Travel and Tourism Bills Proposed in Congress

It’s summertime, and the start to the travel and tourism season! In the spirit of the season, POPVOX is spotlighting bills related to travel and tourism. Given that a large portion of Nevada’s economy is determined by tourism, I thought you might be interested in perusing a few of the bills in Congress.  International spending on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services set an all-time record of $153 billion in 2011, an 8.1 percent increase from 2010, and supported an additional 103,000 jobs for a total of 7.6 million industry jobs, according to the White House.

Issue Spotlight: Travel and Tourism

• S 2235 The Air Passenger Fairness Act prohibits the establishment by air carriers and airport operators of expedited lines at airport screening checkpoints for specific categories of passengers.
• HR 729 The Airline Passenger Bill of Rights Act ensures air passengers have access to necessary services while on a grounded air carrier.
• HR 3867 The Travel Transparency Act requires certain air carriers and their agents and ticket agents to disclose certain costs and fees.
• HR 1279 The Aircraft Passenger Whole-Body Imaging Limitations Act establishes limitations on the use of advanced imaging technology for aircraft passenger screening.
• HR 5741 The Jobs Originated through Launching Travel Act amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to stimulate international tourism to the United States (and S 2233).
• HR 3341 The Visa Improvements to Stimulate International Tourism to the United States of America Act (VISIT USA Act) amends the Immigration and Nationality Act to stimulate international tourism to the United States (and S 1746).
• HR 3039 The Welcoming Business Travelers and Tourists to America Act promotes job creation in the United States by directing the Secretary of State to address inefficiencies in the visa processing system that discourage overseas business and leisure travel to the United States.
• S 1663 The Travel Regional Investment Partnership Act (TRIP Act) directs the Secretary of Commerce to establish a competitive grant program to promote domestic regional tourism.
• S 1653 The International Tourism Facilitation Act makes minor modifications to the procedures relating to the issuance of visas.

You can weigh in at POPVOX relative to any of these bills. In addition to having your comments sent to your members of Congress, you can also share them via Twitter, Facebook and email if you so desire.