Finally, there is some renewed light in the award-winning Pure Michigan tourism campaign. But that light is more flicker than bright beam because of a dim bill moved Thursday by the Michigan Senate Finance Committee.
Faced with a nearly unanimous House package for long-term, sustainable funding for Michigan’s can’t-miss tourism promotion campaign, Senate Finance Committee Chairwoman Nancy Cassis, R-Novi, balked, and instead steered through $9.5 million in patchwork funding that allows Pure Michigan to limp along for the rest of 2010 at half its requested funding with no clear plan for 2011 and beyond.
“I don’t think this goes far enough,” said Sen. Gretchen Whitmer, D-East Lansing. “To me (full-funding as requested by the state’s tourism promotion team) is a no-brainer. “But reasonable people choose amputation over death, so I’ll vote for amputation.”
The funding proposal now moves to the Senate floor where there is still some hope of additional horse trading to provide full funding as requested by a standing-room-only crowd of tourism industry leaders who pleaded their case.
According to studies performed for the Pure Michigan campaign, state spending on the Pure Michigan ads return nearly three bucks in increased sales tax revenues for every dollar invested in ads.
The state’s market research indicates that the 2009 national Pure Michigan ad campaign – the first national ad campaign Michigan has ever executed – resulted in 1.2 million tourists who would not have visited the state if they hadn’t first seen the Pure Michigan ads.
“We can become a top summer tourism destination state,” proclaimed state tourism czar George Zimmerman in asking for a full $33 million in new Pure Michigan funding. “We will attract millions of new visitors and they will spend billions of dollars here.”
The anecdotal results of last year’s $30 million Pure Michigan ad buy were glaringly obvious to many in the audience, including Grand Hotel President Daniel Musser III, who told the Finance Committee that half the customers who booked the Grand Hotel’s top packages last year were from out of state, a dramatic turnaround from past years in which in-state tourists accounted for 70 percent of such package business.
Pure Michigan has won awards and plaudits across the globe as one of the best tourism advertising campaigns ever.
Without such sustainable funding, “many tourism businesses that once profitably served the needs of Michigan residents will cease to exist,” said Homestead Resort owner Bob Kuras in written testimony. “Tourism employment will slip further. Tax revenues to the state will decrease and Michigan’s recession will deepen.
Cassis denied the full Pure Michigan funding request as she and Senate staffers offered a tortuous lecture on state budget woes. Their argument… more money for tourism means less money for other state spending priorities like education and health care for the poor. But the lecture largely ignored evidence that the tourism campaign brings in more in sales revenue than it costs and thereby helps the state budget. There was considerable bickering over the extent of the return on investment, but the clear conclusion was that it’s positive ROI no matter how you slice it.
Even at the full request of $30 million, the wildly successful and hugely strategic Pure Michigan campaign would have accounted for three cents out of every ten dollars in the state general fund budget. Or, think of it this way… the $9.5 million in Pure Michigan funding approved by the Senate Finance Committee will have to last Pure Michigan the rest of 2010. But the Michigan prison system will spend more than $9.5 million in the next couple of DAYS.
As George Moroz, special assistant to the president at The Henry Ford stated softly but clearly in Thursday’s hearing…
To not pass full funding “simply makes no sense.”
15 Comments
Let’s make sure Novi doesn’t see a dime of the 9.5 million
Let’s make sure Novi doesn’t see a dime of the 9.5 million
Too bad our lawmakers never learn from the past. Michigan’s tourism industry has managed to stay alive despite the state’s evisceration of the budget resources to promote one of our strongest suits, our vacation playground! Not to do all we can to lure outside leisure dollars into our state is just ludicrous! We should be fortifying the tourism industry–it has the most potential, with quickest turnaround. Sure beats waiting for new manufacturing/green energy to get online…what are we waiting for? Our resorts, shorelines, fresh air and natural beauty are in place NOW!
If you spend a dollar and in less than a year have three dollars back, that is what any business person would call an amasing return. And even if you only had two dollars back, that would still be an outstanding return. Currently many businesses in Michigan are thankful if at the end of the year they have more than what they spent, even if it is just a few cents on the dollar.
This is even more basic than Accounting 101. If our Senators can’t see see this simplistic example of ROI and go with a great investment in Pure Michigan funding, then I question whether they should be serving on a Finance Committee.
Where is our leadership and common sense?
It seems to be obvious that the Republicans want to get rid of anything that helps our economy. They only want to cut, cut, cut; never adding anything. We need our tourism. Why are they so blind!!!!! Eunice
If the Senate Republican leadership can not see the need
and benefit for Michigan financially from the “Pure Michigan”
program adequately financed, then there is little hope for Michigan politically as it presently constituted. I would use stronger language than “making no sense”. I have used “Pure
Michigan” and found it a wonderful traveling tool not available in any other fashion.
