Bill Text: NJ A2234 | 2014-2015 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Requires Division of Travel and Tourism to prepare and implement annual advertising and promotion plan.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-1)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2014-06-02 - Received in the Senate, Referred to Senate State Government, Wagering, Tourism & Historic Preservation Committee [A2234 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2014-A2234-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CELESTE M. RILEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Requires Division of Travel and Tourism to prepare and implement annual advertising and promotion plan.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning tourism advertising and promotion and amending P.L.1977, c.225 and P.L.2005, c.378, and supplementing chapter 1A of Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. Section 9 of P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-53) is amended to read as follows:
9. In the pursuance and promotion of a State policy on tourism, the division, at the direction of the Secretary of State, shall:
a. Provide and promote adequate opportunities for county and municipal participation, federal agency participation, and private citizens' involvement in the decision-making process of tourism planning and policy formulation;
b. Encourage all State, county, and municipal governmental and private agencies to do their utmost to assure the personal safety of residents and tourists both within and without tourist destination areas;
c. Take whatever administrative, litigable, and legislative steps as are necessary to minimize the problems of tourists in not receiving contracted services, including transportation, tours, hotels;
d. Attempt to reconcile and balance the activities and accommodations of the tourist with the daily pursuits and lifestyles of the residents;
e. Develop an understanding among all citizens of the role of tourism in New Jersey, both in terms of its economic and social importance and the problems it presents, through appropriate formal and informal learning experiences;
f. Cooperate with the Department of Education to promote throughout the educational system of New Jersey an awareness of New Jersey history and culture;
g. Ensure that the growth of the tourist industry is consistent with the attainment of economic, social, physical, and environmental objectives in any State plan and county plans that are adopted;
h. Continuously monitor and evaluate the social costs of growth of the tourist industry against the social benefits;
i. Emphasize in the State's tourism promotional efforts the high quality of the State's natural and cultural features;
j. Promote the tourist industry through such activities as Visitors Bureaus and similar county and municipal agencies, and assure that the tourist industry contributes its fair share of the cost of such promotion;
k. Request and receive from any department, division, board, bureau, commission, or other agency of the State, or any political subdivision or public authority thereof, such assistance and data as may be necessary to enable the division to carry out its responsibilities under this act;
l. In consultation with the council, review annually and, if necessary, revise or update the 10-year master plan developed pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-52), and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature containing an evaluation of the preceding year's activities and developments in tourism and the revisions recommended in the master plan;
m. At the direction of the council, operate the division's Travel and Tourism Cooperative Marketing Campaign Program; [and]
n. Establish and operate the division's Travel and Tourism Advertising and Promotion Program; and
o. Prepare and implement, annually, an advertising and promotion plan.
(cf: P.L.2007, c.253, s.6)
2. Section 8 of P.L.2005, c.378 (C.34:1A-53.1) is amended to read as follows:
In addition to the powers and duties of the division as provided in section 9 of P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-53), the division shall submit a report no later than January 31 and July 31 of every year on the tourism marketing campaigns of the division and the expenditure of funds appropriated to the division for tourism promotion to the Governor, the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the General Assembly, the Senate Wagering, Tourism and Historic Preservation Committee and the Assembly Tourism and Gaming Committee, or their successors. The report shall include, but not be limited to, the following information:
a. A description of the efforts of the division to promote New Jersey tourism in the six-month period ending on December 31 and June 30 preceding the respective dates on which the report is due. The report shall list: (1) the type of each promotion made, including but not limited to, promotions in the form of print, radio, Internet or television advertisements, tourism information or reference guides, tourism event calendars or the attendance by employees of the division at conferences relevant to tourism promotion, (2) the content of each such advertisement, guide, calendar or other promotional aid made, or conference attended, (3) the dates and locations where tourism advertisements were shown, when such guides, calendars or other promotional aids were made available, or when such conferences took place, and (4) the aggregate amount of money expended on each advertisement, guide, calendar, promotional aid or conference listed;
b. A list of entities that received, in the six-month period ending on December 31 and June 30 preceding the respective dates on which the report is due, State matching funds under the division's Travel and Tourism Cooperative Marketing Campaign Program and the division's Advertising and Promotion Program, the amount of funds each entity received from either program, and the amount of each of the recipient entity's expenditures made from the funds of either program; and
c. [A general description of the potential tourism promotion efforts the division is considering for the six-month period beginning on January 1 and July 1 preceding the respective dates on which the report is due. Such description shall be distributed to the members of the council. A member of the public may receive a copy of such description upon request.]
The report shall identify whether or not each of the efforts to promote tourism listed in the report is consistent with the provisions of the 10-year master plan developed pursuant to section 8 of P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-52), identify the relevant provisions of the master plan with which the effort to promote tourism is consistent or inconsistent, and provide an explanation of the consistency or inconsistency.
(cf: P.L.2007, c.253, s.8)
3. (New section) a. In addition to the powers and duties of the division as provided in section 9 of P.L.1977, c.225 (C.34:1A-53), the division shall prepare, annually, and submit to the Governor and the Legislature no later than October 1 of each year, an advertising and promotion plan for the following calendar year.
b. The plan shall include, but not be limited to:
(1) a description of the tourism advertising and promotion efforts the division is planning for the year;
(2) a timeline of implementation; and
(3) a description of the planned expenditure of funds.
4. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill requires the Division of Travel and Tourism to annually prepare and implement an advertising and promotion plan for tourism in the State. Under the provisions of the bill, the division must submit a copy of the plan to the Governor and Legislature no later than October 1 of each calendar year.
Tourists often begin making vacation plans several months before the summer tourism season begins. While the tourism industry operates in all of the geographic regions of the State and tourism occurs year-round, the summer season and tourism at the New Jersey shore have a significant economic impact on the State. By requiring the division to create and submit an annual plan by October 1 of each year, this bill will help ensure that the advertising and promotional efforts are set into motion each year in a timely fashion to attract visitors to the State for the summer tourism season.
