State budget cuts tear into tourism marketing - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Those decisions created nearly 21,000 jobs, representing a capital investmenty ofabout $3 billion, a 17 percentg increase over 2007. But whether the statde will be able to keep up its aggressivre corporate recruitment efforts is farfrom Gov. Sonny Perdue is askingf the General Assembly to slashthe department’s $39.65 million budget by 17.9 percent for the rest of the fiscal year ending June 30 and by 21.7 percen in fiscal 2010. “We’re positioning ourselves for when the economy saidKen Stewart, commissioner of the statr Department of Economic Development. In looking for ways to plug a $2.
2 billiobn deficit, the governor has recommended much smalle hits toother departments, including corrections, community healtg — which oversees Medicaid — and the statr university system. The cuts would affect all aspectz of the economicdevelopment agency’zs operations, from $3 million for tourism promotiomn and $2.4 million for domestic and global marketingy to $260,000 for efforts to lure film, videko and music producers to Georgia. Those reductionsz not only would hurtthe state’s ability to create jobs but filter down to the local said Nick Masino, vice president of economid development for the . “Thd DED is typically the lead agency on any he said.
“To hear they’re havinh their marketing dollars cutis disappointing.” The state isn’t the end-all in the economidc development game. The Gwinnett chamber, for invested $1.7 million last year on job recruiting efforts insidesthe county. Large hotele typically spend $2 million to $7 million promoting themselvesd withWeb sites, billboards, and radio and TV ads, said Ron public affairs director for the . he said the state should do its part to keepsales flowing. “Our businesses spendf money luring tourists tothe state,” Fenne said. “We’d obviously like the state to spencdmore money.” The stakes are high: Tourisj in Georgia generates $34.
1 billion a year in direct economiv impact and $1.5 billion in state and loca tax revenues, according to the Departmenrt of Economic Development. Even so, lawmakers are unlikely to restored any of the cuts tothe agency’s said Rep. Ron Stephens, chairman of the House EconomixDevelopment Committee. Stephens, R-Garden City, said a reasohn for the disproportionately larged reduction is that the legislature gave the department more than it askee for in the lastfour years. Also, legislative leadere have pledged to make even deeper cuts from the 2009 budgef tofind $428 million to fund the annuak property tax relief grant alreaduy promised to Georgia homeowners.
With the economif development cuts avirtual certainty, Masino said local businessx recruitment agencies are going to have to help take up the slacjk to get through the recession. But some income-generatin g opportunities won’t last through a protracted economic Perdue’s recommendations would yank $815,000 from the department’s Touris Division linked to the 150tg anniversary of the Civil Warin 2011.