BILL ANALYSIS
AB 2592
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Date of Hearing: April 18, 2006
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON ARTS, ENTERTAINMENT, SPORTS,
TOURISM, AND INTERNET MEDIA
Ed Chavez, Chair
AB 2592 (Leno) - As Introduced: February 24, 2006
SUBJECT : California Travel and Tourism Commission
SUMMARY : Modifies the conditions and terms of appointees and
elected members to the California Travel and Tourism Commission
(CTTC) and broadens industry segments which may voluntary
participate in the program. Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires the primary business, trade, or profession of CTTC
members appointed by the governor to be directly related to
the tourism industry.
2)Terminates a CTTC commissioner appointed by the governor 90
days after that appointee ceases to be professionally active
in the tourism industry, or his or her primary business ceases
to be directly related to the tourism industry, unless, during
that 90 days, the commissioner again becomes eligible to
serve, and allows those appointees to represent only one of
the 12 tourism regions of the state.
3)Modifies the conditions of office for elected CTTC
commissioners as follows:
a) Automatically ends a term 90 days after a commissioner
ceases to be employed by or with an assessed business,
unless, during that 90 days, the commissioner again becomes
eligible to serve.
b) Specifies that terms will commence January 1 of the year
following a commissioner's election.
c) Excludes from the two-term limitation service during a
partial term.
4)Eliminates the restriction on contracts for voluntary
assessments from the gaming industry.
5)Makes other technical and clarifying changes.
AB 2592
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EXISTING LAW :
1)Creates the California Tourism Marketing Act of 1995 and the
California Division of Tourism in the Business, Transportation
and Housing Agency (BTHA) to promote travel and tourism to and
within California.
2)Establishes the CTTC, a separate, independent, nonprofit
corporation consisting of 37 members (the BTHA secretary, 12
members appointed by the governor, and 24 commissioners
elected by industry category in a referendum).
3)Authorizes the CTTC to levy assessments on specified
businesses which benefit from travel and tourism spending
according to referendum of the assessed businesses for the
purpose of producing a variety of marketing activities,
including advertising, visitor publications and cooperative
programs.
FISCAL EFFECT : None. This bill is not keyed fiscal.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose . The author indicates that this bill "is necessary to
update and make clarifying changes to the Tourism Marketing
Act with respect to the CTTC. Currently, the Act fails to
clearly state the parameters for serving as a commissioner.
This bill would establish or clarify such parameters. For
example, although the Act states how long each commissioner
shall serve, it fails to state when this term shall commence
or what the term shall be in the event a commissioner serves a
partial term. The Act also fails to provide for the situation
where a commissioner ceases to be professionally active in the
tourism industry. The Act currently prohibits voluntary
assessments from persons in the gaming industry. There is no
existing justification for this prohibition; thus, AB 2592
eliminates this provision."
2)California Travel and Tourism Commission . The Legislature
adopted the California Tourism Marketing Act of 1995 that
authorized self-imposition of an assessment by businesses that
benefit from travel and tourism. It also authorized the
establishment of a non-profit, public benefit corporation, the
CTTC, to oversee the promotion of California as a premier
travel destination. In 2001, the Act was renewed by assessed
AB 2592
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businesses by an 84-percent margin and will subsequently be
renewable by industry vote every six years. The act intended
that the state would match industry assessments, but budget
limitations have severely reduced the state's participation.
The primary focus of the CTTC is to develop and implement a
marketing plan that promotes travel to and within California.
In support of this purpose, the plan is divided into four
program areas: (1) Research and Rural Tourism Marketing; (2)
Communications and Visitor Information (i.e., media relations,
website, welcome centers, and collateral and fulfillment); (3)
National Advertising and Cooperative Marketing Activities; and
(4) International, Travel Trade Development and Marketing.
3)Voluntary Assessments on Gaming . Under current law, the CTTC
is permitted to enter into voluntary contracts with entities
interested in promoting tourism but are not in the category of
assessed businesses. However, the act prohibits contracts
with any gaming interest that conducts "faro, monte, roulette,
lansquenet, rouge et noire, rondo, tan, fan-tan,
seven-and-a-half, twenty-one, hokey-pokey, or any banking or
percentage game played with cards, dice, or any device."
According to the California Hotel & Lodging Association, "a
number of gaming businesses (primarily those operated by
Native American tribes) have expressed an interest in being
part of the overall effort to promote California as a tourism
destination. Because they are sovereign nations, they cannot
be subject to assessment?[but would be] valuable participants
in the state's tourism marketing efforts."
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
California Arts Advocates
Opposition
None on file.
Analysis Prepared by : Kellie Smith / A.,E.,S.,T. & I.M. /
(916) 319-3450