Editorial: Lawmakers looking in wrong place to fix state budget woes<br>

Our Legislature is considering privatizing the State Department of Tourism — a move that threatens one of Arizona’s largest industries and, in turn, our own tourist-driven economy.

Lawmakers are searching for ways to offset an expected $1 billion dollar deficit for fiscal year 2004 and have designated both the Arizona Office of Tourism and the Department of Commerce for zero-based budgets. This means each department will have to justify, more like fight, for every dollar they get.

Requiring government agencies to justify their budgets is fine. Actually, it’s great. The Legislature should take that notion and apply it more often (hint hint). But simply getting rid of these two offices would be a bad move.

Not only would rural Arizona suffer tremendously, but also the state would feel the bite long after the state’s budget deficit is solved — if it’s solved. Just a 10 percent drop in tourist spending would cost the state an estimated $98 million and we could lose nearly 45,000 jobs. Tourism generates nearly $1 billion to the state’s general fund. That’s money worth pursuing.

Locally, losing the Office of Tourism would cost the city of Williams at least $45,000 in much-needed matching funds. That’s a simplistic view since the lost resources of the AOT would seriously hamstring local efforts to promote Williams as a tourist destination.

“I’ll feel like I’ve lost my right hand,” said Donna Cochran, president of the Williams-Grand Canyon Chamber of Commerce.

To our local chamber, the AOT means much more than matching funds and grant money. It means losing a research clearinghouse that cannot be easily replaced. Chamber staffers utilize AOT’s resources to pursue leads, such as large tourist groups, or to track down statistics or other information.

Simply put, the AOT provides an infrastructure to rural communities, enabling them to compete with larger cities for tourism dollars. It brings various cities and towns together in partnerships to combine resources. For example, our chamber was able to get in on a national advertising campaign thanks to an AOT program. Williams’ economy would be hard pressed to support such a venture on its own.

During a legislative subcommittee hearing Feb. 28, some representatives suggested Arizona’s private sector could sustain the Office of Tourism. The attitude that tourists will flock to Arizona on their own is silly. Arizona is a tourism state. If we cease marketing, we will surely lose our market share in a market that’s already hurting.

Since Sept. 11, 2001, the tourism industry has suffered. Visitation to the Grand Canyon is down and the threat of a war in Iraq will likely keep many foreign visitors at home this year. The tourism industry is limping right now and doesn’t need a kick in the shin by our Legislature.

With visitation down at the Grand Canyon, businesses in that area will need marketing help perhaps more than ever. According to the AOT, Grand Canyon country is the second largest tourist market in the state.

Proponents for keeping the AOT point to Colorado’s bad experience after that state cut its tourism budget in 1992. Colorado lost about 30 percent of its market share in overnight pleasure trips between 1993 and 1997. The drop cost the state nearly $2.4 billion in tourism spending and $134 million in lost tax revenue just in 1997.

Our Legislature needs to understand how bad this idea is. One surefire way to send this message is with a letter or phone call to your local legislator.

Correction

In last week’s editorial, written by Editor Chris Markham, we reported that the Williams City Council waived a $5,600 fee for a sawmill being established in the city. The waiver was for a utility deposit, not a fee. The business would most likely have gotten that deposit returned after a year. The Williams-Grand Canyon News regrets the error.