2021-10-26 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development

2021-10-26 00:00:00 - Joint Committee on Tourism, Arts and Cultural Development

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[MARTHA SHERIDAN (GREATER BOSTON CONVENTION AND VISITORS BUREAU):] [SB2248] [HB3387] Hello hi sorry about that. I was everyone today. Can you see me? You can see me right we've seen you. I'm actually here with my partner nancy gardella from Martha's vineyard and I think we're gonna sort of tag team on a couple of bills that that we wanted to talk to you about today regarding the timing for. One is regarding the timing for the184 distribution of um the tourism trust186 fund payments to the our Tcs and the other is about a fee a potential fee that um we could pay if I'm getting the bill number is now my apologies I inadvertently closed my documents. Mhm. 3 3. So I'm I'm testifying today in support of S. 2248 and H 3387. And again this is um a bill relative to the distribution of grant funds. Um So basically the grant funds that we receive our primary source of funding for destination marketing for regional tourism councils and um there is no date certain in statute that dictates when that money should be dispersed. Now in recent years we have Um worked a year239 by year on a distribution date and that has worked out well for us the ideal date for us in September one.

This year we moved the request to the end of September October one but with the fiscal year starting in july um there's always the potential without something Fermin statute that we could wait several months before receiving our funds and obviously we need Time to plan time to deploy. Um you know and the fact is we don't often find out exactly what amount were receiving until you know 15 to 30 days prior to the checks being dispersed. So um just like any business, we just need more predictability and more certainty around when those um funds will be received which will allow us to deploy programs in a very timely manner. I think292 we all know through previous testimony that we've made before you all and I appreciate your time today um that you know tourism right now is still still not back to pre pandemic levels by any stretch. And um anything that we309 can do to provide greater predictability for our funding levels so that we can plan accordingly and generate more visitation back to our communities would be very very helpful. So we're here to testify on behalf of those bills and I do thank you for your time and I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have.

[REP FIOLA:] Thank. Thanks Martha. I know you have another bill you want to talk about as well330 I believe. Um Yeah, I think nancy nancy gardella is on and I believe she is going to take that336 bill if she's Here Nancy. Okay, good. So so let's just finish up with you. So we've done the September one. This we had to make we made a provisional one time changes. Right? Uh We didn't make a universal change. Uh when have you typically receive the funds? If not september 1? As you have.

[SHERIDAN:] My my understanding is that in the past there has been quite a lag. I think it might have predated me. Um since I've started we have done these one off amendments that have allowed us to request a certain date. Um I think as opposed to us377 coming every year to ask for that date and again this year we were flexible in that we pushed the date back to October one. but I think it's just for us uh easier for us to plan and know that you know, without having to come back to every year to ask for a date. We know they're going to be in by the by september 1st are ours typically come even later at the boston Cbb. We do have the largest grant amount obviously based on the size of our our district and the revenue generated so we weight even a bit longer. But you know, the sooner we can know exactly when we can count on those funds hitting that bank account, the more strategic we can be in deploying those funds.

So has there been an issue because of the budget timing and potential overrides423 and you know and then bringing the budget back because they've been you know that been pretty much the rub. Sometimes they may not be available on that date or because I think in the past they actually um were not even all distributed at one time as well. I think there were times when the grants were broken up into different payments and actually um I do recall not in my tenure, but in my predecessors tenure there the grants were then cut before the full amount was dispersed. So obviously we don't want to run into that situation as well. And we would much rather you know have the funds on hand um on a certain date so that we know that we can plan for the whole year.

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[SEN KENNEDY:] if I could when you talk about the lag time, is are you talking about two months or four months or six months or you know, getting

[SHERIDAN:] I think it has been in the past several months. Yes. And you know the year the spending year begins on July one, so we're already two months in in arrears With the September one date.515 Um So if it goes beyond that to, you know, as I said this year, we did have agreed to the um that third month lag and that, but if it continues to go beyond that it really does make it difficult for us to plan. And of course we must deploy all of those funds before june 30th of the of the following year. So it really is just a planning issue. And I do believe that, you know, prior to us doing these one off bills or amendments for the date distribution, there was definitely a challenge with um the funds being dispersed in a timely manner.

[KENNEDY:] So most of the time, even though the funds have been appropriated um for this, you're not getting the money until the second half of the fiscal year. Right. And most is that fair to say.

[SHERIDAN:] Well in the, in recent years we have been getting565 it in a timely manner566 because we have come to you with one off bills to ask for it, but I think in um in years past there have been challenges with the timing where it575 goes well beyond the 2-3 month window.

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[REP FERNANDES:] Yeah, thank you, madam Chair uh Martha. This has been, has been really helpful. Can you talk about what this means for seasonal communities? Uh seasonal tourism communities like Cape and Islands like the berkshires because for a lot of people, they need to start planning their vacation in december and january. And so if you're not getting these funds until after that, I'm sure there is much more of an impact on those types of communities. So maybe you could shed some light on that.

[SHERIDAN:] Sure, Well, I would actually go, I would uh go further to say that the seasonal communities are really looking for shoulder season business as well. And that's where a lot of their programs are deployed is attracting people, you know, perhaps in october november to fill shoulder season. So if we know that we have these funds available in september, we do have the ability to promote those months as well. We We do work to promote our destinations 12 months of the year and it's just better for us to have the funds on hand and be641 able to predict. And you know, many of these are organizations, the RTCS really, this is their biggest source of funding. They can't sort of backfill if you will with other funds that they might might have. So this is really the only funding they get to uh to promote659 their destinations. So if they're lagging by several months, that means there is potentially a gap in promotion for those months.

Thank you.

