 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. The Corporation for Travel Promotion. 

Sec. 3. Accountability measures. 

Sec. 4. Matching public and private funding. 

Sec. 5. Travel promotion fund fees. 

Sec. 6. Assessment authority. 

Sec. 7. Office of Travel Promotion. 

Sec. 8. Research program. 

6 SEC. 2. THE CORPORATION FOR TRAVEL PROMOTION. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Corporation for Travel 

8 Promotion is established as a nonprofit corporation. The 

9 Corporation shall not be an agency or establishment of 

10 the United States Government. The Corporation shall be 

11 subject to the provisions of the District of Columbia Non12 profit Corporation Act (D.C. Code, section 29–1001 et 

13 seq.), to the extent that such provisions are consistent 

14 with this section, and shall have the powers conferred 

15 upon a nonprofit corporation by that Act to carry out its 

16 purposes and activities. 

17 (b) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall have 

19 a board of directors of 11 members with knowledge 

20 of international travel promotion and marketing, 

21 broadly representing various regions of the United 

22 States, who are United States citizens. Members of 
3 

S 1023 ES 

1 the board shall be appointed by the Secretary of 

2 Commerce (after consultation with the Secretary of 

3 Homeland Security and the Secretary of State), as 

4 follows: 

5 (A) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

6 experience in the hotel accommodations sector; 

7 (B) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

8 experience in the restaurant sector; 

9 (C) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

10 experience in the small business or retail sector 

11 or in associations representing that sector; 

12 (D) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

13 experience in the travel distribution services 

14 sector; 

15 (E) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

16 experience in the attractions or recreations sec17 tor; 

18 (F) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

19 experience as officials of a city convention and 

20 visitors’ bureau; 

21 (G) 2 shall have appropriate expertise and 

22 experience as officials of a State tourism office; 

23 (H) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

24 experience in the passenger air sector; 
4 

S 1023 ES 

1 (I) 1 shall have appropriate expertise and 

2 experience in immigration law and policy, in3 cluding visa requirements and United States 

4 entry procedures; and 

5 (J) 1 shall have appropriate expertise in 

6 the intercity passenger railroad business. 

7 (2) INCORPORATION.—The members of the ini8 tial board of directors shall serve as incorporators 

9 and shall take whatever actions are necessary to es10 tablish the Corporation under the District of Colum11 bia Nonprofit Corporation Act (D.C. Code, section 

12 29–301.01 et seq.). 

13 (3) TERM OF OFFICE.—The term of office of 

14 each member of the board appointed by the Sec15 retary shall be 3 years, except that, of the members 

16 first appointed— 

17 (A) 3 shall be appointed for terms of 1 

18 year; 

19 (B) 4 shall be appointed for terms of 2 

20 years; and 

21 (C) 4 shall be appointed for terms of 3 

22 years. 

23 (4) REMOVAL FOR CAUSE.—The Secretary of 

24 Commerce may remove any member of the board for 

25 good cause. 
5 

S 1023 ES 

1 (5) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the board 

2 shall not affect its power, but shall be filled in the 

3 manner required by this section. Any member whose 

4 term has expired may serve until the member’s suc5 cessor has taken office, or until the end of the cal6 endar year in which the member’s term has expired, 

7 whichever is earlier. Any member appointed to fill a 

8 vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term 

9 for which that member’s predecessor was appointed 

10 shall be appointed for the remainder of the prede11 cessor’s term. No member of the board shall be eligi12 ble to serve more than 2 consecutive full 3-year 

13 terms. 

14 (6) ELECTION OF CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIR15 MAN.—Members of the board shall annually elect 

16 one of the members to be Chairman and elect 1 or 

17 2 of the members as Vice Chairman or Vice Chair18 men. 

19 (7) STATUS AS FEDERAL EMPLOYEES.—Not20 withstanding any provision of law to the contrary, 

21 no member of the board may be considered to be a 

22 Federal employee of the United States by virtue of 

23 his or her service as a member of the board. 

