Title: Visit America Act
Policy area: Commerce

Summary:
Visit America Act
This bill implements measures to support the U.S. travel and tourism industry and to address the declining percentage of international visitors to the United States.
Specifically, the bill requires the Department of Commerce to develop a 10-year travel and tourism strategy with annual goals for the number of international visitors to the United States and for travel exports.
The bill also establishes the role of Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and Tourism, whose responsibilities shall include (1) setting an annual goal for the number of international visitors to the United States, (2) providing support for improved visitor visa processing, and (3) promoting travel exports abroad.
Further, the assistant secretary must develop and implement a COVID-19 pandemic recovery strategy to assist the recovery of the U.S. travel and tourism industry.
The bill also provides statutory authority for the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board, which shall aid the assistant secretary in developing and implementing the COVID-19 pandemic recovery strategy.

[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6965 Introduced in House (IH)]

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117th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6965

   To promote travel and tourism in the United States, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 7, 2022

    Ms. Titus (for herself, Mr. Case, and Mr. Young) introduced the 
   following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on Foreign Affairs, and the 
 Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 
 in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To promote travel and tourism in the United States, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Visit America Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSES.

    The purposes of this Act are--
            (1) to support the travel and tourism industry, which 
        produces economic impacts that are vital to our national 
        economy; and
            (2) to establish national goals for international visitors 
        to the United States, including--
                    (A) recommendations for achieving such goals and 
                timelines for implementing such recommendations;
                    (B) coordination between Federal and State 
                agencies;
                    (C) the resources needed by each Government agency 
                to achieve such goals; and
                    (D) the number of international visitors and the 
                value of national travel exports.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) setting a national goal for the number of international 
        visitors to the United States is vital for aligning Federal 
        tourism policy to support American jobs and economic growth;
            (2) setting a national goal for travel exports is vital for 
        aligning Federal tourism policy to support American jobs, 
        increase travel exports, and improve our Nation's balance of 
        trade;
            (3) the travel industry is an essential part of the United 
        States services exports with respect to business, education, 
        medical, and leisure travel;
            (4) the promotion of travel and visitation by the 
        Corporation for Travel Promotion (doing business as ``Brand 
        USA'') is vital to increasing visitation and articulating the 
        visitation laws of the United States; and
            (5) there is an urgent need for a coordinated travel and 
        tourism industry response and strategy to respond to the 
        current state of such industry and future unforeseen 
        circumstances that may impact the travel and tourism industry.

SEC. 4. ASSISTANT SECRETARY FOR TRAVEL AND TOURISM.

    Section 2(d) of the Reorganization Plan Numbered 3 of 1979 (93 
Stat. 1382; 5 U.S.C. App.) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``There shall be in the Department two 
        additional Assistant Secretaries'' and inserting ``(1) There 
        shall be in the Department 3 additional Assistant Secretaries, 
        including the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and 
        Tourism,''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Travel and 
        Tourism shall--
                    ``(A) be appointed by the President, subject to the 
                advice and consent of the Senate; and
                    ``(B) report directly to the Under Secretary for 
                International Trade.''.

SEC. 5. RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR 
              TRAVEL AND TOURISM.