Any other questions from the committee members have a seeing677 none. Thank you, Martha. Very helpful. Seems to to be something that would keep you from having to keep spending your time coming back here, wouldn't it? I do enjoy the company however, but if we could put you to work in other ways right back uh Bureau, but uh thank you Martha appreciate it very much. Uh I know that the next you're going to have nancy gardella uh speak on the same bill and another maybe nancy you could uh

[NANCY GARDELLA (MARTHA'S VINEYARD CHAMBER OF COMMERCE):] [HB3388] Uh thank you so much for having me today. Um and I appreciate your time and commitment to tourism across Massachusetts. Um I wanted to ask for your support for house bill 3388 presented by Representative Walsh um and this is really all about eliminating an administration fee that hovers over the regional tourism councils every year, sort of threatening the the impact of the grant amounts.750 So this is, so this is an administration fee that has shown up year over year um uh of over $600,000 that threatens to be applied to the overall allocation for the regional Tourism councils. And we have just like with the timing allocation come to you guys hear over a year to ask you to dismiss that administration fee and that has been the case. What would love to see is that to simply go away period as opposed to that having to be taken away from what goes into the towards and trust fund um and and lowering our impact.

Um So that's the gist of that bill and that that802 would be really Lovely to not have that hanging over our heads. You know, when we're, When we're looking at $6 million Tourism Trust Fund for the our TCS to have a $600,000 threat. That's that's pretty powerful. Um and so we appreciate your consideration on that. I would also like to add to Martha's testimony that um you know, other than in these couple of years of covid, every dollar that the our Tcs received through this legislation through the grant process is matched by private dollars. And I think that that's a pretty important piece um in the time of Covid, we couldn't necessarily ask our small businesses to match that market those marketing dollars, but in every other time other than, you know, last year and this year, um that's been the case and I think that speaks to the, the interest of the small businesses wanting these marketing dollars and knowing that by matching them um they help it go even further so they're investing in their future as well as the state, investing in their future.
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[REP TUCKER:] [HR3387] Great, thank you very much. I appreciate it. Thank you for taking me now. 3387 Jack deals with grants to Regional Tourism Councils through the Mass Tourism Trust Fund. What I'm asking here is that they be distributed no later than September one of the fiscal year allocated as far as I can see. And I've seen this work firsthand. Um These dollars are vital to tourism marketing. It's a very competitive world. If you've seen even in the boston tv market, we have other states that are marketing themselves to massachusetts and we can't fall behind our, our TCS are essential to the successful planning of our marketing, we really need to capture the market. I look at it by season and by area we have a great state that we want to showcase. Uh, we also need to make sure we do it by the season. We don't want Cape card for instance, to be getting their marketing dollars after the season already ends and we can put paint that picture across the964 commonwealth. It also allows the RTCs to have some certainty in the contracts that they execute.

They've got to be able to plan when preplanned all these, sometimes months and months ahead. We also know and I'm sure that you've heard that every dollar that we invest comes back exponentially to us. It's a tremendous amount of money that comes back from the investment. We've, we've actually gotten this, this bill, um, an amendment form through the last several budgets and it's been passed and it's been working extremely well. I think the time is now to, to cement this into the law post, covid we're seeing lots of competition in this space. We've got to make sure that massachusetts days a player and that we showcase our great state. I can speak personally from a destination in Salem, we've been hit very hard, unprecedented. And we've got to make sure that, that we built this back, We've got to get some momentum going and I think by doing this bill was signaling to the tourism industry1024 and the folks that we want to come here that massachusetts is open for business and we're serious about making sure that we get people here.

There's thank you. Tucker appreciate that very much Martha Sheridan was on just before you. Uh, so she also1040 spoke to this bill and there were a number of questions, does anybody have questions for Erica, greatly anybody here greatly appreciate your input?

[FIOLA:] I just, I just have one question if our budget somehow gets snagged, you know, And something happens on this, say it passed and September 1? Our budget. Do you think there could be amended language if the budget is certainly presuming and assuredly that the budget has passed? Yeah. And the money, if you know, would be distributed? Obviously,

[TUCKER:] Yes, exactly as you said, Madam Chair? I agree. Just exactly as you said, I think that's what the process would be pretty. That's a very good point.

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[FIOLA:] So I'm going to go back to the bill numbers and read them through and give a time for anybody who may have shown up to speak an opportunity. Uh, we're gonna talk to bill H3374 an act relative to procurement services for artists. Is there anyone here um, to speak on that bill. Okay, 21 twice. Okay. Um, uh, and again, because of this format, we know written testimony comes in from the sponsors and uh, and others. 337 H 3378. an act to expand membership opportunities in local cultural councils. Is there anyone here to speak to that bill Hearing? None. We'll go back to H 3388 for an opportunity for anyone else to weigh in and uh, Senate bill 2243 again and act to expand membership opportunities and local cultural councils um, as 2245, an act defining agritourism.

[KENNEDY:] [SB2245] Um, that's, that's my bill and um, and we have submitted written testimony or we will and I'm totally in favor of the bill. That bill was by request. The commonwealth of massachusetts does not have a, a definition for agri tourism and agritourism as we all know is um, is pretty, especially now during the fall season is evident throughout the commonwealth. So, um, it would be helpful if there was a definition. There are other states California is one that comes to mind, but there are several others that do have definitions for agritourism. And uh, and so this bill would just help to find what is agritourism and what is not

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[FIOLA:] Um so thanks, Senator Kennedy certainly is a a booming new industry if you will and and um1252 people continuing to learn how to how to maximize their um farmland and other agricultural industries. So um yeah, interesting uh anybody care to speak to that bill?

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