24 (8) COMPENSATION; EXPENSES.—No member 

25 shall receive any compensation from the Federal 
6 

S 1023 ES 

1 government for serving on the Board. Each member 

2 of the Board shall be paid actual travel expenses and 

3 per diem in lieu of subsistence expenses when away 

4 from his or her usual place of residence, in accord5 ance with section 5703 of title 5, United States 

6 Code. 

7 (c) OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall have 

9 an executive director and such other officers as may 

10 be named and appointed by the board for terms and 

11 at rates of compensation fixed by the board. No in12 dividual other than a citizen of the United States 

13 may be an officer of the Corporation. The Corpora14 tion may hire and fix the compensation of such em15 ployees as may be necessary to carry out its pur16 poses. No officer or employee of the Corporation 

17 may receive any salary or other compensation (ex18 cept for compensation for services on boards of di19 rectors of other organizations that do not receive 

20 funds from the Corporation, on committees of such 

21 boards, and in similar activities for such organiza22 tions) from any sources other than the Corporation 

23 for services rendered during the period of his or her 

24 employment by the Corporation. Service by any offi25 cer on boards of directors of other organizations, on 
7 

S 1023 ES 

1 committees of such boards, and in similar activities 

2 for such organizations shall be subject to annual ad3 vance approval by the board and subject to the pro4 visions of the Corporation’s Statement of Ethical 

5 Conduct. All officers and employees shall serve at 

6 the pleasure of the board. 

7 (2) NONPOLITICAL NATURE OF APPOINT8 MENT.—No political test or qualification shall be 

9 used in selecting, appointing, promoting, or taking 

10 other personnel actions with respect to officers, 

11 agents, or employees of the Corporation. 

12 (d) NONPROFIT AND NONPOLITICAL NATURE OF

13 CORPORATION.— 

14 (1) STOCK.—The Corporation shall have no 

15 power to issue any shares of stock, or to declare or 

16 pay any dividends. 

17 (2) PROFIT.—No part of the income or assets 

18 of the Corporation shall inure to the benefit of any 

19 director, officer, employee, or any other individual 

20 except as salary or reasonable compensation for 

21 services. 

22 (3) POLITICS.—The Corporation may not con23 tribute to or otherwise support any political party or 

24 candidate for elective public office. 
8 

S 1023 ES 

1 (4) SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING LOBBYING

2 ACTIVITIES.—It is the sense of Congress that the 

3 Corporation should not engage in lobbying activities 

4 (as defined in section 3(7) of the Lobbying Disclo5 sure Act of 1995 (5 U.S.C. 1602(7)). 

6 (e) DUTIES AND POWERS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall de8 velop and execute a plan— 

9 (A) to provide useful information to for10 eign tourists, business people, students, schol11 ars, scientists, and others interested in traveling 

12 to the United States, including the distribution 

13 of material provided by the Federal government 

14 concerning entry requirements, required docu15 mentation, fees, processes, and information con16 cerning declared public health emergencies, to 

17 prospective travelers, travel agents, tour opera18 tors, meeting planners, foreign governments, 

19 travel media and other international stake20 holders; 

21 (B) to identify, counter, and correct 

22 misperceptions regarding United States entry 

23 policies around the world; 

24 (C) to maximize the economic and diplo25 matic benefits of travel to the United States by 
9 

S 1023 ES 

1 promoting the United States of America to 

2 world travelers through the use of, but not lim3 ited to, all forms of advertising, outreach to 

4 trade shows, and other appropriate promotional 

5 activities; 

6 (D) to ensure that international travel ben7 efits all States and the District of Columbia 

8 and to identify opportunities and strategies to 

9 promote tourism to rural and urban areas 

10 equally, including areas not traditionally visited 

11 by international travelers; and 

12 (E) to give priority to the Corporation’s ef13 forts with respect to countries and populations 

14 most likely to travel to the United States. 

15 (2) SPECIFIC POWERS.—In order to carry out 

16 the purposes of this section, the Corporation may— 

17 (A) obtain grants from and make contracts 

18 with individuals and private companies, State, 

19 and Federal agencies, organizations, and insti20 tutions; 

21 (B) hire or accept the voluntary services of 

22 consultants, experts, advisory boards, and pan23 els to aid the Corporation in carrying out its 

24 purposes; and 
10 

S 1023 ES 

1 (C) take such other actions as may be nec2 essary to accomplish the purposes set forth in 

3 this section. 