You make a very good point, but the “Pure Michigan” campaign is just the tip of the iceburg. What do these tourists see and drive on when they arrive, unmowed medians and pothole ridden roads. The legisature suffers from the lack of foresight. If we don’t adequately fund our transportation network, they may visit once, but why would they return.
Michigan is an amazing state with so much to offer but our transportation network is blight to that image. Our tourism industry and eonomy in general will continue to falter unless legislators prioritize funding for infrastructure.
As a businessman told me recently: ” I’ll spend 99 cents to make a dollar any day!” Spending a dollar to make $2.70 in increased sales tax revenue for the state (not to mention the extra $45.00 that businesses collect in order to earn that $2.70 sales tax) is Pure Cash.
If the return on investment is what she says, we should invest a billion dollars. The return on investment would wipe out the deficit and allow us to cut taxes and give all state workers a big raise !
Granholm is a pathological liar.
The “Pure Michigan” campaign was a great success and the return on investment numbers presented are impressive, but what about Michigan’s second largest industry…agriculture? This industry contributes over $71 billion to the state’s economy and yet the Michigan Department of Agriculture, which is responsible for Plant Health Assurance, Protecting Food Safety, Motor Fuel Quality, Food borne illness response, Agricultural Business Development,and Animal Health Assurance, has had its GF/GP funding cut by 36% since FY 2000 let alone any appropriations to assist it’s growth. Tourism is a vital part of our state’s economic diversity, but let’s not forget the “hand that feeds us” as well!
I have not heard much about the bill to add $10.00 to the vehicle registration fee to supply funding to the state parks. I hope that it will at least be tried so we have money in the parks budget. It is an important part of Michigan tourism industry.
For Bob up there – that is a sick, twisted, Ignorant, unstable comment.
For ever venture there is a diminishing ROI.
The Experts in Economics, Marketing, and Business have come up with a number they feel is reasonable and provides the Results that Michigan needs and Wants.
That number is $30 million.
Simply Cromagnon-like tossing more money at something as an Extremist “I know it wont work” point of view, just makes no sense in a world of business.
More money may not produce additional results. Less money Surely does.
The right amount is well… the right amount.
When are the citizens going to stop blindly supporting Republicans who have no vision, no interest in helping anyone, and only have one purpose to getting elected….>
Stop Government from doing anything, Rip it to pieces, destroy its Authority over Businesses and Regulatory, and Put all the people at the mercy of the Select Wealthy Elite Few that prey upon people at every possibility using corporate Capabilities to do as they please when and where and to whom with ZERO repurcussions and consequences.
Concerned Consumer
We’ll stop supporting Republicans when Government one time, does something right. JUST ONCE !
How you drink the Kool Aid about Republicans being a select wealthy few, while Democrats are just common folk is amazing. I did not vote for a Republican the last election which shows how simple your thought process is.
Where is the proof about the ROI ? Should we believe the Governor ? She’s never lied to us before ?
Too bad comrade, the Republicans are going to take control and in a big way.
Look, The Republicans controlled EVERYTHING for a decade both in our state and federally, and all we got was disaster and cronyism at every level.
The Dems have only controlled HALF of our state congress for 2 yrs now. Jan 2007. And the other half has been doing nothing but political agenda pushing, and Obstruction and if you’re paying attention thats clear.
I havent heard any republicans put out any plans that clearly would help any majority of Michigan citizens in many years.
Im a conservative but im not republican. Theres no way these guys and their Policy of Tax Cuts for those already making Billions, who are already Sitting on Piles of money refusing to invest, and who are laying people off to increase profits, have anything worthwhile to do for our state or federally the same way.
If you folks decide to vote the dems out after only a couple years and vote back in the republicans after all these years they controlled our budget, our state’s direction, our state’s Taxation, our states policies, then you get what you deserve.
I just dont want that for me and my family.
I want progress and i want investment in the important things to grow our state and its economy and its communities.
Cutting everything and leaving our society to a “Free for all” hoping the profit mongering of private companies are somehow going to do the moral and just things after decades of outsourcing, fighting against fair wages and benefits, and fighting against keeping our environment clean, and fighting against owning up to their mistakes and or immoral decisions is a bad bad plan.
Bob, I dont drink anyone’s Kool aid, i look at the facts. You apparently dont. or you wouldnt be questioning easily accessible data because it doesnt fit your agenda.
Go Look. For once Go look and research.
You wanna accuse me or anyone else of simplistic thinking?
You Cannot Match 10% of what i have written, and you spout the same parroted fraud that conservative media entertainers spew forth with their edited videos and faked audio and falsified cherry picked, purposely wrong interviews and clearly politically hacked commentary.
Dont be a Parrot. Be a critical thinker with basis, not your pocket full of hearsay.