    (a) Visitation Goals.--The Assistant Secretary of Commerce for 
Travel and Tourism (referred to in this section as the ``Assistant 
Secretary''), appointed pursuant to section 2(d) of the Reorganization 
Plan Numbered 3 of 1979, as amended by section 4, shall--
            (1) establish an annual goal, consistent with the goals of 
        the travel and tourism strategy developed pursuant to section 
        6(1), for--
                    (A) the number of international visitors to the 
                United States; and
                    (B) the value of travel exports;
            (2) develop recommendations for achieving the annual goals 
        established pursuant to paragraph (1);
            (3) ensure that travel and tourism policy is developed in 
        consultation with--
                    (A) the Tourism Policy Council;
                    (B) the Secretary of Homeland Security;
                    (C) the National Travel and Tourism Office;
                    (D) Brand USA;
                    (E) the United States Travel and Tourism Advisory 
                Board; and
                    (F) travel industry partners, including public and 
                private destination marketing organizations, travel and 
                tourism suppliers, and labor representatives from these 
                industries;
            (4) establish short-, medium-, and long-term timelines for 
        implementing the recommendations developed pursuant to 
        paragraph (2);
            (5) conduct Federal agency needs assessments, in 
        consultation with the Office of Management and Budget, to 
        identify the resources, statutory or regulatory changes, and 
        private sector engagement needed to achieve the annual 
        visitation goals; and
            (6) provide assessments and recommendations to--
                    (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
                Transportation of the Senate;
                    (B) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the 
                House of Representatives; and
                    (C) the public through a publicly accessible 
                website.
    (b) Visa Adjudication.--The Assistant Secretary, in consultation 
with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Homeland Security, 
shall--
            (1) explore strategies for improving visitor visa 
        processing with respect to--
                    (A) the maximum time for processing visas, by 
                visitation type;
                    (B) regulatory and policy changes needed to meet 
                the visa processing goals referred to in subparagraph 
                (A), including changes regarding technology, processing 
                centers, and training; and
                    (C) streamlining visa applications and 
                adjudications, including application design and data 
                collection procedures; and
            (2) explore opportunities to establish pilot programs to 
        integrate technology into the visitor visa adjudication 
        process, including video conferencing and biometrics.
    (c) Domestic Travel and Tourism.--The Assistant Secretary, to the 
extent feasible, shall--
            (1) evaluate, on an ongoing basis, domestic policy options 
        for supporting competitiveness with respect to the strengths, 
        weaknesses, and growth of the domestic travel industry;
            (2) develop recommendations and goals to support and 
        enhance domestic tourism, separated by business and leisure; 
        and
            (3) engage public and private stakeholders to support 
        domestic tourism.
    (d) Workforce.--The Assistant Secretary shall--
            (1) consult with the Secretary of Labor to develop 
        strategies and best practices for improving the timeliness and 
        reliability of travel and tourism workforce data;
            (2) work with the Secretary of Labor and the Bureau of 
        Economic Analysis to improve travel and tourism industry data; 
        and
            (3) provide recommendations for policy enhancements and 
        efficiencies.
    (e) Travel Export Promotion.--The Assistant Secretary, in 
coordination with the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Global 
Markets and the Director General of the United States and Foreign 
Commercial Service, shall work to promote and facilitate travel exports 
abroad and ensure competitiveness by engaging in, at a minimum--
            (1) promoting meetings, incentives, conferences, and 
        exhibitions;
            (2) emphasizing rural and other destinations rich in 
        cultural heritage or ecological tourism, among other uniquely 
        American destinations; and
            (3) promoting sports and recreation events and activities, 
        which shall be hosted in the United States.
    (f) Recovery Strategy.--
            (1) Initial recovery strategy.--Not later than 1 year after 
        amounts are appropriated to accomplish the purposes of this 
        section, the Assistant Secretary, in consultation with public 
        and private stakeholders identified in subsection (a)(3) and 
        public health officials, shall develop and implement a COVID-19 
        public health emergency recovery strategy to assist the United 
        States travel and tourism industry to quickly recover from the 
        pandemic.
            (2) Future recovery strategies.--After assisting in the 
        implementation of the strategy developed pursuant to paragraph 
        (1), the Assistant Secretary, in consultation with appropriate 
        public and private stakeholders, shall develop additional 
        recovery strategies for the travel and tourism industry in 
        anticipation of other unforeseen catastrophic events that would 
        significantly affect the travel and tourism industry, such as 
        hurricanes, floods, tsunamis, tornadoes, terrorist attacks, and 
        pandemics.
            (3) Cost-benefit analysis.--In developing the COVID-19 
        public health emergency recovery strategy under paragraph (1) 
        and additional recovery strategies for the travel and tourism 
        industry under paragraph (2), the Assistant Secretary shall 
        conduct cost-benefit analyses that take into account the health 
        and economic effects of public health mitigation measures on 
        the travel and tourism industry.
    (g) Reporting Requirements.--
            (1) Assistant secretary.--The Assistant Secretary shall 
        produce an annual forecasting report on the travel and tourism 
        industry, to the extent feasible, which shall include current 
        and anticipated--
                    (A) domestic employment needs;
                    (B) international inbound volume and spending, 
                taking into account the lasting effects of the COVID-19 
                public health emergency and the impact of the recovery 
                strategy implemented pursuant to subsection (f)(1); and
                    (C) domestic volume and spending, including Federal 
                and State public land travel and tourism data.
            (2) Bureau of economic analysis.--The Director of the 
        Bureau of Economic Analysis should annually update, to the 
        extent feasible, the Travel and Tourism Satellite Accounts, 
        including--
                    (A) State level travel and tourism spending data;
                    (B) travel and tourism workforce data for full-time 
                and part-time employment; and
                    (C) Federal and State public lands spending data.
            (3) National travel and tourism office.--The Director of 
        the National Travel and Tourism Office--
                    (A) in partnership with the Bureau of Economic 
                Analysis, shall report international arrival and 
                spending data on a regular monthly schedule, which 
                shall be made available to the Travel and Tourism 
                Advisory Board and to the public through a publicly 
                available website; and
                    (B) shall include questions in the Survey of 
                International Air Travelers regarding wait-times, 
                visits to public lands, and State data, to the extent 
                applicable.