4 (3) PUBLIC OUTREACH AND INFORMATION.— 

5 The Corporation shall develop and maintain a pub6 licly accessible website. 

7 (f) OPEN MEETINGS.—Meetings of the board of di8 rectors of the Corporation, including any committee of the 

9 board, shall be open to the public. The board may, by ma10 jority vote, close any such meeting only for the time nec11 essary to preserve the confidentiality of commercial or fi12 nancial information that is privileged or confidential, to 

13 discuss personnel matters, or to discuss legal matters af14 fecting the Corporation, including pending or potential liti15 gation. 

16 (g) MAJOR CAMPAIGNS.—The board may not author17 ize the Corporation to obligate or expend more than 

18 $25,000,000 on any advertising campaign, promotion, or 

19 related effort unless— 

20 (1) the obligation or expenditure is approved by 

an affirmative vote of at least 2 21 ⁄3 of the members of 

22 the board present at the meeting; 

23 (2) at least 6 members of the board are present 

24 at the meeting at which it is approved; and 
11 

S 1023 ES 

1 (3) each member of the board has been given 

2 at least 3 days advance notice of the meeting at 

3 which the vote is to be taken and the matters to be 

4 voted upon at that meeting. 

5 (h) FISCAL ACCOUNTABILITY.— 

6 (1) FISCAL YEAR.—The Corporation shall es7 tablish as its fiscal year the 12-month period begin8 ning on October 1. 

9 (2) BUDGET.—The Corporation shall adopt a 

10 budget for each fiscal year. 

11 (3) ANNUAL AUDITS.—The Corporation shall 

12 engage an independent accounting firm to conduct 

13 an annual financial audit of the Corporation’s oper14 ations and shall publish the results of the audit. The 

15 Comptroller General of the United States may re16 view any audit of a financial statement conducted 

17 under this subsection by an independent accounting 

18 firm and may audit the Corporation’s operations at 

19 the discretion of the Comptroller General. The 

20 Comptroller General and the Congress shall have full 

21 and complete access to the books and records of the 

22 Corporation. 

23 (4) PROGRAM AUDITS.—Not later than 2 years 

24 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comp25 troller General shall conduct a review of the pro-
12 

S 1023 ES 

1 grammatic activities of the Corporation for Travel 

2 Promotion. This report shall be provided to appro3 priate congressional committees. 

4 SEC. 3. ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES. 

5 (a) OBJECTIVES.—The Board shall establish annual 

6 objectives for the Corporation for each fiscal year subject 

7 to approval by the Secretary of Commerce (after consulta8 tion with the Secretary of Homeland Security and the Sec9 retary of State). The Corporation shall establish a mar10 keting plan for each fiscal year not less than 60 days be11 fore the beginning of that year and provide a copy of the 

12 plan, and any revisions thereof, to the Secretary. 

13 (b) BUDGET.—The board shall transmit a copy of the 

14 Corporation’s budget for the forthcoming fiscal year to the 

15 Secretary not less than 60 days before the beginning of 

16 each fiscal year, together with an explanation of any ex17 penditure provided for by the budget in excess of 

18 $5,000,000 for the fiscal year. The Corporation shall 

19 make a copy of the budget and the explanation available 

20 to the public and shall provide public access to the budget 

21 and explanation on the Corporation’s website. 

22 (c) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—The Corpora23 tion shall submit an annual report for the preceding fiscal 

24 year to the Secretary of Commerce for transmittal to the 
13 

S 1023 ES 

1 Congress on or before the 15th day of May of each year. 

2 The report shall include— 

3 (1) a comprehensive and detailed report of the 

4 Corporation’s operations, activities, financial condi5 tion, and accomplishments under this Act; 

6 (2) a comprehensive and detailed inventory of 

7 amounts obligated or expended by the Corporation 

8 during the preceding fiscal year; 

9 (3) a detailed description of each in-kind con10 tribution, its fair market value, the individual or or11 ganization responsible for contributing, its specific 

12 use, and a justification for its use within the context 

13 of the Corporation’s mission; 

14 (4) an objective and quantifiable measurement 

15 of its progress, on an objective-by-objective basis, in 

16 meeting the objectives established by the board; 

17 (5) an explanation of the reason for any failure 

18 to achieve an objective established by the board and 

19 any revisions or alterations to the Corporation’s ob20 jectives under subsection (a); 

21 (6) a comprehensive and detailed report of the 

22 Corporation’s operations and activities to promote 

23 tourism in rural and urban areas; and 

24 (7) such recommendations as the Corporation 

25 deems appropriate. 
14 

S 1023 ES 

1 (d) LIMITATION ON USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts de2 posited in the Fund may not be used for any purpose in3 consistent with carrying out the objectives, budget, and 

4 report described in this section. 

