STAND. COM. REP. NO.496

Honolulu, Hawaii

, 2003

RE: S.B. No. 1210

 

 

Honorable Robert Bunda

President of the Senate

Twenty-Second State Legislature

Regular Session of 2003

State of Hawaii

Sir:

Your Committee on Tourism, to which was referred S.B. No. 1210 entitled:

"A BILL FOR AN ACT RELATING TO THE HAWAII TOURISM AUTHORITY,"

begs leave to report as follows:

The purpose of this measure is to require the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA) to establish a registry of groups of state residents who plan to travel out-of-state as a means to market or promote Hawaii as a tourist destination.

Testimony in support of this measure was received from the HTA and Shop Hawaii USA.

This measure is intended to enhance the marketing activity of the HTA. For example, a Hawaii little league team traveled to Japan within the last year to play in a tournament. If the HTA knew about this traveling group in advance, the HTA could have coordinated some tourism promotional activity in Japan to coincide with the visit of the little league team. According to testimony of the HTA, it has long wanted to establish such a registry.

Your Committee believes that the HTA should have the ability to contract with a private entity having experience in tourism promotion and online marketing to establish and maintain the registry. The swift posting of groups on the registry and the constant updating of the registry require constant attention as well as expertise in Internet portal and website development.

As affirmed by the record of votes of the members of your Committee on Tourism that is attached to this report, your Committee is in accord with the intent and purpose of S.B. No. 1210 and recommends that it pass Second Reading and be referred to the Committee on Ways and Means.

Respectfully submitted on behalf of the members of the Committee on Tourism,

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DONNA MERCADO KIM, Chair