Congress pushes subsidies for tourism industry

Congress moved forward this week on legislation creating a federal program to promote international tourism. Tourism industry leaders are pleased, but perhaps not as pleased as the lawmakers and lobbyists who pushed the industry to call for such a program.

With their rapid rush to pass “lobbying reform” and their regular complaints about “corporate influence,” you would think congressmen find lobbyists annoying—or at least you wouldn’t expect lawmakers to try and multiply the number of Capitol Hill lobbyists. The case of the Travel Promotion Act (TPA), however, shows how lawmakers often directly spur the lobbying industry with which they confer over how to distribute taxpayer dollars.