5 SEC. 4. MATCHING PUBLIC AND PRIVATE FUNDING. 

6 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF TRAVEL PROMOTION

7 FUND.—There is hereby established in the Treasury a 

8 fund which shall be known as the Travel Promotion Fund. 

9 (b) FUNDING.— 

10 (1) START-UP EXPENSES.—For fiscal year 

11 2010, the Secretary of the Treasury shall make 

12 available to the Corporation such sums as may be 

13 necessary, but not to exceed $10,000,000, from 

14 amounts deposited in the general fund of the Treas15 ury from fees under section 217(h)(3)(B)(i)(I) of the 

16 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

17 1187(h)(3)(B)(i)(I)) to cover the Corporation’s ini18 tial expenses and activities under this Act. Transfers 

19 shall be made at least quarterly, beginning on Octo20 ber 1, 2009, on the basis of estimates by the Sec21 retary, and proper adjustments shall be made in 

22 amounts subsequently transferred to the extent prior 

23 estimates were in excess or less than the amounts 

24 required to be transferred. 
15 

S 1023 ES 

1 (2) SUBSEQUENT YEARS.—For each of fiscal 

2 years 2011 through 2014, from amounts deposited 

3 in the general fund of the Treasury during the pre4 ceding fiscal year from fees under section 

5 217(h)(3)(B)(i)(I) of the Immigration and Nation6 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187(h)(B)(i)(I)), the Secretary 

7 of the Treasury shall transfer not more than 

8 $100,000,000 to the Fund, which shall be made 

9 available to the Corporation, subject to subsection 

10 (c) of this section, to carry out its functions under 

11 this Act. Transfers shall be made at least quarterly 

12 on the basis of estimates by the Secretary, and prop13 er adjustments shall be made in amounts subse14 quently transferred to the extent prior estimates 

15 were in excess or less than the amounts required to 

16 be transferred. 

17 (c) MATCHING REQUIREMENT.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—No amounts may be made 

19 available to the Corporation under this section after 

20 fiscal year 2010, except to the extent that— 

21 (A) for fiscal year 2011, the Corporation 

22 provides matching amounts from non-Federal 

23 sources equal in the aggregate to 50 percent or 

24 more of the amount transferred to the Fund 

25 under subsection (b); and 
16 

S 1023 ES 

1 (B) for any fiscal year after fiscal year 

2 2011, the Corporation provides matching 

3 amounts from non-Federal sources equal in the 

4 aggregate to 100 percent of the amount trans5 ferred to the Fund under subsection (b) for the 

6 fiscal year. 

7 (2) GOODS AND SERVICES.—For the purpose of 

8 determining the amount received from non-Federal 

9 sources by the Corporation, other than money— 

10 (A) the fair market value of goods and 

11 services (including advertising) contributed to 

12 the Corporation for use under this Act may be 

13 included in the determination; but 

14 (B) the fair market value of such goods 

15 and services may not account for more than 80 

16 percent of the matching requirement under 

17 paragraph (1) for the Corporation in any fiscal 

18 year. 

19 (3) RIGHT OF REFUSAL.—The Corporation may 

20 decline to accept any contribution in-kind that it de21 termines to be inappropriate, not useful, or commer22 cially worthless. 

23 (4) LIMITATION.—The Corporation may not ob24 ligate or expend funds in excess of the total amount 
17 

S 1023 ES 

1 received by the Corporation for a fiscal year from 

2 Federal and non-Federal sources. 

3 (d) CARRYFORWARD.— 

4 (1) FEDERAL FUNDS.—Amounts transferred to 

5 the Fund under subsection (b)(2) shall remain avail6 able until expended. 

7 (2) MATCHING FUNDS.—Any amount received 

8 by the Corporation from non-Federal sources in fis9 cal year 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, or 2014 that can10 not be used to meet the matching requirement under 

11 subsection (c)(1) for the fiscal year in which amount 

12 was collected may be carried forward and treated as 

13 having been received in the succeeding fiscal year for 

14 purposes of meeting the matching requirement of 

15 subsection (c)(1) in such succeeding fiscal year. 

