At the annual governor's conference, the chief question is how to bring more tourists into Florida with so little money for promotion.
By MARK ALBRIGHT
Published August 5, 2003
JACKSONVILLE - With hotels, attractions and airlines headed for another weak performance in 2003, leaders of the Florida tourist industry are hunting for ways to double the state tax money used to promote their business.
Otherwise Visit Florida Inc., the non-profit corporation the state government pays to lure more visitors, will continue to be confronted with a steadily eroding source of revenue. That budget crunch was a prime topic of discussion Monday at the annual Governor's Conference on Tourism here.
All of the agency's state funding comes from a $2 per contract tax on car rentals, and those collections are forecast to decline for the third consecutive year.
A state legislator won a standing ovation from leaders of the hard-pressed tourism industry when he promised to introduce legislation next spring doubling Visit Florida's share of the car rental revenues to 32 percent. That would provide the agency with an extra $20-million.
"It's easily justifiable," said Rep. Don Davis, a Jacksonville Democrat who is chairman of the House subcommittee on tourism. "If we bring more tourists, they will pay more in gas and sales tax than we take from the car rental tax."
Addressing the tourism conference that he hosts, Gov. Jeb Bush said he supported finding more revenue for Visit Florida. "To be dependent on a single source of funds is not a good thing," he said, "when that single source is declining."
But the idea of increasing Visit Florida's share of the car rental tax is far from a sure thing politically because the rest of the money goes to the state's roadbuilding effort, which has a huge constituency of its own.
"This idea is long overdue," said Thom Stork, president and chief executive of the Florida Aquarium in Tampa. "But I'm not sure how the politics of this will work out."
Visit Florida's budget shrank by $3.3-million for the current fiscal year to $18.3-million. The agency laid off 20 percent of its staff of 126.
Overall, the car rental tax is expected to reel in $125-million this year, down from $141-million the previous year.
With other state agencies hit just as hard with spending cuts this year, some tourist industry lobbyists say now may be the time to lay low rather than ask for a big budget increase.
After all, 49 Florida counties now raise $310-million annually from hotel taxes. Most of it is spent on tourism advertising with a local or regional emphasis.
Also, Visit Florida is studying the rental car decline to determine if a shot of promotion could encourage those who visit the state to rent cars and thus increase the tax collection.
In recent years, car rental tax collections has dropped as the rental industry has faced a variety of financial problems. Business travel remains down. A slump in international visitors who rent cars for long vacations is only beginning to turn around. Many travelers who once flew are driving to Florida, so they don't need to rent cars. Meanwhile a wave of rental industry bankruptcies has increased discounting.
"Business is getting better," said Peter Guptill, international president of Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group who is based in Tampa. "But our industry still has problems to overcome."
The same could be said for hotel operators. While a busy summer high season has left many hoteliers encouraged, a Labor Day that falls in August cut the summer short. The fall is a slow season that relies mostly on meetings and conventions, an industry segment yet to get back on its feet. Bookings are still last-minute.
"Summer was good but overall for the year we will be flat because the meetings business is still lame," said Jack Healan, president of the 600-room Amelia Island Plantation Resort in Fernandina Beach.
- Times staff writer Mark Albright can be reached at albright@sptimes.com or 727 893-8252.
