Jesse Scheckner
House lawmakers are taking a years-long effort to abolish or defund VISIT FLORIDA, the state’s public-private tourism promotion apparatus, to the local level.
In the most recent iteration of the chamber’s tax package (HB 7033), the House Ways and Means Committee put all 62 tourist development councils in Florida on the chopping block.
Just a single sentence would effectuate the change: “Any tourist development council created pursuant to s. 125.0104 (4) (e), Florida Statutes, as it existed prior to July 1, 2025, shall be dissolved no later than Dec. 1, 2025.”
That targets every tourist development council from Florida’s southernmost county of Monroe to its northwesternmost county of Escambia.
All but five counties in Florida have tourist development councils, and in recent years, the GOP-controlled Legislature has taken aim at them.
In 2023, House leaders proposed cutting state funding for VISIT FLORIDA and filling in the gap with a cut of each county’s tourism tax revenue. Large counties would have contributed 5% of their tourism tax revenues, while smaller, rural counties would have chipped in 2%.
VISIT FLORIDA, in exchange, would have directed 75% of its spending to assist tourism industries in rural counties, state forests and state parks.
Cape Coral Republican Rep. Mike Giallombardo, who sponsored the 2023 proposal, told the Miami Herald at the time that Florida’s wide-open policies during and after COVID — not its tourism marketing — made the state among the hottest destinations in the country.
Jacksonville Democratic Rep. Angie Nixon said the change Giallombardo’s proposal contemplated amounted to “Robin Hooding” funds from large counties to smaller ones.
Lawmakers ultimately decided against the move, instead infusing VISIT FLORIDA with a $30 million funding boost.
Now tourist development councils are in legislators’ crosshairs.
So are county tourism promotion agencies such as the Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau, Visit Orlando and Visit St. Pete-Clearwater — though nowhere near as harshly.
HB 7033 also includes language that would abolish any existing tourism promotion agency, but only if it doesn’t receive approval by its County Commission by Dec. 31, and only for the purposes outlined in a related resolution.
Those purposes must be in accordance with Section 125.012 (25) of Florida Statutes, which state that the objective of such an organization is to “publicize, advertise, and promote the activities and projects herein authorized; to make known the advantages, facilities, resources, products, attractions, and attributes of the activities and projects authorized; to create a favorable climate of opinion concerning the activities and projects authorized; to cooperate with other agencies, public and private, in accomplishing these purposes; and in furtherance thereof, to authorize expenditures for the purposes here enumerated, including meals, hospitality, and entertainment of persons in the interest of promoting and engendering good will towards the activities and projects authorized.”
HB 7033 contemplates several other notable changes, including new considerations for tourism development taxes, affordable housing and how taxes can be levied on parking spaces at RV parks, among other things.
9 comments
Victoria Olson
April 21, 2025 at 9:06 pm
Our state makes our money from Tourism and what common sense is this ending Visit Florida. Lights on anyone home in the brain common sense dept?
Foghorn Leghorn
April 21, 2025 at 9:16 pm
Florida needs no advertising. Everyone knows about the theme parks, beaches, weather, etc. Plenty of information available online.
use your head
April 22, 2025 at 12:14 pm
Oh there’s’ info online? I guess we don’t need any advertising about anything ever since it’s all online.
Common Sense
April 29, 2025 at 12:28 pm
Colorado abolished their tourism office for the same reason and after losing much market share and billions of dollars in revenue, brought it back. Took YEARS to rebuild the brand and visitation numbers. This is a huge mistake for Florida and one that will end in economic disaster for the tourism economy that fuels the state. By your logic, why is Coca Cola still advertising?
Michael K
April 21, 2025 at 10:16 pm
This is simply an end run on the bed tax. It’s a short sighted and ill conceived solution in search of a problem. But international travel is already down significantly due to American hostility toward other nations and the global economic chaos being inflicted by the current administration. And other markets will quickly fill the void.
The governor already forced Visit Florida to end LGBTQ travel promotion last year – a ridiculous bit of spite to bite the hand that used to generate significant revenue. Travelers soon learn where they are welcome and where they are not welcome. And again, other destinations will fill the void.
Foghorn Leghorn
April 22, 2025 at 5:58 am
The dollar is down against the Euro and other currencies. The US is now cheaper for them and yes they will come.
Michael K
April 22, 2025 at 9:43 am
A 9.4% decline in all international travel to the US is now projected for 2025 due to US tariffs, economic decline, uncertainty, trade, and border policies. Canadian inbound travel is currently down more than 12%.
MarvinM
April 22, 2025 at 6:23 pm
Well, the tourists sure weren’t in Hollywood Florida this past Saturday (4/19). I went downtown, walked around Young Circle, it was a beautiful day, and I could not believe how easy it was for me to find a close parking space. Some food places had a number of customers, but it was far from “busy”. From the lack of traffic, it felt like a weekday.
For those who don’t know, Hollywood is one of the places that Canadians used to flock to in the winter season. Quebec license plates on cars all over the place. I’ve barely seen any Quebec plates this entire season.
Because of what the head of our federal government is doing (and to some extent our current governor) , our state cannot expect the same tourist revenue we have had in the past.
If they were smart they’d plan for that, and not, for example, consider lowering the state sales tax because they think tourist based income will totally cover the difference.
It might have in years past. It will not now and for at least a couple of years into the future.
I do not envy the next governor of this state. They are going to have a hell of an economic mess to deal with.
PeterH
April 22, 2025 at 1:29 pm
This is the type of Florida Freedumb that will slow international travel!
Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez held his mother in a tight embrace and wept following his release from the Leon County Jail Thursday evening, where the U.S. citizen was held after his arrest for illegally entering Florida as an “unauthorized alien.”
You know this young man would still be incarcerated or worse …. shipped to El Salvador…. if his mother was unavailable to quickly bring her son’s birth certificate to a judge.