16 SEC. 5. TRAVEL PROMOTION FUND FEES. 

17 Section 217(h)(3)(B) of the Immigration and Nation18 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1187(h)(3)(B)) is amended to read as 

19 follows: 

20 ‘‘(B) FEES.— 

21 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—No later than 

22 September 30, 2009, the Secretary of 

23 Homeland Security shall establish a fee for 

24 the use of the System and begin assess-
18 

S 1023 ES 

1 ment and collection of that fee. The initial 

2 fee shall be the sum of— 

3 ‘‘(I) $10 per travel authorization; 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(II) an amount that will at least 

6 ensure recovery of the full costs of 

7 providing and administering the Sys8 tem, as determined by the Secretary. 

9 ‘‘(ii) DISPOSITION OF AMOUNTS COL10 LECTED.—Amounts collected under clause 

11 (i)(I) shall be credited to the Travel Pro12 motion Fund established by section 4 of 

13 the Travel Promotion Act of 2009. 

14 Amounts collected under clause (i)(II) 

15 shall be transferred to the general fund of 

16 the Treasury and made available to pay 

17 the costs incurred to administer the Sys18 tem. 

19 ‘‘(iii) SUNSET OF TRAVEL PROMOTION

20 FUND FEE.—The Secretary may not collect 

21 the fee authorized by clause (i)(I) for fiscal 

22 years beginning after September 30, 

23 2014.’’. 
19 

S 1023 ES 

1 SEC. 6. ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in 

3 this section, the Corporation may impose an annual as4 sessment on United States members of the international 

5 travel and tourism industry (other than those described 

6 in section 2(b)(1)(C) or (H)) represented on the Board 

7 in proportion to their share of the aggregate international 

8 travel and tourism revenue of the industry. The Corpora9 tion shall be responsible for verifying, implementing, and 

10 collecting the assessment authorized by this section. 

11 (b) INITIAL ASSESSMENT LIMITED.—The Corpora12 tion may establish the initial assessment after the date 

13 of enactment of the Travel and Tourism Promotion Act 

14 at no greater, in the aggregate, than $20,000,000. 

15 (c) REFERENDA.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation may not 

17 impose an annual assessment unless— 

18 (A) the Corporation submits the proposed 

19 annual assessment to members of the industry 

20 in a referendum; and 

21 (B) the assessment is approved by a ma22 jority of those voting in the referendum. 

23 (2) PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS.—In con24 ducting a referendum under this subsection, the Cor25 poration shall— 
20 

S 1023 ES 

1 (A) provide written or electronic notice not 

2 less than 60 days before the date of the ref3 erendum; 

4 (B) describe the proposed assessment or 

5 increase and explain the reasons for the ref6 erendum in the notice; and 

7 (C) determine the results of the ref8 erendum on the basis of weighted voting appor9 tioned according to each business entity’s rel10 ative share of the aggregate annual United 

11 States international travel and tourism revenue 

12 for the industry per business entity, treating all 

13 related entities as a single entity. 

14 (d) COLLECTION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Corporation shall estab16 lish a means of collecting the assessment that it 

17 finds to be efficient and effective. The Corporation 

18 may establish a late payment charge and rate of in19 terest to be imposed on any person who fails to 

20 remit or pay to the Corporation any amount as21 sessed by the Corporation under this Act. 

22 (2) ENFORCEMENT.—The Corporation may 

23 bring suit in Federal court to compel compliance 

24 with an assessment levied by the Corporation under 

25 this Act. 
21 

S 1023 ES 

1 (e) INVESTMENT OF FUNDS.—Pending disbursement 

2 pursuant to a program, plan, or project, the Corporation 

3 may invest funds collected through assessments, and any 

4 other funds received by the Corporation, only in obliga5 tions of the United States or any agency thereof, in gen6 eral obligations of any State or any political subdivision 

7 thereof, in any interest-bearing account or certificate of 

8 deposit of a bank that is a member of the Federal Reserve 

9 System, or in obligations fully guaranteed as to principal 

10 and interest by the United States. 

11 SEC. 7. OFFICE OF TRAVEL PROMOTION. 

12 Title II of the International Travel Act of 1961 (22 

13 U.S.C. 2121 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

14 201 the following: 

15 ‘‘SEC. 202. OFFICE OF TRAVEL PROMOTION. 

