Compendium of Budget Information for the 2009 General Session
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Function The Office of Tourism (UOT) exists to brand and promote Utah's great experiences and destinations to visitors and citizens in an inspiring way to support and enhance economic vitality and quality of life in our state. Statutory Authority Statutory authority for the Office of Tourism is provided in UCA 63M-1-1401. The Office of Tourism is:
Funding Detail The Office of Tourism funding is utilized mainly for staff and an advertising budget. The Offices' base operations budget comes from the General Fund. In the 2005 General Session the Legislature created a Tourism Marketing Performance Fund with a performance based funding mechanism based on the increases in sales tax revenue for 21 tourism related industries and an allocation which declines yearly from the General Fund. There is a small appropriation from Transportation Fund to fund Welcome Centers statewide. Welcome Centers are located at the gateways to Utah. They provide free travel information and restrooms. Several of the Welcome Centers have kiosks with Internet access.
Function Administration is responsible for providing direction to the Office of Tourism. Responsibilities include applied research, coordination of tourism programs, strategic planning, and branding the state globally. Additionally, the Utah Film Commission reports to the Managing Director of the Office of Tourism. Funding Detail Appropriations to this program come from the General Fund.
Program: Operations and Fulfillment Function The Operations and Fulfillment program is responsible for media, publications, information services, distribution, interagency cooperation, scenic byways, and special projects. Staff distributes information to journalists, the traveling public, Web requests and 800-number inquiries. Scenic Byways Scenic Byway Program grants fund a variety of improvements and development of interpretive and promotional materials for 27 national and state designated scenic byways. Interagency and Public-Private Partnerships The Office of Tourism participates with the Department of Community and Culture to promote heritage tourism as a part of the Cultural Heritage Council (CHC). The office also has positions and/or attends the Travel Industry Association (TIA) Canyon Country Partnership, Ski Utah, Western States Tourism Policy Council, National Council of State Tourism Directors, Travel & Tourism Research Association, Utah Travel Regions and Utah Tourism Industry Coalition, Temple Square's Visitor Activities Coordinating Committee (VACC), and the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau meetings. Publications The Utah Scenic Calendar and the Utah Travel Guide are annual publications produced and distributed by the Office of Tourism. The UOT re-designed the Utah Travel Guides and the calendar to provide an increase in the visuals. Welcome Centers The Office contracts for the tourism information portion of Utah's five gateway welcome centers. Each welcome center received $65,000 for administration and operations. Tourism Trade The Tourism Trade Program educates and assists the travel industry about travel opportunities within Utah. The staff coordinates efforts between out of state travel advisors and in-state providers. Familiarization tours were conducted with media and tour operators from around the world. Throughout the year 60 familiarization tours were executed. The Office of Tourism maintains international representation in Germany, the United Kingdom, France and Japan. On behalf of UOT the organizations work to increase consumer awareness in their markets by working with the media. They serve as fulfillment houses to distribute Utah information to consumers. Funding Detail Funding for the Operations and Tourism Trade programs supports staff and Welcome Centers. Federal funds and Transportation Funds are utilized to fund Welcome Centers statewide. The program also receives dedicated credit revenues for services provided.
Program: Advertising and Promotion Function The Marketing and Advertising program is responsible for the overall Utah tourism brand, marketing, advertising and promotional plans. The overall goal of the Marketing Program is to increase the national and international awareness, inquiries, and tourism visits to Utah. Key measures include total tourism visits, length of state, repeat visitors, and person per day spending. Staff oversees the advertising budget/advertising agency contract, which includes the Cooperative Marketing Program. In addition, the Utah Sports Commission is partially funded by the Tourism Marketing Performance Fund. Increasing out-of-state visitation involves branding, advertising, sales, and promotion activities directed towards consumers, media, and the travel trade. Promotional and development activities are used in the selling of Utah to the same audiences and include sales missions, consumer and trade shows. Market research is used to identify these appropriate markets, as well as geographic, activity-based, and emerging markets. Efforts are coordinated with city, county, convention and visitor bureaus, vacation destinations, and inter-agency offices and programs. Funding Detail Funding for the program is appropriated out of the Tourism Marketing Performance Fund. Funding for this restricted account comes from General Fund appropriations and earmarked sales tax revenues. The appropriation for the restricted account shows up in the Transfer section of this report.
Function The Utah Film Commission markets the entire state as a destination for the motion picture, television, and commercial industries to promote job creation. Funding Detail The Film Commission funding comes from the General Fund and the Motion Picture Incentive Fund.
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