SEC. 6. TRAVEL AND TOURISM STRATEGY.

    Not less frequently than once every 10 years, the Secretary of 
Commerce, in consultation with the United States Travel and Tourism 
Advisory Board, the Tourism Policy Council, and the Secretary of 
Homeland Security, shall develop and submit to Congress a 10-year 
travel and tourism strategy, which shall include--
            (1) the establishment of goals with respect to the number 
        of annual international visitors to the United States and the 
        annual value of travel exports during such 10-year period;
            (2) the resources needed to achieve the goals established 
        pursuant to paragraph (1); and
            (3) recommendations for statutory or regulatory changes 
        that would be necessary to achieve such goals.

SEC. 7. UNITED STATES TRAVEL AND TOURISM ADVISORY BOARD.

    Section 3 of the Act entitled ``An Act to encourage travel in the 
United States, and for other purposes'' (15 U.S.C. 1546) is amended--
            (1) by amending the section heading to read as follows: 
        ``united states travel and tourism advisory board; advisory 
        committee''; and
            (2) by striking ``The Secretary of Commerce is authorized'' 
        and inserting the following:
    ``(a) United States Travel and Tourism Advisory Board.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is established the United States 
        Travel and Tourism Advisory Board (referred to in this 
        subsection as the `Board'), the members of which shall be 
        appointed by the Secretary of Commerce for 2-year terms from 
        among companies and organizations in the travel and tourism 
        industry.
            ``(2) Executive director.--The Assistant Secretary for 
        Travel and Tourism shall serve as the Executive Director of the 
        Board.
            ``(3) Executive secretariat.--The Director of the National 
        Travel and Tourism Office of the International Trade 
        Administration shall serve as the Executive Secretariat for the 
        Board.
            ``(4) Functions.--The Board's Charter shall specify that 
        the Board will--
                    ``(A) serve as the advisory body to the Secretary 
                of Commerce on matters relating to the travel and 
                tourism industry in the United States;
                    ``(B) advise the Secretary of Commerce on 
                Government policies and programs that affect the United 
                States travel and tourism industry;
                    ``(C) offer counsel on current and emerging issues;
                    ``(D) provide a forum for discussing and proposing 
                solutions to problems related to the travel and tourism 
                industry; and
                    ``(E) provide advice regarding the domestic travel 
                and tourism industry as an economic engine.
            ``(5) Recovery strategy.--The Board shall assist the 
        Assistant Secretary in the development and implementation of 
        the COVID-19 public health emergency recovery strategy required 
        under section 5(f)(1) of the Visit America Act.
    ``(b) Advisory Committee for Promotion of Tourist Travel.--The 
Secretary of Commerce is authorized''.

SEC. 8. DATA ON DOMESTIC TRAVEL AND TOURISM.

    The Secretary of Commerce, subject to the availability of 
appropriations, shall collect and make public aggregate data on 
domestic travel and tourism trends by individuals traveling between 
points within the United States.

SEC. 9. DEFINED TERM.

    In this Act, the term ``COVID-19 public health emergency''--
            (1) means the public health emergency first declared on 
        January 31, 2020, by the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
        under section 319 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 
        247d) with respect to COVID-19; and
            (2) includes any renewal of such declaration pursuant to 
        such section 319.
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