16 ‘‘(a) OFFICE ESTABLISHED.—There is established 

17 within the Department of Commerce an office to be known 

18 as the Office of Travel Promotion. 

19 ‘‘(b) DIRECTOR.— 

20 ‘‘(1) APPOINTMENT.—The Office shall be head21 ed by a Director who shall be appointed by the Sec22 retary. 

23 ‘‘(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Director shall be a 

24 citizen of the United States and have experience in 
22 

S 1023 ES 

1 a field directly related to the promotion of travel to 

2 and within the United States. 

3 ‘‘(3) DUTIES.—The Director shall be respon4 sible for ensuring the office is carrying out its func5 tions effectively and shall report to the Secretary. 

6 ‘‘(c) FUNCTIONS.—The Office shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) serve as liaison to the Corporation for 

8 Travel Promotion established by section 2 of the 

9 Travel Promotion Act of 2009 and support and en10 courage the development of programs to increase the 

11 number of international visitors to the United States 

12 for business, leisure, educational, medical, exchange, 

13 and other purposes; 

14 ‘‘(2) work with the Corporation, the Secretary 

15 of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security— 

16 ‘‘(A) to disseminate information more ef17 fectively to potential international visitors about 

18 documentation and procedures required for ad19 mission to the United States as a visitor; 

20 ‘‘(B) to ensure that arriving international 

21 visitors are generally welcomed with accurate 

22 information and in an inviting manner; 

23 ‘‘(C) to collect accurate data on the total 

24 number of international visitors that visit each 

25 State; and 
23 

S 1023 ES 

1 ‘‘(D) enhance the entry and departure ex2 perience for international visitors through the 

3 use of advertising, signage, and customer serv4 ice; and 

5 ‘‘(3) support State, regional, and private sector 

6 initiatives to promote travel to and within the 

7 United States. 

8 ‘‘(d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Within a year after 

9 the date of enactment of the Travel Promotion Act of 

10 2009, and periodically thereafter as appropriate, the Sec11 retary shall transmit a report to the Senate Committee 

12 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, the Senate 

13 Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af14 fairs, the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, the 

15 House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Com16 merce, the House of Representatives Committee on Home17 land Security, and the House of Representatives Com18 mittee on Foreign Affairs describing the Office’s work 

19 with the Corporation, the Secretary of State and the Sec20 retary of Homeland Security to carry out subsection 

21 (c)(2).’’. 

22 SEC. 8. RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

23 Title II of the International Travel Act of 1961 (22 

24 U.S.C. 2121 et seq.), as amended by section 7, is further 

25 amended by inserting after section 202 the following: 
24 

S 1023 ES 

1 ‘‘SEC. 203. RESEARCH PROGRAM. 

2 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Office of Travel and Tour3 ism Industries shall expand and continue its research and 

4 development activities in connection with the promotion of 

5 international travel to the United States, including— 

6 ‘‘(1) expanding access to the official Mexican 

7 travel surveys data to provide the States with trav8 eler characteristics and visitation estimates for tar9 geted marketing programs; 

10 ‘‘(2) expanding the number of inbound air trav11 elers sampled by the Commerce Department’s Sur12 vey of International Travelers to reach a 1 percent 

13 sample size and revising the design and format of 

14 questionnaires to accommodate a new survey instru15 ment, improve response rates to at least double the 

16 number of States and cities with reliable inter17 national visitor estimates and improve market cov18 erage; 

19 ‘‘(3) developing estimates of international travel 

20 exports (expenditures) on a State-by-State basis to 

21 enable each State to compare its comparative posi22 tion to national totals and other States; 

23 ‘‘(4) evaluate the success of the Corporation in 

24 achieving its objectives and carrying out the pur25 poses of the Travel Promotion Act of 2009; and 
25 

S 1023 ES 

1 ‘‘(5) research to support the annual reports re2 quired by section 202(d) of this Act. 

3 ‘‘(b) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

4 are authorized to be appropriated to the Secretary of Com5 merce for fiscal years 2010 through 2014 such sums as 

6 may be necessary to carry out this section.’’. 

Passed the Senate September 9, 2009. 

Attest: 

Secretary. 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1023 

AN ACT 

To establish a non-profit corporation to commuthe United States. promote leisure, business, and scholarly travel to nicate United States entry policies and otherwise