Mississippi’s tourism industry is continuing to recover from the economic recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The state’s economy has not been as heavily impacted by the pandemic as other states, which advocates attribute to the Governor’s position on avoiding government mandates and shutdowns. Danielle Morgan is Executive Director of the Mississippi Tourism Association. She says lawmakers need to invest in the state’s tourism industry, which brings in billions of dollars annually.
“We had a round one of that tourism recovery during the CARES Act,” says Morgan. “It was incredibly successful. As a matter of fact, other states have modeled their recovery programs after Mississippi. Competition's ramping now. We were at the forefront, but now they’re catching up to us. So we definitely want to make sure that we continue that momentum, we continue to grow as well as recover.”
Two bills are expected to be taken up in the House chamber in the coming days. One measure would create a Department of Tourism, the other would fund advertising efforts for the state. Representative Becky Currie chairs the House Tourism Committee. She says it is important to market Mississippi across the nation to attract tourists and bring in outside dollars.
“And you’ll see in television a lot of other states advertising, and we don’t do that very well,” says Rep. Currie. “But we are determined to make sure that we show other states that we are ahead of the game, we’re number one in the nation for recovery, and we want to make sure that people know about us and say ‘You know, I’d like to go spend a week in Mississippi.”
Several bills also are expected to be taken up by the Senate, including a measure to offer federal coronavirus relief dollars to tourism businesses affected by the pandemic.
