Funding for Brand USA — Legislation Reauthorized

ARDA would like to commend Congress and the Administration for reauthorizing Brand USA’s funding through 2027. As the destination-marketing organization for the United States, Brand USA helps increase incremental international visitation to the country, as well as spend and market share — and reauthorization allows for its continued positive impact.

About Brand USA

Brand USA is a public-private partnership created by Congress in 2009 to serve as the nation’s first cooperative tourism-marketing organization. Since then, Brand USA and its partner companies have together promoted the travel experiences available in the United States through innovative marketing campaigns. This international promotion is made at no cost to the taxpayer though a combination of private sector contributions, matching funds, and an international visitor user fee. Brand USA’s funding was put in jeopardy when the 2018 budget caps agreement diverted the user fee funding to the government’s general revenue. Funding Brand USA was slated to expire in 2020, but ARDA strongly supported the legislation to keep it funded — and the legislation passed with strong bipartisan support.

The Impact of Reauthorizing Brand USA

Brand USA’s funding reauthorization allows it to continue to market the United States and its destinations around the world, which will help America regain its lost share of the global travel market. Reauthorization also helps Brand USA continue to help the U.S. economy: In the last five years, Brand USA’s marketing efforts helped bring 6.6 million incremental visitors to the United States, while supporting 52,000 incremental jobs per year and making a $22 billion economic impact.